An Association for Development, Harmony and Action Research (AADHAAR)

An Association for Development, Harmony and Action Research (AADHAAR) mainly works in Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh. With support from Institutions like Sir Dorabji Tata Trust (SDTT), SEEDS, and Empathy Foundation, AADHAAR has been able to support its beneficiaries in various ways from responding to the Uttarakhand flash floods victims of 2013, to water conservation, disaster management and to meet education needs of children.

Their main activities are:

• Field based intervention: In association with SDTT, AADHAAR promotes ways of sustaining livelihood to farmers who face acute shortage of water. This is done through activities such as building LDPE tanks to manage rain water conservation, new techniques are implemented to catch, store and conserve this water and equal importance is given to manage soil erosion during monsoon. Ferro cement tanks are also constructed to help with water management. In FY15, 12 new Ferro tanks were constructed taking the total to 30. Emphasis to organise women in the community with the assistance of Self Help Groups (SHGs) and impart group management information has been undertaken by various supporting NGOs on a monthly basis and discussions on health and sanitation are regularly held with these SHGs. Seeds of Tomato, capsicum and peas are distributed to members to encourage them to take up kitchen gardening and promote the idea of developing nursery among members who are interested. In partnership with Empathy Foundation, AADHAAR is rebuilding two government colleges in the flood affected district of Rudraprayag.
• Support to Civil Society Organizations: AADHAAR conducts impact assessment of Sustaining Mountain Livelihoods (SML) Program with the objective of evaluating qualitative changes brought about by the SML project in the lives of beneficiaries.
• Liaison and linkage building: AADHAAR officials attend several workshops and training on a varied range of subjects like ground water management, panchayat empowerment, child participation in disaster mitigation and management, and housing rights. Owner driven reconstruction Collaborative-SEEDS (ODRC) with the support of Paul Hamlyn Foundation has initiated a project titled ‘Building Resilience in Urban Areas of Uttarakhand’.