The Kalpavalli Community Conserved Area (KCCA) is nestled within a range of hills running North to South that connect the Guttur Reserve Forest in the North-East to the Penukonda Reserve Forest in the South. 

The Kalpavalli (“eternal source of abundance”) programme promotes community-based natural resource management and biodiversity conservation in a 6,000-acre expanse of village common lands referred to as the Kalpavalli Community Conservation Area (KCCA). The programme seeks to reverse the damage done to this significant productive ecosystem (located in a rain shadow area) because of deforestation, overgrazing, forest fires, climate change, etc.­­

The programme was initiated in Mustikovela village in 1992. There were two main goals – to mobilise people to manage their common lands and enhance local biodiversity on a severely degraded landscape. After more than a year of efforts to convince them (which included organising a visit to a community conserved forest in Chittoor District), the people of Mustikovela began protecting 125 acres of common land and took up large-scale seed/sapling plantation and soil/water management activities. 

The positive impacts of this were soon evident, and over the years, nine more villages joined the initiative. In November 2008, the Kalpavalli Tree Growers’ Cooperative was registered as a federation of the village-level FPCs.Timbaktu Collective is an organisation based in Anantpur district of Andhra Pradesh. 

1992- mobilisation of this village through regular conversations

1993- villagers agreed to regenerate 150 acres of their waste common lands

2004- eight villages in the area had started regenerating forests in their vicinity with the help of newly established village level forest protection committees (FPCs)

Timbaktu Collective is an organisation based in Anantpur district of Andhra Pradesh. In 1993 the villagers agreed to regenerate 150 acres of their waste common lands. By 2004, eight village in the area had started regenerating forests in their vicinity with the help of newly establishe village level forest protection committees (FPCs). The eight villages have also established a federation called Kalpavalli Adavi Samakya, which is protecting and helping regenerate 8,500 acres of contiguous forests. The Samakya has 1320 members in the general body.

The programme partners with the Kalpavalli Tree Growers’ Cooperative (Kalpavalli Cooperative), a federation of 10 informal Vana Samrakshana Committees (Forest Protection Committees or FPCs) that oversees the KCCA.

All the FPCs meet regularly and participate in the federation meetings. The individual FPCs undertake activities like fire control, seed dibbling, soil and water conservation works, etc., with the help of the Collective. They have also appointed forest watchers for regular patrolling in the forest.

The other activities of the FPCs include monitoring the forest watchers, planning activities to be undertaken in the protected forests, decisions related to the tamarind orchards (these orchards have been established on 273 acres in 9 villages with support from the district administration and the Collective), collection of fines from those cutting trees, sale of date-palm fronds and operating their respective bank accounts.

Forest protection and regeneration

• Monitoring the the ‘watch’ and ‘ward’ activities of forest watchers: grazing management,  documenting endangered fauna, preventing hunting, poaching, tracking the use of Non-Timber Forest Produce (NTFPs, etc.)
• Managing the creation of firelines (done by deliberately burning 15-20 ft wide lines across the hills as a grid, which prevent the rapid spread of fires) and facilitating community involvement in putting out forest fires.
• Organising tree plantation drives with the community; recently, the emphasis has been on organising seed dibbling camps with local children and youth to contribute toward their ecological inheritance.
• Managing the collection of seeds from tree, bush, herb and grass species by the forest watchers.
• Engaging with district and state-level authorities such as the District Collector, Forest Department, Andhra Pradesh State Biodiversity Board to receive legal recognition and protected status for the KCCA.

Environmental awareness and outreach

• Organising ecological camps for local children and youth to learn about natural regeneration and biodiversity conservation. The camps comprise nature walks, bird watching sessions, and an on-site group project such as seed collection, seed dibbling, animal sightings, etc.
• Maintaining the ‘Bush Camp’, a field base and campsite being piloted by the Kalpavalli programme to deepen conservation outreach activities with schools and colleges and partner with research institutions.
• Organising village-level awareness and learning sessions on snakebite mitigation, biodiversity, ecosystem services, NTFPs, human-animal conflict, illegal wildlife trade, food chains, etc.

Institutional development (Kalpavalli Cooperative)

• Facilitating monthly FPC and Forest Watchers’ meetings.
• Facilitating and documenting the monthly meeting of the Cooperative’s Board of Directors.
• Organising exposure visits for FPC leaders, Forest Watchers, and Cooperative Directors.

Communications and networking

• Documentation of Cooperative activities.
• Implementing and reviewing the KCCA’s Management Plan.
• Facilitating interactions with external stakeholders (general visitors, government officials, civil society representatives, media persons, researchers, students, etc.).

ECONOMIC IMPACTS

• Kalpavalli continued to produce grass. 3,222 farmers from 109 villages cut and took 6,948 cart-loads of grass worth Rs 27,79,200 and generating 55,584 workdays. Besides this, 1500 cattle and 5000 goat and sheep were brought here for grazing.
• The date-palm tree has regenerated profusely along the main stream in the Kalpavalli forests. These trees are of great support to the poor in this area, particularly during droughts. The FPCs have been reaping benefits from the sale of date-palm fronds to basket- and mat-makers and as fees from the toddy-tappers.
• The poorest sections of the population here have been benefiting from collection and sale of dates in the local markets in summer. It is estimated that 54 people earned about Rs 79,828 from the sale of dates during May 2003.

ECOLOGICAL IMPACTS

• Once a barren expanse of land, the KCCA has been transformed into a vibrant savannah grassland ecosystem and a critical biodiversity reserve and wildlife corridor.
• The KCCA is home to several endangered animal species such as the Indian Gray Wolf, Black Buck, Leopard, Sloth Bear, and various birds, insects, and reptiles.
• One of the most important ecosystem services provided by the KCCA is derived from its topography. The KCCA serves as a catchment area for a watershed that supports hundreds of households downstream.
• The Collective trains and mentors a team of 11 Forest Watchers, who serve as the custodians of the KCCA.

SOCIAL IMPACTS

• In FY 2019-20, around 900 families generated incomes by collecting and selling fruits and berries, broom grass, medicinal plants, and date palm. Also, more than 75,000 cattle and small ruminants grazed in the KCCA.
• The program has enhanced the environmental awareness of thousands of local children and youth through seed-dibbling and ecology camps in the KCCA and its Mobile Interpretation Centre (also referred to as ‘Jungle Bandi’ or forest vehicle).

In the year 2003-4 there was a plan to construct windmills in this area. The federation wrote letters to the collector requesting him to not construct these mills in the area falling under the protected forests of villages Kogira, Kambalapalli, and Shyapuram.

https://timbaktu.org/kalpavalli/

https://kalpavriksh.org/kalpavalli-forests/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J-VtU46p9KA&t=263s ('The Eternal Source of Abundance')