The rural villagers of Medak have fallow arid land. Worms produce organic compost that renourishes the land for crop growth, and provides a source of income as surplus is sold for a profit.
The main source of work for Medak's "dalit" (untouchable) caste is manual labor, such as laying roads. This work requires them to leave for months at a time. Worm composting will stop this migration by providing an alternate sustainable source of local revenue, while holistically restoring fallow lands so crops can be grown. Bricks, sand, and cement are needed to construct the worms' breeding beds; worms must be purchased; and awareness meetings and training seminars must be funded.
This project will provide worm compost and income-generating activity for 100 households. 10 villages will be provided with 100 beds for breeding worms. 1,000,000 worms and roughly 5,200 pounds of manure will be produced.
Each family will: use the organic manure needed for their one-acre farms; produce vegetables for their families; and sell remaining compost and worms, for a total profit of $20,000.
This project has provided additional documentation in a Microsoft Word file (projdoc.doc).
