Reflections from Farmer-Led Trials in India

This paper shares the experiences of participatory research of a government organisation, Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK) in India, particularly farmer-led trials. The objective is to involve farmers in the decision making at all stages. Trials are farmer-designed and farmer -implemented with scientists acting as facilitators. Experiments are targeted towards complex diverse and risk-prone (CDR) villages. The paper notes that unique farmer innovations were recorded in groundnuts cultivation. The scientists had a lot to learn from the farmers. They also learned that farmers go on modifying the recommended cultivation practices until they become stable, sustainable and profitable for their particular farming systems. The research results obtained and/or adopted on a larger scale by farmers, and follow-up programmes are presented, as well as lessons learned about farmer-led trials. Lessons include the need for scientists to be dedicated and not enter the village with a superiority complex.