Twenty-two years of Women Empowerment, Rejuvenating Lakes, Creating Farm Ponds, and Self-Help Groups.
Vision & Mission
Vision
Development of sustainable livelihood, improved education, enriched environment, and development of good human values.
Mission
To create and sustain a social order among the marginalized and deprived members of the rural community regardless of caste, class, creed and gender, with special emphasis on women and children, enabling them through various programs and activities ensuring sustainable livelihood, and distribution of natural resources without discrimination.
Founder & Managing Trustee
Mr. Ganapati Bhat
Managing Trustee, MANUVIKASAMr. Ganapati Bhat is from Karjagi, a small village in Siddapur taluk. He assumed the role of managing trustee since 2010. He has played a central role in shaping the organisation’s identity, operations and long-term impact.
He is responsible for directing and overseeing the overall development and implementation of MANUVIKASA’s programmes and initiatives. These include water conservation efforts such as farm ponds, soak pits and lake rejuvenation; livelihood development through self-help groups (SHGs), joint liability groups (JLGs), microcredit facilitation and farmers’ producer companies; women’s empowerment initiatives; and educational support for disadvantaged populations.
Rooted where the ghats meet the coast.
MANUVIKASA operates across Uttara Kannada, Dharwad, Shivamogga, Udupi, and Haveri — terrain that ranges from dense Western Ghats forest to coastal fishing belts to open plains, each carrying its own water and livelihood challenges.
Western Ghats
Forest villages, Betta lands, and monsoon-fed streams that anchor the region's biodiversity.
Coastal belt
Fishing communities along Kumta, Honnavar, and the Udupi coastline.
Plains
Agricultural stretches where farm ponds and FPOs strengthen crop income.
Financial independence, organised group by group.
Through Self-Help Groups and Joint Liability Groups, women gain access to bank credit, a shared credit-cooperative, and training in trades that translate directly into income.