LEDeG's major areas of intervention touch every aspect of daily life of the people of the Ladakh region. These areas are as follows:
2. Agriculture and Food Processing
4. Handicrafts
Other areas of intervention include:
1. Information, Education and Cultural Preservation
Appropriate technology is the kind of technology that fits small-scale, grassroots, people-centred economics. For the last two decades LEDeG has been tirelessly working for the introduction of appropriate technologies, which have the potential to improve the living condition of people. The most prominent among them are micro hydro, hydraulic ram pump, improved water mill, solar architecture, solar cookers, solar home lighting system etc.
LEDeG has promoted locally-manufactured technologies that use solar energy for space heating, cooking, water heating, crop drying and greenhouses, small-scale water power for grinding grain, producing electricity and pumping water. Today, one or more of these technologies can be found in virtually every Ladakhi village.
Micro Hydro-electric Power Generation
Micro hydro is a simple technology for generation of electricity using water available in the snow fed streams on which all villages and hamlets of Ladakh are situated. Depending on the minimum power requirements of the consumers and the potential of the source, the capacity of micro hydro system installed by LEDeG varies from 0.5 KW to 15 KW.
Solar Passive Technology
With the temperature dropping to -40 Degree Celsius, room heating primarily in the evening and early morning is not a choice but a matter of survival. The primary source of room heating is the kitchen stove and Bukhari fuelled with dung, wood, kerosene and the addition is LPG based room heating system. However, about 90% of the population depends on kitchen stove and Bukhari for room heating. This system results in over-exploitation of scarce natural resources and air pollution besides adverse impact on health like respiratory infection. Exponential growth of population without corresponding increase in biomass and natural resources is making the situation worse. Since its inception LEDeG has been trying to address the problem of space heating through the use of solar energy, local resource based insulation techniques, improved stove efficiency and improved architecture designs.
Trombe system is an extremely simple system built on the principle of passive solar gain and minimization of heat loss through various design and insulation techniques. In 1984 in collaboration with Ladakh project, LEDeG installed 75 solar passive systems. After a decade of LEDeG and Ladakh Project experiment and initiative, the solar passive architecture has been embraced and has seen an unparalleled pace of development, with the NGOs, Army, Local Government and Individuals adopting the techniques. Research and experiments carried out by NGOs and individual researchers indicated that a trombe wall can keep the interior space at approximately 16-20 degree Celsius above the ambient temperature. Trombe can reduce reliance on heating fuels by about two-third, besides reducing pollution and health hazards.
Agriculture and Food Processing
Ladakhi agriculture is primarily subsistent in nature - unique and representative of the Tibetan plateau farming system. Until recently, Ladakhis grew and consumed their own grains, cereals and vegetables, reared their own animals, prepared their own manure, seeds and other agricultural inputs, in a well integrated and balanced form of agriculture that has evolved in response to agro-climatic conditions. Agriculture is difficult at high altitude and arid climate like Ladakh. Nevertheless, glacial-fed rivers are diverted repeatedly for irrigation through stone-built terraces.
However, as Ladakh opens up to the world, its ancient and reliable agricultural system faces disruption and agriculture takes a back seat to fast growing sectors like tourism and related service sector. LEDeG is actively engaged in the introduction and diversification of agriculture in remote villages of Leh and Kargil district. In the relatively developed areas of Ladakh, LEDeG is engaged in value addition program like production of Jam, jelly, drying vegetable for winter consumption, improved packaging etc. While in the remote areas, LEDeG focus is on diversification of production base through introduction of improved seeds, training on vegetable production for self consumption, awareness program about seed,s pesticides, fertilizers etc. In 12 villages of Nyoma block, under watershed program, integrated development program is being implemented since 1995. This program includes wasteland management, water conservation, seed preservation, introduction of new variety of seeds and domestic animal development.
Value Addition For Agricultural Produce
The focus of agriculture team of LEDeG is on value addition of agricultural produce of Ladakh through introduction of various appropriate technologies. The two natural produces grown in abundance in the remote regions of Ladakh are apricot and seabuckthorn, both indigenous to the area. At present, only the raw products of apricot and seabuckthorn are marketed. So the effort of the agricultural section during the last few years was on carrying out a value-addition exercise by making jam, jelly and juice with improved packaging and product features.
Watershed management modules have been declared to be a pragmatic solution to sustain integrated and holistic developments in mountainous regions of the world. The natural systems
of mountains are heavily interconnected as well as fragile, and an unplanned intervention seldom leads to desired outcomes. Therefore, developmental programmes focussing on individual watersheds, mainly on its physical, biological and social components and utilising decentralisation processes, have been LEDeG watershed development team's main approach.
LEDeG has been associated with the government for the implementation of watershed programmes from 1993 onwards and has worked in 12 villages of Nyoma block of Leh district. Promoting overall development of the villages and conserving their natural resources has been LEDeG's priority.
From 1995-2005, LEDeG developed 149 hectare (2980 canals) of waste land and planted 2,00,200 saplings of endangered species in the 12 watershed villages of Nyoma.
The introduction of relatively effortless ways of producing artefacts has caused the local traditions of Ladakh to ebb. Nonetheless, the tourist influx has helped sustain the growth of the traditional Ladakhi handicraft sector to a greater extent. In consideration of both, the opportunities and threats that tourism poses, LEDeG felt that handicraft is a potential area of intervention, for revival of the handicraft sector in Ladakh. This was to be done by adopting participatory approaches in collaboration with the community, especially with the Self Help Groups (SHGs).
Through its handicraft intervention, LEDeG strives to:
- Preserve the cultural heritage of Ladakh and the Ladakhi people through popularising their art and artefacts.
- Utilise the local resources through value addition and inclusion of cost effective technologies.
- Provide a dedicated marketing infrastructure and logistic support for handicrafts manufactured.
- Generate sustainable and alternate sources of livelihood to its people.
- Strengthen community based institutions.
LEDeG, through its handicraft intervention strategy, is presently working with 38 Self Help Groups (SHGs) from various remote regions having poor infrastructural facilities. LEDeG not only provides marketing support to its artisans but also trains them on new designs, techniques, adoption of new technologies such as effective spinning-machines etc.
Information, Education and Cultural Preservation
It is important for the Ladakhi people to be fully aware and well informed about the questions of development. Through gained knowledge, LEDeG's information, education and cultural preservation team has been trying to make a difference in Ladakh through different techniques of disseminating it. These are primarily through awareness campaigns. The main tools used for the mass dissemination are through audio and visual documentations based on past learning. One of the main aims is also to observe days like World Environmental Day, World Bio-Diversity Day etc. in order to make the community aware of its importance.
The LEDeG team has produced various IEC (Informative, Educational and Communication) materials in the past as well as in 2006-2007.
Ladakh, particularly Leh and Kargil towns, is presently facing a problem of solid waste management and if not addressed immediately, it might result in a major problem for the administration as well as the local residents. Ladakh receives approximately around 30,000 tourists from all over the world. In order to cater to the needs of the ever growing demands in the tourism sector, there has been a huge influx of packed food and water products. This has generated large amounts of garbage in urban as well as peri-urban areas of Ladakh region.
LEDeG, though not expertise, has been making some small efforts to address this issue in a proper manner. These small efforts include cleanliness drives and field studies to analyse the problem of Solid Waste Management.