The World Bank has announced an international development credit of $69.6 million for a watershed project to benefit 9,200 villages in Uttaranchal.
Over a period of seven years, the Uttaranchal Decentralised Watershed Development Project will maximise the potential of natural resources and increase the income of inhabitants in selected watersheds through socially inclusive, institutionally and environmentally sustainable approaches, the bank said on Thursday.
The project builds on the successful experiences of the Second Integrated Watershed Hills Project, also financed by the World Bank.
Numerous studies have shown that the Integrated Watershed project has had several positive impacts. It has increased the agricultural productivity while sustaining the natural resource base. For instance, the beneficiaries' incomes in project areas rose by 38 per cent.
The proposed project will expand the geographical coverage of these successful experiences so as to cover about 300,000 hectares in the middle Himalayas of Uttaranchal ranging from 700 metres to 2,000 metres above sea level.
The watershed development approach is necessary to sustain the productivity of natural resources and increase the income of inhabitants living in the fragile and erosion prone hills of Uttaranchal, said Talib Esmail, senior rural development specialist at the World Bank.
In support of the Government of Uttaranchal's decentralisation policy, the project will take the concept of participatory development to an advanced level by devolving responsibilities for planning, prioritisation, financial management, procurement and implementation to democratically elected village governments.
The project will strengthen the capacity of these village governments in a number of critical areas including the promotion of equitable participation by all groups -- even the most vulnerable such as women and landless.
The Uttaranchal Watershed Development Project has three main components. The first one will finance participatory watershed development and management by promoting social mobilisation and community driven planning at the village level.
In addition to government staff, non-government organisations will also be contracted to assist in participatory planning. This component will promote transparency by providing a budget envelop to each village government which will be used to prioritise, implement, operate and maintain village development and watershed investments.
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