About Us
OUR HISTORY
The history begins with a sad story of suicide of a dalit small farmer being unable to repay the cooperative bank loan. The land property of five tribal farmers was seized by cooperative bank in the same year. With this threatening incidence, the poor and marginalized got frightened to face the bank officials, who used to come for loan recovery. It was Sri Sebastian Lima who confronted and was illegally arrested for six months. After release he decided to form an informal group of small holders consisting of 170 members from Limaliguda and neighbouring tribal villages. They approached for compensation, but were harassed and disappointed. However, over the years, they approached to the then MLA (Sri Bhagirathi Gomango) and a Catholic Missionary (Fr. Andrew Chettiyadan, CM) who helped to mobilize communities especially the farmers, women and youth to strengthen the small farmers group. It was a noble expression of their concern for the welfare of the small and marginal farmers, disadvantaged and the underprivileged groups of people like women, children, unemployed youth, scheduled castes, scheduled tribes, dalits, People with Disabilities (PWDs) with positive responses to build capacity of the community. With the handholding support of socially committed young professionals especially Dr. John George, the then Programme Officer of Indo-German Social Service Society, they succeeded to establish a Small Lift Irrigation point at Limaliguda. It functioned well for seven years and got defunct due to lack of proper guidance. The group also could not survive. After in later period, Mr. Prasanna Kumar Lima, son of Sri Sebastian Lima being a social work professional along with some socially committed people reorganized the small farmers and resolved to go for its legal registration in the name of Farmers Organisation for Research Welfare Agriculture and Rural Development-FORWARD under Society’s Registration Act 1860 and got it registered on 22nd April 1995 as a non-government, secular, social and not for profit organisation. .
Farmers Organisation for Research Welfare Agriculture and Rural Development –FORWARD is dedicated to making tangible contributions to the agricultural community, with the goal of reducing hunger, malnutrition, and poverty. We are committed to enabling groundbreaking research and direct project intervention that will result in increased sustainability, productivity, and nutritional destiny of agricultural species. Through our agricultural greater good initiative, we are collaborating with the small and marginal farmers, women and agricultural labourers having string faith in them that they can overcome food insecurity, hunger, malnutrition and poverty through climate change resilient initiatives.
OUR VISION , MISSION & GOAL
Vision
We envision, An Egalitarian, Empowered, Self-Reliant, Just, Peaceful, and Environmentally Sustainable Society with more accountable leadership.
Mission
To create inclusive development models of sustainable livelihood and food security through empowering poor, marginalized small farmers communities, women groups & CBOs, direct field interventions and replication of the best development practices in collaboration with like-minded individuals, institutions, partners, government and philanthropists that shape peoples’ lives, especially of farmers, women, youth and children.
Aim
To facilitate process for creation of inclusive and equitable development of the most marginalized, vulnerable and socially excluded communities in the state of Odisha by the creation of organic agriculture development models through direct field interventions .
OUR STRATEGIC OBJECTIVES
- Creating models of sustainable agriculture and livelihood options to improve the quality of lives of the poor marginalized and excluded.
- Facilitating gender justice, promoting and protecting rights and entitlements of women with dignity and participation of women in all spheres of life for an empowered, gender-sensitive and violence-free just society.
- Promoting and protecting rights and entitlements of children with demonstrated intervention models of child protection and care. Specific focus on Disability.
- Promoting collective action among CBOs and Civil Society Organizations by building capacities and technical expertise to effectively address the issues affecting the lives of women and children, both at the grassroots and policy level./li>
- Developing capacities of small farmers for efficient and effective functioning to become a centre of excellence on gender, child rights and protection and sustainable livelihood in a systemic, transparent and accountable work culture.
