Enhancing Rural Livelihoods: Regional Workshop Highlights

1. South Asia Regional Workshop – BhubaneswarMarch, 16-18, 2006Key-note Address on “Sustaining Rural Livelihoods: Access & Mobility-Community Based Initiatives” By Prof S L Dhingra Transportation Systems Engineering IIT Bombay http://www.iitb.ac.in/~dhingra

2. Environment Physical Social • Abiotic – Nonliving things & processes • Biotic – Organisms and biological processes • Ecological - Interaction between above two types • Personal – Specific Individuals • Interpersonal – Interaction of group of individuals • Institutional – Dynamics of social system e.g. legal, political & religious Institutions Introduction

3. Problem Domain Human Activities Increasing Industrialization & Urbanization Exploitation of Natural Resources Pollution

4. Objectives • Promotion of sustainable development & human welfare • To avoid serious & irreversible environmental damage • Protection of natural resources & ecological components • To take care of social aspects • Improved environmental design of the proposed projects

5. Sustainable Development Concept Stability achieved for both social & physical systemsby satisfying present needs without compromising need of future generations Our transportation decisions and investments today should expand, and not limit to the economic, ecological, and social choices available to future generations

6. Main Components

7. Elements of Sustainability Ecological To preserve dynamic ability of biophysical system Social To stress on elimination of poverty & protect rights of future generations Economic To focus economic welfare

8. Moving Towards Sustainability • Smoother traffic flow and reduced congestion • Reduced fuel consumption • Reduced emissions • Encourage use of public transport • Improve highway safety • Reduced delays and increased efficiency

9. Old System Environment Society SPARTACUS System SPARTACUS System • SPARTACUS – System for Planning & Research in Towns and Cities for Urban Sustainability • Funded by European Commission • Tested in : Helsinki (Finland), Bilbao (Spain), Naples (Italy) • Essentially adds Environmental & societal parameters in old system (Source: http:// www.ltcon.fi/spartacus/ )

10. Environmental indicators Air Pollution Emissions of greenhouse gases from transport EAGT t/1000 inh./a (tonnes per th. inhabitants / annum) Emissions of acidifying cases from transport EAAT Meq/1000inh./a Emissions of organic Compounds from transport EAOC t/1000inh./a Consumption of natural resources Consumption of mineral oil products ERMO 1000 t/1000 inh./a Land coverage ERLC %points Consumptions of construction material ERCM 1000 m2/1000 inh./a Spartacus System

11. Social indicators Health Exposure to particulate matter in the living environment SHEP %points Exposure to nitrogen dioxide in the living environment SHED %points Exposure to carbon monoxide in the living environment SHEN %points Exposure to noise in the living environment SHEN %points Traffic deaths SHTD #1000inh./a Traffic injuries SHTI #1000inh./a Equity Justice of exposure to particular SEJP - Justice of exposure to CO SEJD - Justice of exposure to noise SEJN - Segregation SES %points Spartacus System (cont…)

12. Social indicators Opportunities Total time spent in trafficAccessibility to services SOTT SOAS -- - Level of service of public transport and slow modes SOPT Vitality of city centre Accessibility to the centre SOVC SOAC - Economic indicators Total benefits ECU/capita/a Spartacus System (cont…)

13. Impacts • Travel • Economic • Social • Environmental / Ecological During • Construction • Operation Impacts During Construction and Operation

14. Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana Building Knowledge Corridors

15. Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana Creating Pathways to Development

16. Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana Expanding Social Opportunities

17. Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana Roads to Prosperity

18. Purpose of Technology Transfer • How the Benefits like economic, social, political etc. and the ongoing projects in Rural India, their strengthening /empowerment can bring in total transformation of Rural India

19. Role of Provision of Rural Connectivity and Accessibility • Rural people can have easy access to trade, education, health and employment • Villages situated near roads are more prosperous than those situated far from roads • Similarly for the same distances, 23% of workers in villages take to non-agricultural activities compared to 16% and 12% at 5 & 8 kms distances respectively • Even overall well-being, measured by mobility and ownership of assets and amenities, improves by 32% through proximity to the road

20. NGO’s – Technical Educations’ Role • Adoption of districts for Provision of facilities like • Employment (creation of jobs of perennial nature), • Transportation & communication, • Water supply/energy, • Management training of rural youth, and • Sustainable projects for quality of life.

21. Suggestions for Funding for T & C projects • Financing of Rural Transportation Projects • Cess on Marketing Societies like Food Corporation of India (FCI) • Punjab Model using cess on agricultural produce by marketing societies to raise funds on perennial basis for rural road construction and maintenance • Growing fruit trees on the roadside for the purpose of generation of employment and beautification

22. Suggestions for Funding for T & C projects • Increased mobility and vehicle ownership through rural connectivity • Establishing co-operative vehicle maintenance workshops for cluster of villages by vocationally trained school children • Identifying the tourism and Heritage/Historically potential villages

23. Village Level Transport • Pedestrian based transport activities take up a huge proportion of the active working day • Differential burden on women – collecting firewood and water • Need for better transport and transport infrastructure • Improvement of accessibility and mobility by the drivers of the villages.

24. Impact of Rural Transport and Poverty Alleviation • The most immediate poverty-alleviating effect of road investment is the local employment created in both improvement and maintenance • Enhancing labour-basedmethods in these investments will lead to short-term employment generation • Roads act as a catalyst to development

25. Impact of Rural Transport on Agriculture • Cultivation of bigger areas • Utilization of more fertile, though remote, soils • Production of heavier and better crops and cash crops • Increased utilization of fertilizers and manure • Reduction in spoilage at crop harvest time • Better marketing

26. Social Impacts of Rural Transport • Education • Attendance levels low in schools due to lack of access • Teachers not attracted because of remoteness • Health • Better access to hospitals • Mobile health centres

27. Social Impacts of Rural Transport • Empowerment • Labour based construction methods provide useful cash supplement • Training in necessary skills is required • Improved access to markets and towns • More involvement of rural folk in the cash economy • Better access to urban markets leads to marginal savings on transport costs • Increased Production • Better access to markets leads to increase in farm and agricultural production

28. Increasing Demand for Rural Transport Services • Interconnectivity of rural infrastructure • Improving the flow of information through telecommunication • Provision of rural markets and storage facilities • Complimentary investments to rural transport interventions

29. Increased employment through increased access • Improved agricultural production: better living conditions and increased demand of various services, like hospitals, markets, banks etc. • Training for operators, mechanics, drivers to help reduce maintenance costs and reduce accidents • Fostering a strong entrepreneurial culture to maximize the use of assets

30. Increased employment through increased access (cont…) • Changes in transport regulations to allow use of less conventional vehicles, bringing new services • Providing subsidies for plying vehicles in local areas • Tourism • identifying tourist attractions in villages • Bread and Breakfast stops • Plantationsin adjoining areas: employment generation and environmental improvement Better living conditions in villages will reduce migration to urban areas

31. Job Creation Estimates • Workshops • 1 workshop for 5 villages and 5 people per workshop implies 1 lakh new jobs • Local plying of vehicles • 3 drivers per village plying vehicles locally imply 3 lakh new jobs • Plantations • 5 people working per village imply 5 lakh new jobs

32. Job Creation Estimates (contd..) • Tourism • 3 bread and breakfast stops per village with 3 persons in each imply 9 lakh new jobs • Impetus to rural handicraft industry and cottage industry products • Conservative estimate of 64 lakh new jobs • Jobs hence created are perennial in nature

33. Vocational Training to Supplement increased employment opportunities • Vocational training to be introduced for 9th, 10th, 11th and 12th classes • Training in all aspects, plus specialization in some, like mechanics, gardening, cooking etc.

34. Centre for Technology Alternatives for Rural Areas (CTARA), IIT Bombay • Technological inputs of IIT Bombay to Rural development • Involved in design and development of technologies to rural areas • The current working areas of CTARA include farm machinery, food processing, low cost housing, renewable energy, water management, rural industry etc. District level Resource Management and training by CSRE based on GIS, GRAM++ package.

35. Centre for Rural Development and Technology, IIT Delhi • Support activities such as academic activities, R & D and pilot scale evaluation of rural technologies and technology transfer • Objectives: • Identify problems of the rural sector requiring science and technology inputs and solve within the paradigm of sustainable development • Generate a sustainable technology base by blending appropriately modern with traditional knowledge

36. Orissa Project (Project SANJOG) • Covering a cluster of 17 tribal villages under Chadeyapalli Gram Panchayat of Daspalla block in Nayagarh District of Orissa • Activities includes construction of village road using largely labour-based technologies, promotion of suitable IMTs including bicycles, launching community bus service, etc. • It is a rural development model to address the access and infrastructure needs of the rural and tribal communities based on community centred approach

37. PURA (Providing Urban amenities in Rural Areas) • Announced by The President on the eve of 54th Republic day of India, aims at providing amenities similar to urban areas to the rural people • Cluster based approach to achieve uniform development for rural • PURA is to be implemented in 4,130 rural clusters across the country in the next five years

38. PURA (Providing Urban amenities in Rural Areas) • Creating following types of connectivity within them: • Road, Transport and Power • Electronic (IT, Telecom) • Knowledge( Educational Training Institutes) • Market Connectivity

39. Warana Co-operative, Maharashtra • One of the forerunner of successful integrated rural development resulting from co-operative movement • Major activities involved are: • Provide computerized facilitation booths in 70 villages, which are linked up to control computer network • Provide Tele-education to both primary and Higher Education institutes by developing IT centres at most popular points • IIT Madras model for district level IT education implementation can be a good model

40. Bio-Diesel • Transesterfied vegetable oil derived from oils of plants & animals • Plant sources – Mahua, Jatropha, Neem, Castor etc. • Similar to diesel fuels with same physical characteristics • Biodegradable fuel, devoid of sulphur and low in emissions Disadvantages Neat bio-diesel has 13% less energy than diesel fuel hence 7 % loss of power

41. What is Bio-diesel? • Bio-diesel is the pure, or 100 percent, bio-diesel fuel. • It is referred to as B100 or "neat" fuel. • Bio-diesel is the name for a variety of ester-based oxygenated fuels made from vegetable oils or animal fats.  The concept of using vegetable oil as a fuel dates back to 1895 when Dr. Rudolf Diesel developed the first diesel engine to run on vegetable oil. Diesel demonstrated his engine at the World Exhibition in Paris in 1900 using peanut oil as fuel. • A bio-diesel blend is pure bio-diesel blended with petro-diesel. Bio-diesel blends are referred to as Bxx. The xx indicates the amount of bio-diesel the blend (i.e., a B20 blend is 20 percent bio-diesel and 80 percent petro-diesel).

42. Properties of Bio-diesel • Bio-diesel is the only alternative fuel that can be used directly in any existing, unmodified diesel engine. • The low emissions of bio-diesel make it an ideal fuel for use in marine areas, national parks and forests, and heavily polluted cities. • bio-diesel can be produced from domestically grown oilseed plants such as canola.

43. Production of Bio-diesel Three basic routes to ester production from oils and fats: • Base catalyzed transesterification of the oil with alcohol. • Direct acid catalyzed esterification of the oil with methanol. • Conversion of the oil to fatty acids, and then to Alkyl esters with acid catalysis. The majority of the alkyl esters produced today are done with the base catalyzed reaction because it is the most economic for several reasons: • Low temperature (150 F) and pressure (20 psi) processing. • High conversion (98%) with minimal side reactions and reaction time. • Direct conversion to methyl ester with no intermediate steps. • Exotic materials of construction are not necessary.

44. Bio-Diesel – The Next Generation Sustainable Fuel • Bio Diesel is a substitute for, or an additive to, diesel fuel that is derived from the oils and fats of plants, like Sunflower, Canola or Jatropha • Bio Diesel is a renewable domestically produced liquid fuel that can help reduce the countries dependence on foreign oil imports • Production of Bio-diesel fuel will also boost the rural economy which will bring more enthusiasm in more than one billion livesin the area • Also it will provide technological and employment generation focuses for the rural sector. Use of eleven million hectares of wasteland for Jetropha cultivationcan lead to generation of minimum twelve million jobs

45. Fuel Displacement Alternatives to Traditional Transportation Fuels: VMT = Vehicle Miles Traveled MPG = Miles Per Gallon

46. Bio-diesel Emissions Compared to Petroleum Diesel Emissions: • The overall ozone (smog) forming potential of exhaust emissions from bio-diesel is 50% less. • The exhaust emissions of carbon monoxide (a poisonous gas and a contributing factor in the localized formation of smog and ozone) from bio-diesel are 50% lower. • The exhaust emissions of particulate matter (recognized as a contributing factor in the respiratory disease) from bio-diesel are 30% lower. • The exhaust emissions of sulphur oxides and sulphates (major components of acid rain) from bio-diesel are complete eliminated. • The exhaust emissions of hydrocarbons (a contributing factor in the localized formation of smog and ozone) are 95% lower. • The exhaust emissions for aromatic compounds known as PAH and NPAH compounds (suspected of causing cancer) are substantially reduced for bio-diesel compared to diesel.  Most PAH compounds were reduced by 75% to 85%.  All NPAH compounds were reduced by at least 90%. 

47. Approach of Other Organizations • PMGSY aims at Total Transformation of Rural India and road connectivity should do it to a large extent • Planting of fruit trees, flowers and medicinal plants on road side. This will generate employment and revenue for panchayats • Punchayat Raj’s and NGO could join hands to provide sustainable maintenance of rural roads

48. Approach of Other Organizations (cont…) • Some of the villages with special heritage characteristics could start Rural Tourism • The Centre proposes to electrify 62,000 villages through grid power, during the 10th Five-Year Plan (2002-07) under the Pradhan Mantri Gramodhaya Yojana • electrified through decentralized plants based on biomass, gasification of biomass, hydro power, solar energy, wind energy etc.

49. Approach of Other Organizations (cont…) • Biomassis and will remain central to any strategy for determining a rural energy solution • To have at least one model rural roadin each district/ taluka • 40,000 villages have been targeted for electrification. This may be taken up through solar power lighting, Intelligent Street lights, etc. • Huge allocation for rural infrastructure is significant for accelerated development as well as rapid improvement of quality of life in Indian villages

50. Providing Rural Amenities in Urban Areas (PRUA) • Process could be reversed for all the measures to provide rural amenities in urban areas