Call for donations

On 18th of November this article was published in a popular south Indian daily newspaper. My name is Monika and I can be seen on the left of the photo. Six years ago, in March 2018, as chairman of Sankranti e.V.  I was able to hand over 30 cows to the small village of “Kummarigudem”, now there are around 200 cows in that village. Unforgettable how great the joy was and still is. With this ongoing project the „Village of HOPE“ Project started at that time.  It took me a lot of effort to raise money for this project from German friends and foundations. 

I am a Sathya Sai Baba devotee and have been traveling to India regularly since 1998 because I love this country – despite the many uncertainties, I have learned a lot spiritually in India and wanted to give something back to this country out of gratitude. I founded the association Sankranti e.V. in 2012 and carried out various projects in the area of Warangal in Telangana.

It‘s the first time that I am asking for support Indian women and men who work here in Germany. I am friends with some of them and know how much they love their homeland and miss their families in India. So I would like to ask you all to join me in supporting the small farmers I will be visiting soon. I guarantee that every Euro donated will reach them!!! The earth is our mother, our homeland is our mother, the cow is our mother. Help me to help the people who work hard in the fields to provide India‘s people with healthy food. This is a wonderful opportunity to show your countrypeople that you value them and have not forgotten them.

Here are the three projects I am collecting donations for:

1. The small ghee station

in Kummarigudem, Ms.Rhadika and Mr.Raju run the station, it is indeed a lot of work. The milk is brought in before sunrise; I have been watching every morning to see who brings how much… I would like to set up a large commercial refrigerator there (sometimes it gets over 45° C in summer) and supply the station with electricity via sustainable solar panels.  

2. Vijay and his family

The photo below shows his children, wife, myself, sister and mother on my first visit. When I visited them on their farm, I was very impressed as they are struggling all by themself, far away from our Village of HOPE-Project, they have realized what we had in mind as a goal. They do organic farming at its best. They also look after old cows that have not been giving milk anymore, they urgently need a cowshed!

3. The Goshala Trust,

they rescue old cows from the slaughterhouse and look after them. They provide those people seeking help with Ayurvedic medicine and advice, all tirelessly and on a voluntary basis. A training center for Ayurvedic healing and organic farming will soon be built in the heart of Warangal. 

You can write which project you want your donation to be used for on the bank transfer under “Purpose“

Donation account: ***Sankranti e. V. ***GLS Bank*** IBAN  DE33 4306 0967 1197 8055 00 

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I have become very intimate with the project village of “Kummarigudem”. I hadn’t been there for a long time, and was curious to see what would be waiting there for me. As I walked through the village I was always accompanied by English-speaking youths who were happy to translate for me and the villagers. As our association hadn’t planned any specific projects, I had the opportunity to have relaxed conversations with everyone there. The villagers were so happy to see me. “Ma’am, come and look at my cow” I would hear from all sides. And so I got to see a lot of cows and their calves. My concerns that they might be too thin and week (more about the issue here) were quickly dispelled. I was delighted to see all the cows and calves looking so healthy and well-fed. “Madam, we are so grateful”, “You have changed all of our lives”, “We’re so happy with our cows”, “Our village is now well known by many other villages”, etc. I would like to pass on this joy and gratitude to all loyal supporters of our projects. Thank you!

Many thanks to you all!

The fund-raising campaign in May this year raised more than 5000 euros. I transferred the proceeds to our associates in India in June.

India announced a peak level of new infections seven months ago. The German TV news programme “Tagesschau” reported on 1^st November that the situation was now a lot better. According to Delhi’s health minister Satyendar Jain, the numbers are looking good, and a current study investigating the presence of Corona antibodies had concluded that overall 97% of people now have antibodies. “Virtually everyone has been exposed to the virus and has antibodies. And if we don’t have any serious mutations in the near future, then we don’t expect a new pandemic wave either.”

The chairman of our Indian partner organisation, Mr Ramesh informed me by phone that they are now seeing significantly more people being treated for the side effects of the vaccination than for infections. The Goshala Trust has been working tirelessly to (more…)

Appeal for donations

The situation in India has been deteriorating dramatically over the past few days. People are at finding it hard to cope and the despair in the towns is enormous. There is no financial rescue package. The situation is dire. There are children who have lost both parents and are now alone in the house. People we know well are going hungry. My dressmaker doesn’t even have 10 rupees to by a lemon.

Our dependable Indian partner organisation, the Maharshi Goshala Charitable Trust wants to help. Last week they decided they would set up a basic supplies centre on their own grounds. They will deliver food parcels and basic foodstuffs to people who can no longer leave their homes. The trust will also supply Ayurvedic medicine to the sick.

Every donation, large or small, is welcome and 100% of it will reach the people who need it.

ABOUT US

Things are progressing!

Thanks to your donations we were able to give our trainers some financial help. Even during the pandemic, Mr. Ashok has offered his support to our Village of HOPE in an advisory capacity. He’s an idealist and forgoes his own comfort for the well-being of his cows. He collects and preserves real treasures in the form of old traditional resilient seed varieties.

Mr. Ashok has set up a seed bank on his farm with old resilient varieties// Trainer Ashok hat auf seiner Farm eine Saatgutbank mit alten widerstandsfähigen Sorten eingerichtet

Thanks to your donations he was able to repair his cow enclosure// Dank unserer Unterstützung konnte er sein Kuhgehege restaurieren

On a field visit, Mr. Ashok (right) tirelessly passes on his immense knowledge// Bei einem Feldbesuch: Mr. Ashok (rechts) gibt sein immenses Wissen unermüdlich weiter

Mr. Swamynarayana, member of our partner organisation, the Maharshi Goshala Charitable Trust in Warangal visited the the three villages in Atmakur Mandal in Warangal District/ Telangana and talked to all 15 women to find out what they had used their subsidy payment for. A new sustainable project was also discussed that would enable other poor women to earn an additional income.

Mr. S. interviews each woman// Mr. Swamynarayana interviewt jede Frau

Presenting of cheques

Wow – thank you! Up to September 2020 a total of 5000 Euros has been raised for this project, which I was able to transfer to our partner organisation, the Maharshi Goshala Charitable Trust. A week after that, on 26 September, each of the 15 women was presented with a cheque for 25,000 rupees.

Since these women have learned to be careful with money, we were sure that they would use it wisely, and therefore no conditions were attached to the payment. At first the women couldn’t believe that there wasn’t a catch somewhere. Puzzled, they asked why people from a foreign country would give them a substantial sum of money “just like that” without wanting anything in return. I would like to pass on their heartfelt thanks to everyone who has made this project possible.

Background history

Every woman received a cheque for 25,000 rupees // Jede Frau erhielt einen Scheck über 25000 Rupien

Report in the local press// Bericht in der lokalen Presse

Appeal for donations

The life stories of these women are all similar. They come from poor backgrounds and are now single. They married young and many are illiterate. Their husbands were small farmers who were made reliant on the greedy chemical agriculture industry and were driven to suicide.

When their husbands took their own lives, the women were still in their mid-twenties and were confronted with a huge mountain of debt. In many cases their belongings were confiscated or sold for a miserable price. These 15 women have teamed up and managed to cope a little better with their desperate situation. They live in three neighbouring villages and visit and support each other. Although their children have grown up, the struggle for survival continues.

To the supporters of our projects: with your help we’d like to offer every woman an unconditional subsidy towards their living costs. Every contribution from us, large or small, brings great relief to the difficult lives of these women.

The photo below shows the entire room in which one of the women lives with her 20-year-old daughter. The roof leaks and looks like it could collapse at any moment. The floor is made from tamped down earth.

It’s hard to imagine what it would be like to live in this hut during the monsoon or the scorching summer when the temperature reaches 45°c.

They have nothing except for these utensils and ten sheep.

Background history

This is one woman’s „house”. She lives here with her 20-year-old daughter// Dies ist die „Wohnung” einer Frau, hier lebt sie mit ihrer 20-jährigen Tochter

A new women’s project is being launched!

We are setting up a project to help 15 women and their children. All the women are farmers and live in three different villages in the district of Warangal in extreme poverty – some of them in the most degrading housing. Most of them lost their husbands eight to ten years ago. All donations are most appreciated! More information can be requested via email at sankranti@gmx.de

15 Bäuerinnen// 15 women farmers

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Mr. Ramesh visited Kummarigudem and talked to many villagers, here he talks to us about his impressions… 2:16 minutes
 
 

Moringa, nach der Aussaat// Moringa, also called drum stick, after sowing

Moringa wächst auch in trockenen Regionen// Moringa also grows in dry regions

Moringa wächst ohne neue Anzucht immer wieder nach// Moringa grows again without needing to be re-sown

Latest from Kummarigudem – Village of HOPE :

It seems as if Dr. Sai Sundar has been sent from heaven, because he has a very promising solution to the green fodder problem. He is offering his knowledge and his seeds for free, and the farmers and the Goshala Trust are very keen to follow his recommendations. He is an expert on plant nutrients and believes Moringa, also known as drumstick, to be the solution. Moringa grows in dry soil, is incredibly nutrient-rich, and once sown, doesn’t need to be re-seeded. The tips of the plant are cut off and used for fodder. More information about Moringa can be found on the Murungai-India Facebook page.

Trainer Mr. Ramana Reddy schaut sich alle Tiere sehr genau an und gibt gute Ratschläge// Trainer Mr. Ramana Reddy examines all the animals carefully and always has a lot of good advice

Latest from Kummarigudem – Village of HOPE :
 
We are always making sure that the donated cows in the village are healthy, and so all of the animals are checked regularly. The trainer, Mr. Ramana Reddy, who is a Giri cow specialist, examines every cow and her calf. All of the cows have now had their second calves, and some of the older calves are now as big as their mothers. We weren’t happy with some of the cows as they weren’t getting enough nutrients and green fodder. In spite of excellent training, it is difficult to encourage the farmers to invest for the long-term. They prefer to grow rice instead of green fodder as it brings in short-term income.

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Thanks to all the donations, the small processing plant for the manufacture of ghee (clarified butter) could be opened. The high-quality milk from the Indian Giri cows will now be processed directly in the village. This brings significant financial savings, which means double the income can now be expected from every litre of milk.

Feierliche Eröffnung der neuen Ghee (Butterschmalz) Produktionsstätte/ Ceremonial opening of the new ghee (clarified butter) processing plant

The long-awaited monsoon came far too late. And the farmers in India are particularly affected by climate change. The green fodder for the animals is running out. What to do? The new trainer, Mr. Ramanareddy, is looking for practicable solutions together with the farmers.

News from Kummarigudem – Village of HOPE :

• Five more families were presented with a cow and calf.
• Trip to an organic farm that uses the ZBNF method, to inspect the fields and exchange knowledge.
• Networking via a village meeting, with interested parties and guests from the organic scene.
• Networking is progressing. The Maharshi Goshala Charitable Trust (our Indian partner organisation) and Mr. Ramanareddy, the new trainer, are supporting the farmers and advising them how to market their organic products.
• Mr. Ramanareddy is continuing to conduct regular training in the village. He is an expert on the ZBNF farming method and also runs a farm with Giri dairy cows.

Training continues to take place regularly in the village, mostly in the evenings as the temperature can reach more than 43°c during the day. Climate change is causing unpredictable droughts, as well as rain and sometimes even hail at very unusual times.

P.M. begutachtet die KÜhe und Kälber/ P.M. assessing the cows and calves

Patrick Meyer-Glitza, a cow expert from northern Germany and Monika Ratering, Sankranti e.V. were in Kummarigudem at the beginning of the year to talk with the farmers and to examine the donated cows and their calves.

Overall P.M. was satisfied. The cows were assessed on their overall appearance, hooves, ears, hide, eyes, nose, udders, dung etc. However, four or five cows were definitely too thin. We want to do some more work in the areas of animal keeping, tethering and fodder. To this end we have taken on a new trainer. Mr. Ramanareddy is an experienced ZBNF farmer and runs a farm with a dairy operation and Giri cows. He will be offering his continued advice and support to the villagers.

On 29th November a discussion was held in the German parliament with the aim of promoting agricultural ecology and sustainable food systems. Dr. Vandana Shiva, winner of the Alternative Nobel Prize, provided up-to-date information on the subject.

In India and other Himalayan countries there is an increasing movement towards supporting and protecting the environment and the millions of people who live there. The Indian state of Sikkim has switched to 100% organic farming and has recently received several awards for this achievement.
Other states want to follow Sikkim’s example. See Newspaper articles in German.

The Goshala Trust in Kummarigudem organised an Ayurveda medical camp with five Ayurvedic doctors. Many of the villagers attended, were examined and received free Ayurvedic medicine. Only thanks to your donations were we able to set up the medical camp. Almost every villager over the age of 40 suffers greatly with joint pain. The causes have been traced back to the high fluoride content in the groundwater, which is also used for drinking. Within the framework of Village of Hope, Sankranti e.V. is donating a water treatment plant for the village. Next year we’re organising another camp, to which we will also be inviting homeopathic doctors.

During the monsoon season the members of our Indian partner organisation, the Goshala Trust visited the village of Kummarigudem and presented the families with 330 fruit trees, donated by Sankranti e.V. – by YOU! Each family received six young trees which should bear their first fruit after three years.

Five more families of suicide victims received support via donations. The families come from the area around Kummarigudem and were invited to a village gathering. The assembled people held a minute’s silence for the deceased. Not often are the bereaved able to experience the compassion of a community or talk to others about their situation. They are usually left alone with their grief and desperation. The head of the family is suddenly no longer there. “What do we do now?” There are always many questions. We saw orphans whose father and mother had taken their own lives. Sometimes they had a debt of just 80 euros that they were not able to pay back. Our experience with our previous projects showed us that the affected families are happy if we pay money for their children’s education into their bank account. Each family received 35,000 Rupees – approx 500 euros.

Orphans of peasant farmers in India

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2012- Report
2013- Report