Usharmukti Plus, West Bengal

West Bengal

Usharmukti Plus, West Bengal

The next phase of Usharmukti, West Bengal’s landmark watershed and MGNREGS convergence programme, extending the model that rejuvenated over a lakh hectares of land and created 41,040 lakhpati households in its first phase.

State Partnership

Overview

Usharmukti was West Bengal’s flagship watershed management programme with the Panchayat and Rural Development Department, running August 2017 to July 2023 through CSO partners including PRADAN, Tagore Society for Rural Development and Rajarhat Prasari. The first phase rejuvenated 1,26,298 hectares of land, created 31,219 hectare-metres of water harvesting potential and covered 2.98 lakh households across 54 blocks in 6 districts.

Usharmukti Plus carries the model forward, continuing MGNREGS-linked watershed development across the state’s western districts, with BRLF and its CSO partners now also piloting digital tools for capacity building under the EDIT initiative.

Key Strategies

Implement watershed development using a ridge-to-valley, natural resource management approach

Translate wage employment under VB-G RAM G into durable community livelihood assets

Build individual and community assets for water harvesting and irrigation

Strengthen partnership between government departments and civil society organisations across districts

Increase cropping intensity and household income across the Jungle Mahal region

Outcomes to date

1,26,298

Hectares of land rejuvenated

31,219

Hectare-metres of water harvest potential created

3.12 Lakh

Hectares under assured Kharif cultivation

2.98 Lakh

Households covered

1.04 Lakh

Hectares under double cropping

41,040

Lakhpati households created

Convergence with government schemes

₹2,037 Cr leveraged through government scheme convergence

VB-G RAM G

Provided wage employment for watershed asset creation
BRLF enabled technical design and CSO capacity building

Panchayat and Rural Development Department, West Bengal

Enabled convergence and institutional access
BRLF coordinated programme implementation

QUICK FACTS

Districts

6 (Purulia, Bankura, Paschim Medinipur, Jhargram, Birbhum, Paschim Bardhaman)

Blocks

CSO Partners

7 (Development Research Communication and Services Centre, Tagore Society for Rural Development, Shamayita Math, Lok Kalyan Parishad, Rural Development Association, PRADAN, Rajarhat Prasari)

Theme

Watershed Management, VB-G RAM G convergence

Nodal Department

Panchayat and Rural Development Dept, Govt of West Bengal

Project period

August 2017 to July 2023