In 2014, there existed a barren and arid tract of land in the village of Tekulodu in Andhra Pradesh. With soaring summer temperatures, there was virtually no water to be found, no form of hydration seemed even remotely possible and certainly no sign of life. Fast forward one year, and the village in itself has undergone a sea of change, when a sea was the last thing the little hamlet in the district of Anantapur could have imagined. A bulk of the work that went into the endeavour was that undertaken by a few individuals with a sound project in mind; one that focused on retaining the wisdom of the ages, while seeing how best technology could aid in such an endeavour. In the centre of this group of concerned citizens is Saligao’s own, Darryl Pereira.
Darryl has an aversion to official designations and refers to himself as a ‘Green Entrepreneur’. His enterprise, Reira Eco Ventures has always been involved in different activities, all sharing a synergy with each other – Aquaculture, Agriculture, Renewable Energy, Rain Water Harvesting, Waste Management and Aquaponics.
The newest idea out of the proverbial stable has been coined, ProtoVillage. Speaking on the history of the concept, Darryl earnestly distances himself from accreditation, pointing out that his was merely the technology that helped develop the village. The green entrepreneur says “The idea was the brainchild of Kalyan Akkipedi, who gave up his management career in GE and embarked on a two and a half year journey across rural India. He travelled by setting himself conditions that he would not pay for his boarding nor lodging with money, and ended up doing all sorts of jobs to fulfil this conditional journey including peeling garlic and working on apple farms. Enriched with these experiences, he teamed up with others to fulfil his dream village. Thus, ProtoVillage was founded to co-create the prototype of an abundant rural community in a remote village called Tekulodu, in the second driest and one of the poorest districts in India (Anantapur district, Andhra Pradesh) where today, even subsistence farming in on the edge of collapse.”
It is here that Darryl’s expertise came to the fore, having always tried innovative methods to improve existing systems in the agricultural sector and having been feted for his achievements including the Business Goa’s ‘Green Entrepreneur Award’. Setting up the Tools Bank at ProtoVillage, he also managed to aid the farmers by familiarising them with the concept of the wicking bed system to grow vegetables.
During the first year in the village, the focus of the team remained on observation, so as to learn the way of life in the village and also to find any opportunities that could be useful. They worked on drinking water de-fluoridation and afforestation among other things over this period. The ProtoVillage team chose to focus on one single farm in the Tekulodu village and turn it into the prototype of an abundant family. The farm family, with an annual income of INR 7,000 ($ 150) was about to migrate out of the village for lack of opportunities. Working with the farm family, the team have been able to ensure that the family earns INR 14,000 per month apart from becoming self-reliant in terms of its most basic needs, be it food, water, shelter or energy.
Darryl signs off, pointing out exactly what the aim of something like ProtoVillage really is, by saying “The aim is to build a world that is a network of interdependent, abundant communities. Abundance is a state in which a community employs ecologically sustainable means to enjoy resilient access to resources necessary and sufficient to fulfil the basic needs of all its inhabitants. Living the green life is not just a tagline; it’s a way of life for all at ProtoVillage.”
