By members Adam Hays and Elana Levens-Craig. This November will be Adam’s 4th Check Dam project and Elana’s 3rd.
Annually, the Rotary Club of Delhi Akash Megapolis, in partnership with Rotary districts in Alaska and Maine, welcomes Rotarians and friends from around the world for a unique experience. The India check dam project is in its 14th year. We have had people from throughout the United States, Australia, Canada, France and India.
Travelers get to physically help construct a check dam in small villages, in addition to seeing the famous landmarks of India. The dam portion of the project is typically about 5-7 days, but both pre and post tours are always offered. In addition to working side by side with the people from the village, travelers will get to meet and have dinner with local Rotarians, visit schools and see how people in rural India live. There are no physical limitations – Rotarians of all ages and abilities can participate (last year our youngest was 13 and our oldest was 82). At the dam site, we met school children, had performances from local dance troupes, and dined on delicious food. The trip includes all transportation, accommodations, meals, entrance fees to attractions, and an English-speaking guide.
This long-running Rotary global grant project is building dams in remote, semidesert areas of India where rainfall is scarce and unreliable, and agriculture has not even been life-sustaining without these dams. The dams are designed to trap (check) the monsoon waters into a type of reservoir for use in agriculture throughout the year.
With water from a check dam, agriculture becomes more prosperous, with farmers able to feed their families and even grow crops to sell. Because of the impact of these dams, young men who were fleeing villages to work in Delhi and Mumbai are returning to work in agriculture and help their people.
Project participants work alongside local residents. The majority of local workers are fairly slight, but incredibly strong local women. The manual labor involves lots of carrying rocks and buckets of concrete. Despite the language barriers, Rotary participants develop strong camaraderie with the villagers and gain appreciation for their challenges and their triumphs.
We return year after year because the rewards of this experience are amazing and almost indescribable.
For most of us, India is an exotic destination on the other side of the world, and a bit intimidating. The organizers of this trip do a great job making it accessible. The places we work are remote, but the organizers provide comfortable “glamping” accommodations and outstanding food.
We have English-speaking guides, and the local people are incredibly welcoming and appreciative.
We would love to have some fellow Global Travelers join us for this amazing experience in November. In addition to the rewarding work of helping to build a check dam and transform a community, you also have the option to participate in memorable pre and post trips. After all, if you are flying half-way around the world, you should definitely make the most of it.
This excellent brochure has more detail about the main trip and the various pre and post trips that are available. You can also view the recent Global Travelers meeting where we describe our experiences on this trip. View the video here.
If you have questions, don’t hesitate to reach out to either of us. As you can tell, we are passionate about this project.
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