Dr Mohinder Kumar
In Kashmir valley city looks not much different from village in terms of basic amenities. The resemblance is most striking between Kupwara -border city, and Natnusa -big village. Natnusa is bifurcated into Natnusa-A and Natnusa-B. The village is located in Kupwara block at distance of 15 km from Kupwara City. It is connected with surrounding seven villages. It is a strange ensemble of prosperity and poverty. The village reflects antithetical coexisting tendencies of development and backwardness, abundance and dearth, richness and raggedness, wealth and wretchedness, plenty and scarcity -typical “center-periphery” development model: Widespread poverty at periphery and limited economic prosperity at center point. The first characteristic feature one witnesses at first glance by interacting with villagers is that “it is the common land that has saved village”. Survival would be difficult “if villagers do not use common land adjoining private agricultural land for family subsistence.”
Natnusa village has 10 Mohallas (wards), of which Ward No. 1, 2 and 3 (Avatkulla) are backward; Ward No. 3 (Avatkulla) is most backward. All 90 households of Avatkulla ward are landless and BPL. Though landlessness without economic activity is bound to render a household BPL, ownership of land too is not guarantee for becoming Above Poverty Line (APL). Ownership of land has mixed relationship with poverty and BPL status. Land owning farmers can be BPL or APL, depending upon other factors. In Natnusa landless households are BPL. Most of the land-owning households too are poor. Avakulla ward is totally dependent on wage-labor. In fact, all 575 households living in 10 wards are notified Other Backward Class (OBC). According to Sarpanch, most of them (90%) deserve to be in BPL list or included under ‘Antodya Ann Yojna’ (AAY). Widespread poverty is visible from kutcha houses and shabbiness of living. Households are so unaware that more than 300-400 youth do not have MNREGA Job Cards. Some are unaware about MNREGA;
Village Weekly
some did not apply for Job Card (though wanted jobs); and some did not get Job Cards. Those who got and are Job Card holders find job for not more than 10-20 days per year vis-à-vis 100 days of guaranteed work as per norm under the Act. In absence of MNREGA facility made accessible to them, they are forced to work at private construction sites as casual laborers, getting wages not more than Rs.150/- per day. In case, they do not happen to get work, they go to bed hungry. Even apple orchard owners are poor growers hard-pressed under the yoke of advance cash taken from Pre-Harvest Contractors and Commission Agents of wholesale fruit markets of Srinagar, Delhi, etc.
Natnusa has 1000 number of youth. Of these, 500 youth migrate to Srinagar, Delhi and cities of other States in winter season in search of jobs, labor, factory work, etc. Ironically “Bihari” labor and other states’ labor in thousands of number has migrated to Kupwara district in search of work, as wage-labor, selling goods, as broom makers, petty job doers, beggars (from Southern parts of country), etc. Some of them (100-150) are working in/around Natnusa which is 15 km from Kupwara city. A large number of broom makers from Rajasthan and neighboring region have put up tents on outskirts of Kupwara city. They get raw material for making brooms from Kandi area near river. Laborers have also arrived. Beggars from other states (particularly southern states) could be seen creating nuisance on traffic lights, city square and roadsides in Kupwara town.
Floods occur though not so common. Ten years ago “Pohru” nallah faced flood due to which 300 houses in Natnusa were totally damaged. In rainy season, Natnusa “Bahawat nallah” starts overflowing. When both nallahs (Pohru and Natnusa) start overflowing they create havoc. Villagers are critical of official obstacles and insensitivity in the district and block offices. They talk about corruption in delivery of service. People are not aware about ITI Kupwara and ITI Handwara. Only three-four youth from Natnusa have joined courses for industrial training in ITI. There is no veterinary center in Natnusa though village has 600 cows and 1800 sheep-goats. Villagers want that Patwari office which is a critical Village Institution should be set up in village; it is crucial in matters of land, ration card, KCC, etc. Cooperative society of village became defunct 17 years ago due to militancy. It is well known fact that throughout the country normal negative politics has weakened the cooperative structure; militant politics has gone a step further -credit cooperatives and marketing cooperatives in J&K were confused with state departments/ institutions, hence hijacked and destroyed. Borrowers who took loan from cooperative societies considered it as a golden opportunity not to repay loans. Those who had repaid fully felt dissuaded and discontinued their membership of cooperatives. Threats from militants dealt last blow to the existence of once vibrant cooperative structures. Natnusa was also affected.
There is no Self Help Group (SHG) formed in Natnusa so far. Sarpanch tried some utensil-making SHGs but villagers are not interested. There was low awareness. Schemes like IAY, MNREGA and PMGSY are implemented in the village. Total 15 works were completed in the village under MNREGA so far. Each year five-six works are taken up e.g. bridges (culverts), repair works, etc. Village road in Natnusa was constructed long back by PWD; it is badly damaged now for so many years. Villagers reportedly want to take up strengthening of this road under MNREGA implemented by Rural Development Department but are not allowed by PWD even as villagers petitioned so many times. Basic amenities in the village are poor. Except middle road all other intra-village roads are kutcha. Sarpanch has taken up the matter with Executive Engineer (R&B). There is no pucca drainage system in streets. No streetlights are installed. At some places electric poles are damaged or have fallen; electric wires pass through or are tied with trees tops. Power supply during summer is termed by villagers as “satisfactory” though it becomes problematic during winter even as two-three hours supply is the normal trend. Drinking water supply is a major problem since treatment and cleaning of water is not given due attention. Filtration plant is lying defunct. Most of the villages in the area have drinking water problem.
There is one Primary Health Center (PHC) in Natnusa. PHC building is impressive and spacious though facilities are very poor. Its minimum required staff is not yet sanctioned for posting: one doctor; one lady doctor; one nursing orderly; and one driver.
Wage-labor is peoples’ predominant mode of survival. Poor villagers’ main problem is tackling cold weather due to snowfall. PWD reportedly does not clear accumulated snow on roads, link-roads and pathways efficiently. Villagers do not get supply of LPG cylinder in time during winter season. Villagers use mostly own individual methods at household level to cope with such difficulties. They take good, healthy and nutritious food with dry fruits to keep warm in cold season. However, they do not have adequate access to LPG cylinders which is a generic problem of villagers throughout the valley. Villagers’ third main difficulty pertains to corruption and making repeated rounds of offices to get their work and due formalities completed. Villagers do not have control over extant situation of decadent system of public services or strategy to control such “rent-seeking” behaviors and practices in place. General approach to coping with adversities by villagers in Natnusa are: First they rely on self-effort of households, and later supplement it with collective villagers’ action (depending on nature of difficulty, e.g. if it is water shortage problem then entire village/area gets united against another (neighboring) village/ area and both the villages/ areas protest and fight against each other), and wait for government support, in case difficulties pertain to public utility. Sometimes district authority/ DDC Kupwara with police party (including SHO other officers) has to reach there in thick of midnight or early in the morning and intervene in order to maintain peace and law & order as soon as news of clashes reaches. It often happens, and particularly during one field visit in July 2013 this was witnessed when one such incident happened whereby two villages clashed with each other carrying arms/ ‘lathis’ over the issue of sharing of nallah water desperately for irrigation purpose since it had rained heavily during last night and ‘nallah’ was filled with water. Therefore, one village up in arms against another neighboring village for small but significant facilities was not in any way a survival strategy or coping mechanism against resource scarcities and adversities. The right and the best strategy of intervention would have been to have a water harvesting structure in each village to tap rain water or link it with ‘nallahs’. That is not done.
Under MNREGA a link road between Natnusa and Kandi villages has been constructed while earlier a narrow footpath existed. It has benefitted apple orchard owners. Now villagers desire to have a motorized-bridge on Kandi nallah at site near pond of Mohammad Abdullah Wani and Aziz Khan because new road passes through that area and it is suitable for motor-bridge. Sarpanch has included this demand in Village Plan submitted to the Rural Development Department (RDD). However, Sarpanch was advised to shift the demand for motor-bridge to Backward Region Grant Fund (BRGF) Scheme. Survey reported that MLA deleted this proposed project from the list of Village Plan without consulting villagers or Gram Panchayat. People demanded that funds for this bridge should be allocated and bridge may be constructed under Village Plan by RDD, rather than proposing under BRGF. The informed wish and desire of people may be respected. Villagers demand that Natnusa should be declared a backward village. Sarpanch reported that he filled relevant profoma (202 columns) on 21.11.2009 and submitted all required information about the village to the district office concerned (Commissioner Secretary Backward Classes Srinagar) as part of some survey conducted earlier. However, he made rounds after rounds of office to get this village declared as backward village. The village has a number of carpenters, artisans (kangri makers), lohar (ironsmiths), kumhar (potters), and “chamar” (leather-men) by economic profession. People and Sarpanch suspected that negative narrow politics and “rent-seeking behavior” is creating interruptions so that Natnusa does not get Backward Village status, because in that case it would get access to more funds for development, since eligible. People demand that negative politics in economic development at lower end (village, GP) should be checked.
Villagers demand supply of safe drinking water, fit for human consumption. Drinking water supply scheme of Natnusa having a filtering plant near army cantonment is supplying as villagers showed samples of almost filthy water without chemical treatment. Physical filtering of water supplied is also rudimentary. Technical staff operating this scheme to supply water requires adequate supply of diesel to run pumping motor in absence of power supply; supply of diesel to the scheme is 5-6 liters per day though demand is 40 liters (for five hours per day). Some villagers consider water supplied through this scheme so-to-say “poisonous” since ‘Poru nallah’ from where water for this scheme is sourced is basically a central dumping channel for filthy drains and sewage of the city and army cantonment in Kupwara. The same filthy water, after rudimentary physical treatment, is supplied to Natnusa. Villagers deserve supply of safe drinking water that should be fit for human consumption.
Villagers demand proper drainage and sewage system in Natnusa. They rued the fact that sanitation scheme of Govt. of India was not implemented in their village. They were aware that in 2012, 100-150 households in a couple of villages had benefitted under the scheme but Natnusa which deserves benefit under the scheme, was not covered.
Awatkullah Mohalla of Natnoosa is the most backward. People of this Mohalla demand that labor and fruits of development should reach their households also. They want access to all facilities which are lacked in their area. Except five government servicemen all households survive on casual wage-labor. They do not find work sometimes in summer season also though winters are always meant as jobless. At times they won’t find money and access to food; entire family would go to bed without meals. They hold 50000 migrant workers migrating from UP and Bihar to Kupwara responsible for their poor state of existence. Natnusa is inflicted with unemployment, poverty and economic backwardness deserving urgent attention of public agencies. Even apple – a golden commodity of Kashmir – is unable to remove the blot of poverty from the face of Natnusa. Perhaps it is due to blot on apple which itself is diseased. Both Apple and Avatkulla Mohalla of Natnusa are under stress and storm of deprivation.
(Author works for NABARD; views expressed are personal)
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