Brief History and introduction about CDR
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CDRs story began in 1983 in the Marlawai village of Jainoor mandal in Adilabad
district in the undivided Andhra Pradesh. It started assisting the tribes in 41 villages
in Jainoor and Sirpur (U) mandals. CDR�€™s first initiative was to mobilise the tribal
community to raise their voice against insecure ownership of the land and the corrupt
practises in land administration. Building up on its collective strength and instilling
the spirit of community action have been the cornerstones of CDR's activities since
inception.
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CDR was instrumental in preparation of people centred village development plans
which later paved way for creation of Village Tribal Development Agencies (VTDA).
Perhaps for the first time, the government had the opportunity to participate in a
programme designed and implemented by the people. Village development plans
were prepared by the tribal community in 41 villages of Jainoor and Sirpur (u) mandals
in Adilabad District which were submitted to the government seeking partnership in
implementing these plans. These People�€™s Plans encouraged and guided by CDR,
redefined decentralised planning and implementation of tribal development
programs. CDR always worked with the community to create institutional framework
to access and mobilise public resources.
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Our Initial Interventions include:
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Encouraging Community Participation - Sowing the seeds of collective action
has been central to the work of CDR.
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Womens Self Help Group Movement - CDR assisted the tribal women in
organizing the first ever Self Help Groups (SHGs) in Sirpur(U) and Jainoor.
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Village Health Plans - Integrated village health plans were prepared and
executed by the community with assistance of CDR.
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Introduction of Soya Bean Crop- CDR introduced soya bean crop to tribal
farmers in Adilabad District in 1992. It procured seed from Chindwara, M.P. for
sowing in 5 acres each in 20 villages. Today soya bean crop is spread over
more than 40,000 acres in the district..
Approaches
CDR believes in the essential dignity of the poor and their capacity to overcome their
problems. With this belief as the driving force, CDR has been working for the
betterment of the living standards of the rural poor, particularly of the tribal
communities.
- Community Governance: CDR believes in evolving and strengthening enduring
tools of community governance in all its activities. CDR's approach in
promoting community participation involves working through women farmers
and their families.
- Research: CDR has been conducting continuous research to widen its horizons
of knowledge and apply it to work for the wellbeing of the people.
- Basic Education: CDR strives to provide quality basic education to the tribal
children that would lay the foundation for at least ten continuous years of
purposeful schooling.
- Health: CDR works with the community to inculcate sustainable practices of
good health and wellbeing. It has been focusing on child and mother care as
an entry point for achieving this objective.
- Land Use: CDR works towards improving land use. The goal is to increase
productivity and incomes from land.
- Livelihoods: CDR will seek opportunities to enhance existing and/or provide
alternative meaningful livelihoods to the tribal communities.
