Hope returns to Ehsanpur

“I am extremely happy to have my own home and am delighted to see my children going to a primary school after such a long gap. I am particularly happy for my son’s newfound skills in masonry which have raised his income and greatly impacted the lifestyle.”
These were the sentiments of Rashida Begum, whose house was destroyed during heavy rains in 2010 and she was rendered penniless as the gushing waters took away the entire belongings.
She is so naïve that she does not know what the ownership of the houses in the name women meant to be. Being a contented soul, she is thankful to God and all praise for those who provided them with shelter.
Similar are the feelings of 60-year-old Hafeez Mai: “We have lived without electricity and other basic necessities of life since decades. It is really a new world for us,” pointing towards the solar panels.
Women like them belonging to six hamlets along the Indus have never dreamt that one day they will own houses in their names, not their spouses. These women became homeless overnight and all this happened after a national catastrophe in the shape of floods that wreaked havoc across Pakistan, leaving thousands of villagers homeless and utterly desolate.
One of the worst flood-affected areas was Muzaffargarh district in Southern Punjab. Its Kot Addu Tehsil was badly affected and over two-thirds of the farmland of over 200 revenue villages was washed away. Being the worst hit, areas in Kot Addu Tehsil drew the attention of the authorities concerned. Once the rescue work was done then started rehabilitation of the flood-affected people.
The Punjab government allocated 20 acres to Pakistan Poverty Alleviation Fund (PPAF) in Seed Farm, Ehsanpur, for the development of a state-of-the-art village. The fund, through a tripartite partnership with local Engro Foundation and Farmers Development Organization, carefully selected beneficiaries from six hamlets —- Basti Mumlee, Basti Shadi Wala, Basti Gaidry, Basti Rajab Pari Wala, Basti Kitha Chitt Wala and Basti Bukhsh Wala —- in Loomarwala Union Council through social mobilisation and set up a model village with the name of Ittehad.
Under government’s instructions, a poverty scorecard exercise was carried out to ascertain the level of poverty among the benefiting communities while opinion of locals was also given due weight in the selection of beneficiaries from the hamlets or villages.
The next step was the formation of community organisations so that they could take control of their own development and could reach common decisions for their own good and peaceful living in new environs. Community organisations were named after their respective hamlets. Orientation sessions were organised with the members regarding Ehsanpur Model Village project, and they were introduced to all the partners/stakeholders and their respective roles. The community organisations’ members were also briefed on salient features of the project, including homes, sewage, and electricity supply, space for kitchen gardening, training, health and education facilities in the model village.
The community organisations members were also informed of the terms and conditions, application process, affidavit, labour and financial contribution they had to make for the construction of the model village. All community organisations members are saving Rs 150 per member/month and the amount is being deposited with the bank account of the respective community organisation. As all residents of the selected hamlets belonged to different tribes and clans and hence had different cultures and norms, the village layout plan comprised six blocks. Each block has been assigned to accommodate the beneficiaries of one particular hamlet to ensure peace and harmony as well as preserving their social fabric. Ownership of the houses was given in the name of women and surprisingly no male member objected to the proposal.
As many as 39 communities’ members were selected for three months comprehensive civil works training in masonry, steel-fixing and shuttering carpenter for the construction of the housing units. All of them underwent trainings and took part in the construction of their own houses and other facilities at the model village.
“The training course was so designed to cover all aspects from basics to advance, therefore, it provided us with an excellent opportunity for better understanding of the subject to those who even did not have prior knowledge of construction,” local resident Muhammad Yousaf said, adding that the illiterate participants were given basic education such as writing their names and simple mathematical calculations so that they could understand and learn their respective trades easily.
“We are happy and feel motivated because of various skills imparted to us, and consider our future secured now. We are confident to improve our living standards and will provide better education to our children.”
He said that the training had benefited them a lot and would go a long way in becoming a permanent source of their earning.
It is a fact that there was a huge need of vocational training for community members not only in construction but also in other trades like plumbing/pipe fitting, welding etc.
As many as 166 housing units have been constructed and handed over to the selected beneficiaries. Spread over a seven-marla piece of land, each housing unit consists of two rooms, a veranda, a washroom, a bricked stove and some space for kitchen gardening.
On top of all, independent off-grid solar energy panels have been installed at every housing unit for round-the-clock power supply, avoiding recurring costs and introducing alternative energy solutions in the wake of energy crisis. These solar panels provide uninterrupted power supply to the households without any cost.
Connected to the solar panels are 18 streetlights that have also been installed in the village. The streets of the model village have been bricked a sewerage, and sanitation plan has also been put in place to avoid any inconvenience during rainy season.
There is a park for children in every block. Livestock enclosures have been constructed for animals. Besides a shopping area, an efficient sewerage system has been laid down. Tree plantation has also been ensured to protect and improve the environment.
Management committees have been formed to look after the maintenance and long term sustainability, and ensure cleanliness, protection of livestock, security, provisioning of water for plantation, etc. Paying special attention towards the education of children, the PPAF has conducted a baseline assessment of four schools in Ehsanpur. Rakh Seed Farm and Yousuf Wala schools have been selected for education project interventions and school management committees formed at both these institutions. Renovation of both these schools has been done and over 300 children have so far enrolled in these schools. An adult literacy programme is also being run and 150 females and 70 males have been registered for studies. On the demand of women, a Koonder Training Shed has been built for them so that they could earn some livelihood for their families. Koonder is a self-growing plant which is used for making prayer mats. As many as 20 female community members have been imparted training in making prayer mats from mosaic. A dairy hub has been set up to promote livestock production through improved management services and collect premium quality milk in the target areas. Another purpose is to connect the poor beneficiaries to the sustainable livelihood.
Detailed livelihood investment plans have been completed for 166 households, and 71 families have been chosen for micro-business asset transfers of retail shops, tailoring business, and small livestock.
The Ittehad Village embodies the true meaning of integrated development where a diverse partnership of the provincial government, multinationals, local corporates, non-governmental and civil society organisations have conjured up for changing the lifestyle of the poor and marginalised.