In partnership with Indicorps, the Piramal Foundation has established a Grassroots Development Laboratory (GDL) in Bagar, Rajasthan. This initiative takes an experiment-driven approach by applying best practices in development and innovative ideas to a geographically focused area. The GDL aims to address broad development challenges by implementing nationally calable projects in the local Bagar community. The Grassroots Development Lab focuses on implementation of top-quality, small-scale interventions by highly committed young people.

The village of Bagar is in the Jhunjunu district of Rajasthan and has a population of approximately 10,000. The Jhunjhunu region is famous for being the ancestral home of many well known Marwari business families, including the Piramals, L.N. Mittal, and the Birla lineages. Many of these families have invested heavily in schooling in the region. As such, Bagar, strategically placed between Jhunjhunu city and Chidawa city, is a known popularly as a learning hub. It currently houses 32 educational institutions for both local citizens as well as residential students from neighboring towns and cities. However, the proliferation of schools does not always equate to top quality learning; there is great potential for improvement in the standards and content of education in Bagar. The growing willingness by villagers to pay for private education has led to the opportunistic creation of many new schools in recent years. The town is also viewed as transitory: the population fluctuates with the school year.

Like many small towns in India, Bagar still struggles with basic provisions such as healthcare services, potable water, solid-waste management and employment opportunities. The size and the number of graduates residing within the town increase the potential to sustain interventions because of the availability of human resources. The GDL mandate is to work towards locally-appropriate solutions that have national relevance and potential to be scaled. The initiative is designed to be an incubator for disruptive innovations and to be a partnership with the local community to collaboratively improve conditions in Bagar.

The GDL operates with a team of Indicorps Fellows, international volunteers, interns, local staff, and a GDL manager. Each individual working on the GDL focuses on specific issue for his or her work within Bagar. In the early stages, GDLers assess the current needs of the community, research best practices and build trust within the town. The GDL team then helps each subteam identify a specific project and articulate a detailed plan for implementation. Each GDL subteam must thoroughly-research project proposals and detailed plans with specific goals, progress benchmarks, and budgets. The Piramal Foundation management team helps refine proposals and assist with resources to ensure effective performance of the projects.

Over time, our growing involvement in the community will reduce the barriers to new initiatives and lead to greater effectiveness of development interventions. Currently the GDL works in healthcare, education, livelihoods, and technology utilization.