Belgaon Dhaga Project

GSBG successful

2007-05-29T18:59:00.000-07:00

In February 2007, the GSBG completely repaid their loan to Ecselance International, 2 years ahead of schedule. GSBG's micro-enterprise model has been recognized as a role model by a nationalized bank, the Bank of Baroda and is being studied by several banks in Malaysia. 39 families each with at least 4 direct dependents and at least 6 indirect/partial dependents have benefited from the loans. GSBG will continue to work with the Bank of Baroda and a small cooperative bank. Congratulations to all those who helped make this possible.

May 2006 Update

2006-06-12T09:40:00.000-07:00

May 2006 Update

May 2006 Update

2006-06-12T09:30:00.000-07:00

The following report was submitted by Chandu Dhage, president of GSBG:
"After we repaid the last installment (our second) we have disbursed in May the following loan amounts to some new and deserving enterprises specially a much needed second hand farm equipment. This enterprise will serve the needs of a number of small farmers for whom maintaining bullock driven equipment is prohibitively expensive. Two married youth have been trained to be drivers who will be gainfully employed by way of hauling farm produce to the market yard, fodder for smaller diary farmers, and also bricks (we have a brick kiln business employing eight families) throughout the year which will ensure repayment of the loan on time.

We are also particularly delighted to help a young widow with her plants nursery project.

It is very heartening to see so many new young farmers who are coming forward to invest in drip irrigation projects as they have seen with their own eyes drip's benefits such as water conservation, better yield due to healthy root zones development of plants, controlled micro nutrient flow, effective week control, etc."

2006-06-12T09:28:00.000-07:00

Three new drip irrigation loans were issued to local farmers in May. The loans are presented by the GSBG president, Chandu Dhage.

2006-06-12T09:24:00.000-07:00

Mr. Rama Dhage purchased a second hand tractor with his loan of Rs 50,000.

December 2005 Update

2006-01-06T18:23:00.000-08:00

December 2005 Update

December 2005 Update

2006-01-06T18:17:00.000-08:00

December had it's share of good and bad news. First the bad news. Ashok's computer business has suffered a set back due to non availability of electric supply for nearly 15 hours a day. They had to sadly close down two branches. Solar power is prohibitively expensive. Now the good news. The plant nursery started by Yuvraj and Devraj is doing very well. It is the most profitable, had the greatest impact on neighboring villages, and was judged the most environmentally friendly by the Agriculture College and government extension officers.

2006-01-06T18:15:00.000-08:00

Yuvraj and Devraj brother's nursery, the best enterprise of the past quarter.

October 2005 Update

2005-12-28T17:40:00.000-08:00

October 2005 Update

October 2005 Update

2005-12-28T17:33:00.000-08:00

Finally the rains bid adieu. This past week was dry and there is a crispness of autumn in the air. This month, the GSBG and others in Belgaon Dhaga hosted a marathon in which over 120 youth from the cluster villages participated including friends in the govt, private, and NGO sectors. The highlight was the training camp conducted by two grand old men who have retired from govt services and have committed their lives to training the youth in health care. On the economic side, there was a loan recovery problem with a saree vendor. The GSBG members took responsibility of handling the situation with care and prowess and, with her consent, a portion of her salary from her govt job will be deducted to repay the loan.

2005-12-28T17:32:00.000-08:00

Marathon event sponsored by GSBG

Monsoon Update

2005-12-28T17:29:00.000-08:00

Monsoon Update

Monsoon Update

2005-12-28T17:20:00.000-08:00

During the monsoon season that included four months of rain, Belgaon Dhaga faced the wrath of severe floods. Our entire farmland in the community was under water for a devastatingly long spell, destroying all the standing crops raised on drip irrigation systems. Nevertheless, the community has not lost an ounce of their spirits. Fresh crops can be seen all over. The community participated in welcoming Ganesha, the elephant God of prosperity and auspicious beginnings, who is also the most revered deity of our state, with rather low key festivities this year in which people of all communities participate in praying for well being. During the monsoon season our economic activities (mostly farming) has slowed down some including computer classes due to erratic supply of electricity.

2005-12-28T17:18:00.000-08:00

Belgaon Dhaga farms under water

July 2005 update

2005-12-28T17:16:00.000-08:00

July 2005 Update

July 2005 Update

2005-12-28T17:12:00.000-08:00

GSBG members are working on two major projects for finalisation: 1) Ashok's printing business and 2) an all women's raisin making enterprise. GSBG has also just given a loan to a very deserving family from the Dalit community who will sell excess vegetables from Belgaon Dhaga in the nearby market.

2005-12-28T17:11:00.000-08:00

Mrs. Sonawane's vegetable shop

May 2005 Update

2005-06-09T19:56:00.000-07:00

May 2005 Update

May 2005 Update

2005-06-09T19:42:00.000-07:00

In May, two interns sponsored by Ecselance International visited Belgaon Dhaga, Yoshi Dember from Colorado, and Rutul Naik from Mumbai. They were working on a monitoring and evaluation report as well as producing a documentary on the economic development in the village. Their experience can best be summarized in the words of Yoshi as he refers to Belgaon Dhaga as the Village of Hope.
"Traveling within the small rural village of Belgaon Dhaga has transformed my understanding of what it truly means to be an entrepreneur. A very tough question in itself: What is an entrepreneur? Textbooks may say:
- Someone who is willing to take risks in a new business venture.
- An innovator that will take advantage of a profitable opportunity.
- Someone who is willing to do what others don't.
Though these are all commendable goals, none define the true nature of what the ambiguous French term really means; a nature that eluded me until now. A nature that exists in the hearts of the entrepreneurs of Belgaon Dhaga.... never had it occured to me until I witnessed the possbility of truly changing the world for the better through my experience in The Village of Hope. I am returning home a grateful learner."

Also in May, the fish being raised in Chandu's irrigation pond have matured to the point of being ready to sell to local fisherman. Another new enterprise is born.

2005-06-09T19:40:00.000-07:00

A big catch from Chandu's irrigation pond. There are many more where this came from.

2005-06-09T19:38:00.000-07:00

Yoshi samples milk from Vishu's dairy during his two-week internship in Belgaon Dhaga.

April 2005 Update

2005-05-01T19:36:00.000-07:00

April 2005 Update

April 2005 Update

2005-05-01T19:21:00.000-07:00

April was a busy month since it gave birth to two more new enterprises and the installation of the drip irrigation systems was started. Up until recently, Dnyaneshwar suffered from a poor image of himself because of his extremely weak economic situation. He never speaks in any of the GSBG meetings. However, the GSBG members continued to encourage him and were very happy when he agreed to undergo welder training sponsored by the GSBG. After the training, GSBG arranged for Dnyaneshwar to obtain a welding machine to start his own business. He has already fabricated a green house for the other new business that started in April.

The other new business was a vegetable nursery started by Datttu, the son of a local farmer. He attended a training program in Pune and is now selling tomato, bitter gourd, and egg plant saplings to surrounding villages. Dattu plans to have six employees to begin with.

Also in April, the drip irrigation equipment was received and installation has begun. The results of many weeks of training will now start to bear fruit (and vegetables).

A guest who visited Belgaon Dhaga recently made the following comment: "You are saving a great brain drain from happening. These young rurual talents would otherwise be wasted in being treated like doormats in most urban settings. Besides they are creating permanent employment opportunities for so many other dependents who would otherwise flee to cities in search of food - especially in the dry season."

2005-05-01T19:20:00.000-07:00

Chandu and several local farmers look over the drip irrigation equipment they have received and plan to install for the next crop cycle.

2005-05-01T19:17:00.000-07:00

Dattu showing some vegetables from his newly opened vegetable nursery.

2005-05-01T19:14:00.000-07:00

Dnyaneshwar receives his new mobile welding unit.

March 2005 Update

2005-04-18T19:43:00.000-07:00

March 2005 Update

March 2005 Update

2005-04-18T10:32:00.000-07:00

The month of March continued to focus on training of potential entrepreneurs in farming and jewelery making. The farmers concentrated on new drip irrigation methods while the jewelery makers learned new techniques. In addition, a new member joined the GSBG self-help group. A short summary from Vinod Parekh describes the activities:
"The highlight of this month is a young farmer from the Dalit (formerly the so called untouchable) community joining GSBG from the next door village Rajwada. It was a treat for me to observe the processes of:
1) The overcoming of rigid resistance to accept newer/appropriate technology on the part of the older generation;
2) The mingling of different communities and especially the role of the youth, their open mindedness and the general mentality to get out of one's cubby-holed mentality - and above all striking a win-situation with the older generation;
3) The effectiveness of the leadership training put into practice by my once 'shadows', the earlier recipients of the loans. It is dawning on me that I am becoming their shadow!"

2005-04-18T10:30:00.000-07:00

Training in drip irrigation continues for the local farmers who will be installing equipment from a well renowned company called the EPC Ltd. (March 2005)

2005-04-18T10:27:00.000-07:00

Kamala Parekh and Vibha Patil are working with local women to provide training in jewelery making. (March 2005)

February 2005 update

2005-03-14T18:26:00.000-08:00

February 2005 Update

February 2005 update

2005-03-14T18:18:00.000-08:00

Bridging the gap between the urban 'haves' and the rural 'have-nots' by way of selling village handicrafts, highlights the activities in February. Kamala Parekh and Vibha Patil organized two jewelery exhibitions in the nearby large city of Nashik. These events went very well and created a lot of interest in the jewelery made by the Belgaon Dhaga women entrepreneurs.

Also in February, a drip irrigation expert from International Development Enterprises (IDE) visited Chandu's water pond and organized a workshop on Water Management. Ten young farmers will be installing drip irrigation systems using loans provided by the local self-help group, GSBG. This training workshop will allow them to get the maximum benefit from their new water systems.

2005-03-14T18:15:00.000-08:00

Unique jewelery dolls created local women.

2005-03-14T18:13:00.000-08:00

Two jewelery exhibitions were held in Nashik to show the products created by the Belgaon Dhaga women entrepreneurs.

2005-03-14T18:11:00.000-08:00

The local farmers who will be installing drip irrigation received a demonstration during a water management workshop.

January 2005 Update

2005-02-15T18:35:00.000-08:00

January 2005 Update

January 2005 Update

2005-02-15T18:27:00.000-08:00

During January, a lot of training was accomplished during a trip to Pune. Farmers who were selected for the drip irrigation loan received training in irrigation techniques and alternate agro practices. Also, several GSBG members and potential members received an introductory training in bee keeping and vermiculture, which may be the basis of future businesses, at the Pune bee research centre.

GSBG members hosted two sets of university students for poultry farming training and micro enterprise management training.

With the help of scholarships given by a corporate executive, two young men, Deepak and Sunil form the nearby village of Vasali, received computer training from Ashok so that they will be able to start a computer training centre in Vasali.

On January 31, the borrowers presented the first loan repayment check to Ecselance International. This was truly a monumental day and there was a great sense of achievement on the part of all GSBG members.

2005-02-15T18:22:00.000-08:00

The happiest day in the life of GSBG is when the first loan payment was made with interest a day before the due date (January 31, 2005)

2005-02-15T18:20:00.000-08:00

Vishnu's dairy (which is one of the original five businesses) has become a milk collection centre for new mini-dairies that have also been started by GSBG. (January 2005)

2005-02-15T18:18:00.000-08:00

A young enthusiast learns bee keeping at the Pune bee research centre. (January 2005)

2005-02-15T18:16:00.000-08:00

Farmers learn about irrigation and alternate agro practices in Pune. (January 2005)

December 2004 Update

2005-02-15T18:11:00.000-08:00

December 2004 Update

December 2004 Update

2005-02-15T18:03:00.000-08:00

During the month of December, the GSBG trained women enterpreneurs (mostly from the poorest section) including those who will start dry fish trading, sari retailing, door-to-door vegetable and fruit vending, mini-beauty parlour and henna painting, and jewelry making.

The jewelry makers were trained by Vibha Patil, one of the GSBG advisory board members. The sari retailers were trained by Kamala Parekh, also a GSBG advisory board member. The beauty parlour business training was done by a hired expert.

Also in December, VV Ramanan and his family, one of the Ecselance International directors, visited with GSBG members in Belgaon Dhaga. The highlight of the visit was the inauguration of the second branch of Ashok's computer training academy.

2005-02-15T17:54:00.000-08:00

One of the new women-owned businesses is door-to-door vegetable vending as shown in this picture. (December 2004)

2005-02-15T17:51:00.000-08:00

VV Ramanan, an Ecselance International Director, is inaugurating the second branch of the Arthava Computer academy in Belgaon Dhaga village. (December 2004)

Project history

2005-02-13T19:05:00.000-08:00

History of the Belgaon Dhaga village project

Project history

2005-02-13T18:41:00.000-08:00

The Belgaon Dhaga project started on November 1, 2003 at a community meeting held by Vinod Parekh, the Village Earth representative. In that meeting, the community decided that economic development was their highest priority. Several people at the meeting expressed their desire to start small businesses and agreed to put together a proposal including a budget. On December 1, 2003, an Entrepreneur Self Help Group was formed consisting of the people who wanted to start businesses. The group was called Gramudyog Swayamsahayata Bachat Gat (GSBG). An advisory board made up of local business people, Rotary club members, and university professors was formed to advise GSBG on marketing and financial matters. The potential entrepreneurs started receiving training in general business skills as well as the particular skills for the businesses they wanted to start.

February 20, 2004 was a big day for the first five entrepreneurs that received their loan checks. The first five businesses were started by Ashok (Computer training academy), Hiraman (water tanker business), Chandu (irrigation pond), Thorat (village celebration equipment rental), and Vishnu (water buffalo dairy). All of these businesses were up and running by March 2004. They have been expanding ever since.

In October and November of 2004, a series of new, women owned businesses were proposed by local women to GSBG. These businesses included a tailoring business, a sari retailing business, vegetable vending, jewelry making, and henna application. It was agreed to provide training to these women so that their businesses could be started. The tailoring business was the first one to open.

Economic development is starting to take hold in Belgaon Dhaga and nearby villages are looking to do the same. The micro enterprise project will be expanding into the villages of Pimpalgaon Bahula, Rajwada, Vasali, Velholi, and Jawahan in 2005.

2005-02-13T18:38:00.000-08:00

In October of 2004, several women owned businesses were started. One of these was a tailoring business.

2005-02-13T18:36:00.000-08:00

The water buffalo dairy shed was completed in March 2004 and there are now 27 water buffalo providing milk to the community.

2005-02-13T18:34:00.000-08:00

Ashok's computer training academy was opened in March 2004 with great celebration.

2005-02-13T18:32:00.000-08:00

After the monsoon season of 2004, Chandu's irrigation pond was full and is now being used to grow fish and provides sufficient water to raise a second crop each year.

2005-02-13T18:29:00.000-08:00

The village celebration equipment rental business owned by Thorat was another of the orginal five businesses started in March 2004.

2005-02-13T18:26:00.000-08:00

Hiraman's water tanker is one of the original five businesses started in March 2004.

2005-02-13T18:23:00.000-08:00

Construction of the shed for the water buffalo dairy project was started in March 2004.

2005-02-13T18:21:00.000-08:00

In March 2004, work started on the irrigation pond project.

2005-02-13T18:19:00.000-08:00

On February 20, 2004 the first five entrepreneurs received their loan checks.