Choitresh Kumar Ganguly “Bablu”

Choitresh Kumar Ganguly (“Bablu”) is an organic farmer in India who has been involved in the field of rural development in India since the late 1970s, helping empower small holder farmers, agricultural labourers, Dalits (low caste) and other disadvantaged and marginalised communities, artisans, women, children and People with Disabilities. In 1990 he co-founded the not for profit, Timbaktu Collective, and established the 32-acre ‘Timbaktu’ agro-forest habitat and intentional community. Since then, they began to regenerate and revive the local economy, enhance livelihood opportunities, help regain food security and food sovereignty, and work on large-scale ecological restoration. 

Bablu has been instrumental in the genesis and growth of a number of development institutions, peoples’ organisations and networks for four decades. He is presently a Vice President of IFOAM Organics International. Their collective is restoring 7,000 hectares of waste land. Timbaktu’s conviction is that the Women-Children-Environment linkage is the development molecule that builds everything else. There are over 7,000 members in the numerous women thrift groups managing a capital of over Rs.1 crore.

Anantapur district is located in the Rayalaseema region. It is perennially drought prone. It receives the second lowest rainfall in India: 522mm. Of its 4 million population, close to half were deep in debt. Only 15% of its cultivable land is irrigated. It challenges men of action. Environmental vandalism of the last six decades had disrupted ancient work cycles of the countryside. Villages had been shell-shocked by the discontinuity.

Protect it and nature does her job.  The Mother has to be nurtured.  

Location: Anantapuramu District, Andhra Pradesh, India.

Organization: 1) Timbuktu Collective 2) CEO of the Dharani Farming and Marketing Cooperative Limited

Websites:
1) www.timbaktu.org
2) www.timbaktu-organic.org.

Video 1: Timbuktu
Video 2:  Build Simply
Video 3: Indian Lecture