Founded by the late Dr. Vasant Parikh, a medical professional who spent over five decades serving marginalised communities across Gujarat, the Agariya Heet-Rakshak Manch (AHRM) is a registered trust dedicated to the Agariya community—the traditional salt farmers of the Little Rann of Kutch and Gujarat’s coastline. It currently works with between 8,000 and 10,000 Agariya families. AHRM connects families to government health, education, water, and welfare schemes that the physical and administrative remoteness of the salt pans has kept out of reach; advocates at district and state levels for policies that recognise the Agariya community’s rights; and helps the Agariya youth build capacity to navigate institutions on their own terms.
AHRM’s intervention areas include land rights in the Little Rann, where the community’s legal status remains contested following the establishment of the Wild Ass Sanctuary, water supply to salt pan worksites, health and nutrition (including maternal and child health for families who spend eight months a year in a desert with no infrastructure), children’s education across a migratory community, and access to the Integrated Child Development Services scheme. It has also published several studies and reports on the Agariya community’s conditions, especially its women.
Know more about Agariya Heet Rakshak Manch’s work here.
This resource is curated as part of Woman Farmer Project’s Resource Library.
The Woman Farmer Project is a multimedia storytelling initiative led by The Locavore in partnership with the Doc Society Climate Story Kitchen.
