GUY LALUC - FRENCH Directeur de la publication et jounaliste at Argos - communication agricole EXPLORES VIDARBHA

The recent visit of Guy Laluc - the Directeur de la publication et journaliste at Argos - communication agricole (Argos - communication agricole) - revealed similar fate of French farmers. Even though, the numbers are not high but farmers' suicide is taking place in France. As we exchanged notes about our countries, Guy told me that the percentage of farmers in France is depleting at a faster pace. I did remember to read that in the year 2010, only 7% of France's population were into the Agriculture Sector. Surprisingly, the percentage has come down to just 2% by 2015. It is indeed alarming because the average age of French farmers are around 50 years. The young generation of farmers are avoiding the farming sector because the investments are high while the yields fail to fetch profits for farmers.

Guy visited Vidarbha with his son Timothée (helping his father as a translator) interacted with few affected families in Antargaon, Metikheda and others. Guy publishes the monthly magazine ARGOS in France, spreading awareness for farmers to benefit and about the problems of farmers in France. 

Guy's recent visit is recorded in photographs:

Guy at the Kalamb Irrigation Canal, which received water after 32 long Years, but it is not adequate enough for farmers to irrigate their farms

Timothée translating to his father Guy

 Sunil Ade, our village liaison explaining the problems of Indian farmers

Guy with farmer's widow, whose husband succumbed to suicide

 Guy was kind enough to bring notebooks and pencils for village children

Guy Laluc with Sunil Ade (one of the progressive farmers of Metikheda Village)

The team with a farmer's widow

Children were happy to receive notebooks and pencils from Guy

Visiting affected families in various villages

Hand-cut Wheat yield... Guy was impressed about Indian farmers' hard work

From a bonded labour to owning 6 acres of farmland, 65-year-old Farmer Bhabhuji Daulat Ade (in the middle) with his two sons (Sunil & Anil) and Guy & Timothée 

"A good management and hard work lead to freedom from being a bonded labour." - Village Metikheda farmer Bhabuji Daulat Ade

 Picture Perfect: When France meets India!

Guy carried sample of Indian Cotton with him to France

Father and Son: Guy and Timothée Guy leaving Sevagram

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A BEAUTIFUL ANGEL FLIES FROM THANE

Angels are visibly invisible!

This Beautiful Angel from Thane is still invisible to me because I have never met him in person. First, I heard about him from my trustee friend Swapnil Barai. He got to know this Beautiful Angel through his friend Harshal Jarode during one of his Bombay visits.

In fact, this post is long overdue. I could not write about this Beautiful Angel because of my working schedule and mental stress. He came to our Trust's help and support, when we really needed the most.

For the first time, I interacted with him over one or two mails. Then SMS to thank him for his generous support and kindness. I really don't know, I was just not able to even call him. Then one fine day, I called him and thanked him over phone and got to know him. It was a beautiful interaction sharing our views with each other. I really don't have suitable words to describe this amazing Beautiful Angel's intention in life. It is angels like him, which make this world a better and beautiful place.

The Beautiful Angel Yogesh Kulkarni arrives from Thane. He hails from Akola district, the Vidarbha Region. He is inspired by his younger brother Sagar Kulkarni, who from a very young age used to do his bit working for orphanages and helping them along with his friends. Yogesh always wanted to help farmers and had the intention to lend his support. During our conversation, he disclosed his helplessness because he never knew how he could help the farmers' community and whom to approach.

His good intentions were reciprocated by his friends, however, they were skeptical. He continued to lend his kind contribution to Sagar. He said, "Whatever possible, we were content to do from our side, we did in our own small ways. My younger brother is the BIG Inspiration and when I look at his devotion towards orphanages, I feel nice from within. A chance meeting with Swapnil Barai opened new vistas to look at things in the larger perspective about the farmers' community. He informed me about various possibilities. And I was glad to hear your trust is lending support to suicide affected farmers' families' girl child with long term future education by opening R / D (Recurring Deposit)."

So one fine day, I get a mail from Yogesh with the NEFT in our Trust's Account. 

 

Yes, it has been more than two months since this happened. I wish to apologize to Yogesh for such a long delay from my side. Please do forgive me Yogesh... things were just out of my control. His generous contribution will be able to support our second beneficiary Rohini Subhash Patil for a year.

We are truly grateful to you Yogesh for being such a Beautiful Angel to come forward on your own to extend help and support. Sai Baba bless your brother Sagar, your noble family members and you always and forever!

We are also very grateful to Harshal Jarode and Swapnil Barai, who brought the Beautiful Angel in my contact. Sai Baba bless you both always and forever!

We certainly need more Beautiful Angels to come forward to lend their kind support, so we are able to help more girl child with their higher education.

The "Journey of Destiny" has taken a new direction and I am glad the reach is increasing to a wider circle now. We look forward for more Beautiful Angels to fly from various parts of the World on their beautiful wings.

Thank you so much Sai Baba for sending me Beautiful Angels at the perfect time. I feel so blessed!

A SMALL PART OF ME !

A small part of me

The "Journey of Destiny" continues and I am just flowing with the flow.

I am truly grateful Sai Baba for everything you have blessed me with!

A BEAUTIFUL ANGEL FLIES FROM GURGAON

Angels are visibly invisible !

Angels fly to complete your 'destiny' in the most miraculous way. Not many accept this beautiful truth, but I do!

Ever since I started the "Journey of Destiny" I have experienced many miracles coming my way to shape up my incomplete 'destiny'. Many "Beautiful Angels" flew from places I have never been to; visibly invisible and when they became visible to be part of my 'destiny', I realized how blessed my life has been. Each one of us, enter others' life in the most unexpected ways to play a role. Ways, that is totally hard to decipher in our understanding.

Shephalika Misra Sharma is one such beautiful angel, who entered my 'destiny' in the most unexpected way. When she became a part of my 'destiny', she was always eager to play the role, she was destined to. And when the time was right, she came forward on her own. Not many, who read the "Journey of Destiny" have come forward to lend their support and kind help to help girl child education of suicide affected families in Vidarbha.

My life is committed to help the suicide farmers' families in my own small ways. Shephalika came to know about the movement and assured me she will help support the cause. Sitting far way from Vidarbha, she has the heart of gold to understand the pain and miseries of girl children of suicide farmers' families. She flew on her wings from Gurgaon to come with her kind support and help. 

Our Trust - "support 4 suicide farmers families, Wardha" opens an R/D Account for a girl child of affected family for 7 years, so that when the child is ready to enter college, the matured money comes in her aid at the perfect time for her higher education. 

The "Journey of Destiny" takes its own twists and turns and I have learned to flow with the 'flow of the almighty'. It has been a lovely experience to surrender self in Nature's hand. I remember, there was a time, when I was selling vegetables in the first exclusive Vegetables' Supermarket 'Tarkari' in Road No. 1 Banjara Hills, Hyderabad. I was blessed by vegetables' vendors and sellers of Monda Market, from where I used to procure vegetables every morning for our shop. The love and affection of each one of them, from a tiny toddler to the 80-year-old Chicha, men and women, blessed me to make me a journalist of repute in Bollywood. I ended up writing for 60 plus esteem National and International publications. I went onto become Editor of an Interiors magazine in barely 7 years of my professional career.

In 2008, I gave away my professional life to start blogging on social issues of the poor and the common people. And on March 12, 2010, the "Journey of Destiny" started on a new unknown road. Road, that I had never known would lead me to miseries, pain, hardships, sorrows, challenges to joy, happiness, contentment. Deep down I kept my faith on my Sai Baba all the while. I knew, my Baba had chosen my path for a reason and the reason was to help few lives with the help of "Beautiful Angels", like Shephalika Misra Sharma and many others.

From March 2010 to September 2015, I have interacted with many suicide affected farmers' families, travelled to various villages in different States of India. I always collected a very selective amount of funds for the Trust to help few families. These 5 years, have seen all my personal money invested in the "Journey of Destiny" with no regrets at all. Not to mention, the 'DEBTS' kept increasing on me to survive and keep doing as destined. Sai Baba has blessed me with amazing great friends and kept sending me "Beautiful Angels" to keep me alive all the while.

The ever increasing 'Debts' had made me to search for jobs ever since the beginning of 2013... I did get few jobs too... Each one of them lasted less than a month as destined. It was frustrating but I always knew my Sai Baba was shaping me in His own ways to make me ready for the 'Right Job'. And when I was ready, HE lifted me from Wardha to place in Hyderabad as the Editor of an International website. The site is on design trends and we will be launching the site soon. I shall inform you all.

Through this post, I wish to thank Shephalika Misra Sharma for flying all the way from Gurgaon as one of the "Beautiful Angels". Sai Baba bless you always and forever Shephalika!

THREE DECADES - 372 Crores to 7,777 Crores to 13,000 Crores - Irrigation Still Alludes Vidarbha Farmers

Is this money for the Politicians to LOOT in the name of the FARMERS?

Chief minister announces Rs 700 crore relief for families displaced by Gosikhurd dam

Chittaranjan Tembhekar | Aug 18, 2015, 01.12 AM IST

MUMBAI: In a last-ditch effort to make the state's most tainted and largest irrigation project at Gosikhurd near Nagpur start irrigating farmlands to its full capacity and to rehabilitate its oustees awaiting relief for decades, the state government has announced a fresh package of Rs 700 crore.

But chief minister Devendra Fadnavis has directed the contractors and engineers of the project to pay from their own pockets to refurbish the substandard works.

The Gosikhurd National Irrigation Project, considered a lifeline for east Vidarbha, is still not complete though planned three decades ago.

In July 2012, TOI had reported that Gosikhurd project in Bhandara district, which was approved at a cost of Rs 372 crore in 1982, was nowhere near completion even as the cost had jumped to Rs 7,777 crore, of which Rs 6,600 crore has already been spent. Moreover, the state had plans to raise the budget for the project to Rs 13,000 crore. Recently, the CAG had pointed out over-expenditure of about Rs 70,000 crore on construction of dams across the state without achieving any irrigation on ground.

Though the Gosikhurd project was meant to irrigate 2.50 lakh hectares in Vidarbha, the actual irrigation potential created till June 30, 2011, was just 34,029 ha and water reached only to 1,582 ha. These disturbing figures were presented by the water resources department to the state assembly during the budget session in 2012. Vidarbha region has recorded over 10,000 farmer suicides in the past decade.

Fadnavis, who had recently visited the project site, said all villages falling within the project area would be rehabilitated and a certain amount would be kept for maintenance of gram panchayats of 34 newly resettled villages. "Besides, a Rs 120-crore fund will be given to complete the Bawanthadi project in the same region," he said. To expand irrigation capacity, acquisition of land and creation of infrastructure, such as concrete roads, water supply system, and power supply, for the resettled villages will be the major works to be undertaken.

As the project had been stalled since February 2012, the central aid dried up following complaints of shoddy work and mismanagement. In 2013, the Centre had offered a much-needed Rs 405 crore.

COURTESY: The Times of India

A BEAUTIFUL ANGEL FLIES FROM FRANCE

Angels are visibly invisible!

Many of you readers of this blog must be wondering why I say this and what the above simple sentence means. To me, the above sentence means, I am blessed and surrounded by miracles! I feel fortunate because I have met amazing 'Beautiful Angels' while treading the "Journey of Destiny".

The above sentence also signifies that every day everywhere and everyone has an angel that is deep rooted within the self. How only few of us really get to meet, interact, get supported and support by these miracle angels is the matter of time and one's heart to make the angel to reappear from the within. I feel blessed because many 'Beautiful Angels' have flown from allover the world to be part of my "Journey of Destiny".

I met Mandy Rukwa in Facebook way back in June 2013. She liked one of my photographs and used to share my blog posts even before we became friends. I sent her a friend's request. I still remember the first sentence she said to me - "que puis-je faire pour les aider?" (What can I do to help?). She is also a brilliant nature photographer and a nature lover. I was grateful to her for spreading the word about the movement - support 4 suicide farmers families!

Right from the very beginning of our interaction, she understood and even asked me if I have ever regretted to make the choice of helping suicide affected farmers' families in Vidarbha. Needless to say, our friendship grew stronger with each passing day because she understood the importance and significance of what I was doing. 

During one of our conversation she said to me, "You are in the right way of heart, don't change because it is the choice of the divine that you have been led to this path." These sweet kind encouraging words filled adrenaline in my undying spirits. I know, the more I can recollect all the beautiful interactions we have had, the more I can write about this 'Beautiful Angel'. What mattered to me the most is that a person who is thousand of miles away from where I live understood exactly what I was destined to do was 'Divine', while many friends of mine in Bombay said - I was crazy to take such a step and that I would fail to part ways as friends. No regrets at all!

A 'Beautiful Angel' with you is far better in life than tens of so-called friends. Isn't it true my friends?

I have been struggling to get a job since the past two and a half years because I wanted to extend support to more girl child of suicide affected farmer' families with whatever I earn. There are many 'Beautiful Angels' and 'Amazing Friends' who have been helping and supporting me ever since I started the "Journey of Destiny". However, the obligation of rising debts and raising more funds to help more children made me look for jobs and be a little secure in life. 

The "Journey of Destiny" is meant to help support more girl child for their higher education so they can take care of their respective families and give their widowed mother some relief in life by achieving the unexpected. Our Trust raises only that much amount, which is needed for a year to help support the affected farmers' families. As destined we came across few genuine cases and the misery and hardship the farmers' widow were going through with multiple growing children, made us to extend more of our Trust's support. We open 7 years recurring deposit in the name of a girl child per family. The maturity amount comes in help when the child is ready to enter college to pursue her higher education.

Recently, we extended our support to the second suicide farmer's families in Metikheda village in Yavatmal district, link given below:

http://support4suicidefarmersfamilies.blogspot.in/2015/08/farmers-widow-of-metikheda-life-must-go.html

When I requested Mandy, she extended her kind support to support one more girl child immediately. Through this post I wish to thank my "Beautiful Angel" to fly all the way from France to help support the next-in-line girl child of suicide affected farmer's families. Sai Baba bless you always and forever 'Beautiful Angel'. We are truly very-very grateful for your kindness.

We (the Trust) are blessed to be the medium between "Beautiful Angels" of the World and the affected farmers' families. We wish, more angels will fly to help us support more girl child in Vidarbha.