ISSUE 12 | DECEMBER 2019
Martuvam Healing forest, and
the Reach for the Stars!
program enabling higher
education for village youth.
Economy
Instead of paper and coin
currency, residents are given
account numbers to connect to
their central account. Visitors
are requested to get a
temporary account and an
Aurocard (debit card).
Residents of Auroville are
expected to contribute a
monthly contribution to the
community. They are asked to
help the community whenever
possible by work, money, or
kind. The "guest contribution",
or a daily fee paid by the guests
of Auroville, constitutes a part of
Auroville's budget. There is a
system of "maintenance",
whereby those Aurovilians in
need can receive from the
community a monthly
maintenance which cover
BIKERS CLUB ® | MAGAZINE | PAGE 34
simple basic needs of life.
Auroville's economy and it's
overall life are of an evolving
nature and there are ongoing
experiments to reach closer to
the vision.
Although the Government of
India owns and manages the
Auroville Foundation, it only
finances a small part of
Auroville's budget, which is
mainly formed by contributions
from Auroville's commercial
units which contribute 33% of
their profits to Auroville's Central
Fund, and by donations. There
are guests houses, building
construction units, information
technology, small and medium
scale businesses, producing and
re-selling items such as
handmade paper for stationery
items, as well as producing it's
well known incense sticks, which
can be bought in Auroville's own
shop in Pudducherry, or are sold
around India and abroad.
Each of these units contributes
a considerable part of their
profits to the township. Over
5,000 people, mostly from the
nearby localities, are employed
in various sections and units of
Auroville.
Other activities include
afforestation, organic
agriculture, basic educational
research, health care, village
development, appropriate
technology, town planning,
water table management,
cultural activities, and
community services.
Location
Auroville is composed of a
cluster of properties some 12
km north of Pudducherry. It can
be easily reached via the East
Coast Road (ECR) which
connects Chennai and
Pudducherry.