The Indian government recognised the effort of the village by awarding it Rs 1,00,000. This amount was used in starting a village level jaggery-making unit. This unit now employs 25 young men from the village.
Inspired by Jan Seva Foundation, environment education camps for local school children are organised in community protected forests. In these programmes the schoolchildren get acquainted with local plants, including medicinal plants, birds and animals.
In 2003, Pawar helped the village women start a fish-farming cooperative using the common village pond. Jan Seva Andolan helped in the process. The women are now pleased as they can give up making liquor. Since alternatives are now available, the women have taken a strong stand on drinking alcohol. Men are now afraid of coming home drunk. Villagers have also undertaken cultivation of a common forest nursery as part of joint watershed development activities.
The villagers have developed a sense of unity due to the common goal of saving their forests. The regeneration of these forests gave the villagers many benefits and the village took up different forms of income like jaggery making and fish farming.
Social impacts:
Collective action in the village has now increased appreciably. Marriages are also organised collectively on an auspicious day, thereby reducing expenses.
The village has developed a more inclusive method of conflict resolution. One person from each family has to participate in resolution of conflicts, irrespective of the nature of the issue.
Jan Seva Foundation and Vanvasi Kalyan Ashram have helped villagers in community-based development activities, like building improved toilets, setting up kitchen gardens that use recycled water, and so on.
Ecological impacts
The number of thefts from the forest has substantially reduced.
Illicit extraction of forest resources by the villagers has completely stopped.
Protection and conservation efforts have helped reduce water run-off.
The forest department has legitimised the informal village protection group under its Joint Forest Management (JFM) scheme.
Species like Tectona grandis, korfad, ghaypaat, among others, have been planted under JFM in the community protected forest.
According to Chaitram Pawar, plant and animal life has increased in the forest, both in terms of number and variety. More importantly, not only has Baripada become self-sufficient in terms of meeting its fuelwood and water needs, it can even supply water to surrounding villages.