TN’s Pudhu Vazhvu project a role model for Indonesia

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Indonesian delegation visiting the Chenna Samudram Panchayat in Tiruvanamalai district and interacting with Village Poverty Reduction committee and Panchayat Level federation members

C Shivakumar
Mamallapuram:
The Pudhu Vazhvu project, an empowerment and poverty alleviation project implemented by the rural development and panchayat raj department of Tamil Nadu with World Bank assistance, is likely to become a role model for Indonesia in alleviating poverty in the East Asian country.

Speaking to Express Pamuji Lestari, secretary of the National Oversight Team for the Community Empowerment programme, Coordinating Ministry for People’s welfare, Indonesia, said that the country is looking for a sustainable model for poverty alleviation especially in the livelihood programme under the National Program for Community Empowerment (NPCE). “We have also visited Nepal, Bihar and Andhra Pradesh. But we are impressed by the Pudhu Vazhvu project and would like to borrow the best practices from the project and incorporate it in our programme,” says Lestari.

Aqus Manshur, head of sub directorate for poverty alleviation of Ministry of Development Planning Agency, Indonesia, said that the country has a total of 30 million people who earn less than $60 a month. He said the Pudhu Vazhvu project is a woman centric project and is a better model for women empowerment.  “We could pilot this programme only for women in Indonesia,” he said.


C S Renjit, community development consultant of the World Bank said that the project which was launched by Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa on 2005 had been a success. It is a model for the world, Renjit feels adding that Indonesia is likely to borrow the model of Tamil Nadu for their poverty alleviation programme. The Rs 1,667 crore project which is implemented in 26 districts covering 4,174 villages in 120 blocks reaches out to one million people. Currently, the project is in the final year. A senior government official of Pudhu Vazhvu Project said that the project is in the final stages of funding. “This year the outlay is Rs 350 crore and the government might plan to extend the project,” she said.

She said the Puthu Vazhvu programe has already been replicated in other parts of Tamil Nadu through the Tamil Nadu State Rural livelihood Programme. Renjith says that project has been a success in the village and block level. “The challenge now is to take it to the district level and make it a sustainable one,” he says. He also hailed the state government for including all the lessons learnt from the project into the policy framework. He also said that the World Bank has yet to hear from the state government on extending the project.

A workshop on knowledge sharing and brainstorming for pilot design was inaugurated by project director Mythili K Rajendran.