The signs of poverty are present in the area in the form of material deprivation, isolation and alienation. Major contributing factors to poverty have been caused by deforestation, seasonal migration, lack of infrastructure, education and health facilities, high population growth rate etc. No change has been observed in the trend of occupational pattern since 1961. Among the people living in the Panchmahals, 89% are engaged in agriculture and allied activities. Unemployment is a major problem in this area, where 96% of the rural population is considered unemployed. The lack of local available sources of employment has led to a high percentage of seasonal urban migration.
A vast number of people in the Panchmahals District live below the poverty line. In addition, natural resources depletion has exerted tremendous strain on living conditions. The fact that the area is very drought prone - records shows that six out of ten years is a drought year with acute famine as a result - affects the rural economic situation, as people are dependent on the ground water for agriculture. The land is normally not irrigated, so there can only be one rain fed crop per year. Geologically the area consists of Precambian rocks, which limits the ground water storage capacity. This leads to a shortage of drinking water as a chronic problem in the region. People are dependent on tube wells, hand pumps and ponds for their everyday needs. However, most of these sources run dry in the summer months causing villagers, especially women, to travel long distances for drinking water. This makes the work hours longer for the already burdened women. Furthermore, where there once used to be famous thick teak forests, popular for elephant hunting by the Mughal emperors, Panchmahals has today lost most of its tree cover due to furniture and paper industry. The land has also been cleared for agricultural purposes, which contributes to the drying up of natural water resources.
Many hand pumps and wells have been damaged due to the drought, and were unable to handle the sudden flush of water. Without proper watershed management of the lands very little of the water will be put to use, and most will simply be washed away. During hard times mitigation to cities in search of wage labor is a common phenomenon, as there are not enough jobs in the area to support the entire population.
The major problems of the area are as follows:
1. Drought prone area
2. Low literacy rate
3. Lack of health and education facilities, and knowledge of the importance of it
4. Lack of agricultural infrastructure
5. Depletion of natural resources
6. Social evils and their practices
7. Migration
8. Lack of gender awareness and sensitization
9. Purdah system among women; heavy workload resulting in long working hours, no participation in decision making
10. Poor nutritional status of women and children
11. Alcoholism among the male
The major findings of the target areas according to Census report and PRA done by SARTHI are as follows:
1. The average female literacy rate of the state is 58.6% and the Taluka’s average is 45.15%. In average female literacy rate in the area that SARTHI works is 40%.
2. The major population in the area is tribal. Average tribal population in the district is around 50% and in the Taluka it is around 80%.
3. The average IRDP identified family is not less than 30% in the Taluka. In the target villages it is approximately 65%.
4. The areas facilitated have no minor, medium, small scale or any type of industry. So unemployment and underemployment prevails throughout the year for bulk on the populace.
5. Women’s position within the family is deplorable. They have very low social status and practically no economic or political rights, within and outside the family.
6. Visits by community health workers are an uncommon sight. And this stark neglect of health is translated in hospital coverage available to the people of Panchmahals. It is ranked last, at 19th in terms of beds per lakh population, with mere 50 beds as compared to 291 beds in Ahmedabed.
7. People have to depend on money lenders because credit is not readily available from Government or Banks in these villages. There is an urgent need for micro credit system in village level.