[cmsmasters_row][cmsmasters_column data_width=”1/1″][cmsmasters_text animation_delay=”0″]   The ShivGanga NGO, independent from the usual Missionary or Vanavasi Kalyan Ashram (the Hindu nationalist tribal front) networks, has come about as an answer to the Jhabua district’s grave water problems, which made life difficult for the local Bhil/Bilala tribals. Basing material self-reliance on cultural self-respect, the movement makes use of the tribals’ own cultural resources to motivate them for village development. So, for “harvesting” water, it lets the villagers take inspiration from the myth of Shiva’s blessings to Bhagirath bringing the Ganga down to earth, applying each of its motifs to the various aspects of development, e.g. labelling the required technology as Jata (Shiva’s matted hair). It is one of the more successful among tribal development schemes. Jhabua is a tribal-dominated district in westernmost Madhya Pradesh. Unlike some tribes who lived in isolation until recently and were culturally quite distinct from Hindu society, the Bhil and Bilala tribes (more than 87% of Jhabua’s population), living near the Vedic heartland, has been in touch with the Brahmanical culture since Mahabharata times. As a consequence, their religion is partly specific to them, partly generally Hindu. There is also a Christian minority, though the process of conversions has largely stopped. The tribals have a profound cultural heritage, including religious and social rituals, traditions, arts, crafts and human values. During the British Raj and after Independence, there has been a systematic effort to culturally neglect and economically exploit this innocent population. A tangible problem for the population is the paucity of water, with lowering underground water levels and the waste of otherwise opulent rainwater (+900 mm/year) making life ever more difficult. Most of the rainwater is drained out because of the hilly terrain and rocky soil, leaving the area dry for 6-8 months of a year. The major hurdle in the development of that region is the non-availability of water for cultivation and other purposes, partly due to deforestation. As there is no provision to retain this rainwater, the villagers who are basically small cultivators can take only one crop a year. As there is no other source of income, hundreds of thousands of villagers have to displace themselves temporarily to neighbouring cities to work as labourers for their livelihood. This aggravates the problem of the children’s lack of education, poor health care facilities and other social evils.