Rural Development & Tribal & Cultural Heritage

Projects in this focus area work to strengthen cultural identity, support the continuity of traditional knowledge systems, and encourage pride in heritage among younger generations, particularly in tribal and culturally significant regions.

Project Title:
Shodh Yatra & Dhas Community Water Conservation Initiative — 2025
Location:
Dhongargaon and remote tribal villages, Pati Block, Barwani District, Madhya Pradesh
Partner Organisation:
Nirog social Welfare Society

About the Project:
Shodh Yatra 2025 was a 7-day, 70 km community research and service initiative across remote tribal villages in Barwani district. Rooted in the traditional Dhas practice of collective labour, the initiative integrated water conservation, healthcare outreach, agricultural advisory, youth engagement, and structured dialogue on tribal development.

Sewabridge Foundation enabled this multi-disciplinary engagement by facilitating collaboration between tribal communities, researchers, healthcare professionals, and academic institutions including IIT Delhi.

Alongside environmental efforts, health outreach activities including medical consultations and basic health screenings were organised for local residents, strengthening community well-being through integrated engagement.

Key outcome:

• Community-led construction and restoration of water conservation structures

•  1,000+ health screenings including Sickle Cell and preventive diagnostics

•  Engagement with approximately 5,000 tribal community members across 15 villages

•  Agricultural soil assessments and sustainable farming advisory support

•  Student guidance sessions reaching 400+ school and college students

•  Launch of Tribal Hackathon 1.0 to generate scalable solutions for remote tribal challenges

Communities Reached:
Tribal families and rural communities across participating villages in the Indore region