Bhaat Mahudi; Rajasthan’s ideal village

Source: News Bharati      Date: 12/6/2011 4:01:16 PM

Villages have played a vital role in the development of the nation but the bare reality is that the face of villages in India still wear a deserted look. Facilities such as education, health, hygiene, etc are still hundreds of miles away from these remote regions, ultimately stunting the development of the region. Rajasthan Vanavasi Kalyan Parishad decided to invert the situation and initiated development projects in the region as a result of which Bhaat Mahudi village earned a position of being an ideal village.
A village youth named Ram Shankar, studied at the ashram chhatrawas, decided to earn the position of ‘Adarsh Gram’ for his village and along with his friend Bhurji Bhai, initiated the efforts in this direction. He opened a school in the village and started teaching there. Through his succulent language and polite behavior, he started uniting the villagers under the roof of development and thus the foundation was laid for future development. Today, villagers are proud that their village has become an icon of self-reliance.
Located in Kushalgadh tehsil of Banswara district, the salient feature of this village is that each and every villager is literate here. The entire village is free from the grip of addiction; habits such as smoking, drinking, chewing tobacco, gutkha, etc find no place in the village. Because of the implementation of modern technology, all the farms are properly irrigated. Two to three crops are yielded per year and 18 families have raised their economic condition by selling the vegetables produced at the farms. It is to be specifically mentioned that chemical fertilizers are not employed at any of the farms and the entire farming activity is carried out by using organic manure.
The courtyard of every house has a tulsi plant and a gomata (cow) that purifies the surrounding atmosphere. Vegetables for household consumption are cultivated at ‘rasoi vatika’ (kitchen garden) located in the backyard of the house. Gobar gas plant fulfills the need for cooking gas. Through mutual co-operation, villagers have built a Hanuman Temple where satsang is held on every Saturday. This village is has set an ideal for social harmony where Baba Jogi, in spite of belonging to Dalit community, is the temple priest.
A meeting of Gram Samiti is held every two months in which various issues related to village development are discussed and important decisions are taken regarding the welfare of villagers. Because of the efforts of Gram Samiti, vanavasi brethren who were affected by Pindwada National Highway project got an increased DLC rate as the compensation. Dhanga village, that was earlier deprived of educational facilities, is now blessed with a well-equipped school due to the Herculean efforts of the samiti. Adivasi brethren are now getting a correct value for their produce due to the welfare policies framed by the parishad. Two self-help groups are active in the village that serve as a great economic support for the people.
Deepawali is celebrated for two days during which people visit each other’s house for exchanging Diwali greetings. ‘Sneh-Milan’ programme is also organized. Dowry has been completely banned in the village and villagers have also welcomed the move whole-heartedly. Shehnai and desi dhol are used to play the marriage songs; even outsiders are not allowed to make use of mike during the celebration.
All villagers share each other’s joys and sorrows. Recently, a woman had a tumor and all the villagers contributed Rs 30,000 for her operation. From this, it is certainly evident that the hands that help are holier than the lips that pray.
Contact
Rajasthan Vanvasi Kalyan Parishad
Kalyan Ashram Pratap Colony, Hiran Magri, Sector 13
Udaipur- 313002, Rajasthan, India
Phone No.: +91 294 2484316 / 2484073
Fax:               +91 294 2484456
Email : info@rvkp.org
How to reach
Kushalgarh is located in Banswara district, approximately 65 km south of the city of Banswara.
By air: The closest airport is located at Udaipur. Udaipur Airport is a domestic airport and has frequent flights from cities such as Delhi, Jaipur and a few other places. The other option is to arrive at the Indore airport, which is well connected to cities such as Bangalore, Bhopal, Hyderabad, Pune, Mumbai, and Ahmedabad.
By train: Ratlam Railway Station on Mumbai-Delhi line is the closest railhead and this is a major railway station in the state. There are many trains that arrive from different parts of the country to the station. The station is located around 80 km from the city.
By bus: State buses run by Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh connect the city to many places in both the states.

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