Three years since its inauguration, farmers in Mirzapur await water from Bansagar project to irrigate their farmlands
Widely promoted by the government as a mega-irrigation project aimed at supporting farmers practising rainfed agriculture in Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, the Bansagar dam is yet to benefit farmers in Mirzapur, complain the local villagers. The state Jal Shakti minister has assured the canal water would be made available within a month.
Brijendra Dubey
Amid tight security and a tense atmosphere, UP block panchayat chief polls to be held tomorrow
Yesterday, July 8, violent attacks and rioting were reported from various districts of Uttar Pradesh as candidates stepped out to file their nominations for the block panchayat polls. Six police officials have been suspended and FIRs filed, but tension looms large.
Brijendra Dubey
13-year-old girl, 38-year-old ‘bridegroom’ and a payment of Rs 100,000 for ‘marriage’
Swift action by police and district administration stops child marriages in Mirzapur and Sonbhadra districts of Uttar Pradesh. But non-profits and activists warn such incidents will only rise due to the COVID19 pandemic.
Brijendra Dubey
Sip of death: A Kol tribe toddler and her great-grandmother dead; several villagers suffer diarrhoea due to polluted water in Mirzapur, UP
A two-year-old girl and her great-grandmother died following severe diarrhoea in Dadra village of Mirzapur. At least 11 more villagers were hospitalised, and three remain critical. The Jal Nigam has collected the ‘contaminated’ water samples for testing. Villagers claim they have been forced to drink polluted water for decades.
Brijendra Dubey
4 months, 4 sheep and an income of Rs 8
The Pal community of shepherds in Mirzapur, Uttar Pradesh herd sheep traditionally. Their income from sheep wool is pitifully low, and they survive on food grains the farmers give them in exchange of sheep dung to fertilise the farms.
Brijendra Dubey
Lease farmers harvest gloom on the fertile banks of the Sirsi river
The irrigation department in Uttar Pradesh gives land near the Sirsi dam on lease to farmers to grow vegetables and fruits. This year farmers had a bountiful crop. But, due to COVID restrictions, their crops remained unsold. Now, with the partial curfew lifted, there is rekindled hope that they can start earning again.
Brijendra Dubey
Addressing vaccine hesitancy in rural India, one jab at a time
The Uttar Pradesh government and its health workers are sparing no efforts to vaccinate the state’s rural and tribal population by holding free vaccination camps. Members of some Adivasi communities are slowly coming forward to take the vaccine. Gaon Connection reports from a vaccination camp in the tribal dominated area in Mirzapur.
Brijendra Dubey
Unregistered and unorganised, daily wage workers slip through the cracks during the pandemic
The year-long pandemic and resumption of restrictions and lockdowns have hit daily wage earners in rural India hard. They are without work or any source of income. Gaon Connection met four such labourers in Marihan tehsil in Uttar Pradesh. And this is what they had to say…
Brijendra Dubey
The boatmen of Mirzapur are in troubled waters
Members of the manjhi community in Mirzapur earn their livelihood by rowing their boats in Ganga and helping people commute. They have still not recovered from the impact of last year’s lockdown. They fear another lockdown might just wipe them off.
Brijendra Dubey
Missing a Beat: Why have the tablas of Mirzapur fallen silent?
The tablas are painstakingly handcrafted out of wood of the neem, mango and sheesham trees, and goat or camel skin. Scores of these workshops in Mirzapur have been forced to close down due to the COVID-19 pandemic and paucity of orders.