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Sustainable Livelihood

In India 250-350 million people living in rural areas depend directly on harnessing their natural surroundings for sustenance or to earn an income. More than 60 per cent of the country’s workforce depends on agriculture, fisheries and forests.

Sustainable livelihoods offer both a conceptual and programming framework for poverty reduction in a sustainable manner. Conceptually, livelihoods connote the means, activities, entitlements and assets by which people make a living. Assets in this context are defined as not only natural/biological (i.e., land, water, common-property resources, flora, fauna), but also social (i.e., community, family, social networks, participation, empowerment, human knowledge and skills) and physical (i.e., roads, markets, clinics, schools, bridges).

The sustainability of livelihoods becomes a function of how men and women utilise asset portfolios on both a short- and long-term basis. Defined broadly, sustainability means all the people's equal access to and control of natural and other resources for sustainable livelihood.

This emphasises concept of human rights, human values, justice and equitable society. This guarantees the right to self-determination of the citizen for their social, economic and cultural development. Sustainable livelihood demands access to adequate standard of living including food, shelter, clothing, livelihood and employment. Minimum standards of sustainable livelihood could be achieved only after the equal opportunity of all the sectors of the people to employment and ownership and access to the natural resources.

Pratinidhi has promoted over 600 SHGs in Lucknow and Barabanki districts under different projects. Though these groups are yet to be linked to banks for loaning, internal financial transaction in all of them is going on. With the internal financial transaction, the group members are meeting their emergency needs. Union of small and marginal farmers have been formed at the block and district level for advocacy on NREGS and account opening of SHGs. Moreover, a greening programme has also been launched in 15 gram panchayats in Barabanki district.

The organisation is also promoting sustainable agriculture in rural areas in order to promote livelihood options. A large number of demonstrations on foot-operated pumps, kitchen garden, vermicompost, compost pit, nadep compost, etc., have been organised. Training for farmers have been organised in association with farmers' field schools.