Rainfed agriculture in India is complex, diverse and risk prone. Though it has special and complex needs, mainstream agricultural technology development has rarely, if ever, focussed on it.

Over its years’ of work in WIRFP, GVT observed a critical need for technologies and techniques that were specially designed for this region, particularly in terms of choice, suitability, economic viability, resource and topographically. This gave rise to the project’s philosophy of developing client-oriented sustainable technology generation through the collaborative or consultative research with farmers, which incorporated indigenous Technical knowledge as well as needs of the community – commonly called Component C (component on Participatory Technology Generation).

The potential technologies generated through Component C cover all aspect of the rural economy and enterprises, including, crops, trees, horticulture soil and water conservation, livestock, tools and implements, social development processes and income generation activities.

GVT identified Participatory Varietal Selection (PVS) and Participatory Plant Breeding (PPB) as two approaches that could improve farmers’ incomes by increasing the overall production of food grains and vegetables with the introduction of locally suited high yielding crop varieties.
By involving farmers at all stages of selection and testing, the project has maximised farmer participation and therefore, relevance. Different activities like Farmer Managed Participatory Research (FAMPAR) trials, Integrated Crop Management (ICM), micro irrigation system, bio-fertilizers, NADEP pits, supply of farm tools and implements, supply of crop and vegetables seeds, establishment of research farms, seed multiplication programmes have been taken up in the projects in the project areas. Looking at the peoples’ need and demand, eight new different crop varieties (e.g. rice, maize, black gram, chick pea) suitable for the rainfed areas have been developed through Participatory Plant Breeding and adopted by farmers in more than 10,000 ha.