This document summarizes several projects of the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) including: National Demonstrations, Operational Research Projects, Krishi Vigyan Kendras, Lab to Land Program, Extension Education Institutes, Trainers Training Centre, Tribal Area Research Project, Land to Lab Program, and Scheduled Caste & Other Backward Caste project. It provides details on the objectives, activities, and achievements of these various programs which aim to conduct agricultural research and transfer technologies to farmers through demonstrations, training programs, and institution-village linkage programs.

1. TOT Projects
of
ICAR

2. 1. National demonstrations (ND)
2. Operational Research Project (ORP)
3. Krishi Vigyan Kendras (KVKs)(Agricultural
Science Centre)
4. Lab to Land Program
5. Extension Education Institutes (EEIs)
6.Trainers Training Centre (TTC)
7. Tribal Area Research Project (TAR)
8. Land to Lab Program
9. Scheduled Caste & Other Backward Caste project
(SC & OBC)
10. Institutional Village Linkage Program (IVLP)

3. All India Coordinated Project on
National Demonstrations
• A Nationwide program of
demonstrations, NATIONAL
DEMONSTRATIONS (ND) on major
food crops was launched in 1964
• Unless the scientists could
demonstrate what they advocated, their
advice might not be heeded by the
farmers.

4. How it is different from other
Demonstrations
1.Yield target, No control plots
2.The area one Ha or one Acre
3. Small Farmers
4. The agricultural scientists in
association with local
extension agencies/workers.

5. • The most enthusiastic and cooperative
farmers were selected
• The best technologies and techniques used
• Team-approach followed involving scientists
from relevant disciplines, including local
extension agents.
• organization of field days, field visits, and
training for the farmers and field extension
workers were considered important for rapid
spread of technologies.

6. Objectives
1. To demonstrate convincingly to the farmers and extension
personnel the genetic production potentialities of major
crops per unit area of land and per unit time, 2. To fully
exploit these demonstrations for the purpose of training
farmers and field extension functionaries in improved
cultivation practices.
3. To provide the research workers an opportunity to get
firsthand knowledge of the problems being faced by the
farmers in adopting high yielding varieties and
recommended package of practices.
4. To determine the income and· employment generation
potentialities of the crops/subjects under demonstration,
educate the farmers and extension agents about them.
5. To influence the extension systems of the State
Departments of Agriculture, voluntary organizations etc. in
the country demonstrating the yield gaps and pointing out
operational constraints.

7. • 50 percent of the demonstrations
exceeded the targeted yields of 9 and 11
tonnes per hectare from 2- and 3-crop
demonstrations respectively.
• The cost of production per hectare was
higher in national demonstrations owing to
adoption of new agricultural technology
return was also higher and economical as
compared to general farming conditions.
• The national demonstration project once
covered 100 districts spread all over the
country.

8. 2. Operational Research Project 1974-
75.
• Aimed at dissemination of proven technology in a
discipline/area among farmers on a watershed basis,
covering the whole village or a cluster of villages, and
concurrently studying constraints (technological,
extension or administrative) as barriers to the rapid
spread of improved technical know-how.
• The experience with the National Demonstrations
Project highlighted the issue that demonstration of a
particular technology or a combination of
technologies in an area on watershed basis would
prove more effective in convincing farmers and
provide them greater scope for identifying constraints,
many of which were community-based.
• ORPs are designed to show the practical
worthyness of new ideas in a village situation. There
are two ORPs operating in Karnataka namely:
• Resource management in the watershed
• dry land area development

9. • ORPs were primarily devoted to demonstrating
the impact of new technologies on a large scale
involving a whole village or a cluster of villages
at a time.
• It attempted to involve allied agencies and
institutions to show the inter-institutional and
inter-disciplinary approach, the method & the
way they could be made to work together,
• The ORPs considered two kinds of problems:
first, the agricultural problems affecting the
farming community requiring group or
community action, e.g. plant protection and
rodent co secondly, total resources development
of the watershed area.

10. Objectives
1. To test, adopt and demonstrate the new agricultural on farmers' fields in
a whole village or in a cluster of few contiguous villages/watershed area.
2. To determine the profitability of the new technologies and their pace of
spread among the farmers.
3. To identify the constraints both technological, as well as socio-economic
which are barriers to rapid change?
4. To demonstrate group action as a method of popularizing the modern
technologies at a faster rate.
The ORPs were initiated in It covered diverse topics like crop farming,
mixed farming, integrated pest management, plantation crops, post-
harvest technology, improvement of diara and char lands, land
reclamation, arid land management, fisheries etc. The ORPs
demonstrated latest agricultural technologies on the farmers' fields to
influence the farmers as well as the State extension agencies. It also
studied the socio-economic, technological, extension and administrative
barriers which were coming in the way of rapid transfer of technologies
and pointed out the same to the extension agencies.

11. Achievements
• Change in the socio-economic status of
farmers
• Crop demonstration has been doubled &
there has been replacement of Ragi with
oil seeds & pulses.
• Area under forest & fruit trees has trebled
in wasteland
• Significant reduction in soil & nutrient loss
with more effective utilization of rain water.

12. 3. Krishi Vigyan Kendra
(Agricultural Science Centre
• The KRISHI VIGYAN KENDRA (KVK), according to Prasad,
Choudhary and Nayar (1987), is designed to impart need-based and
skill-oriented vocational training to the practising farmers, in-service
field level extension workers, and to those who wish to go in for self-
employment. The basic concepts of a KVK are-
• 1. The centre will impart learning through work-experience and,
hence, will be concerned with technical literacy, the acquisition of
which does not necessarily require as a precondition the ability to
read and write.
• 2. The centre will impart training only to those extension agents who
are already employed or to practicing farmers and fishermen. In
other words, the centers will cater to the needs of those who are
already employed, or those who wish to be self-employed.
• 3. There will be no uniform syllabus for a KVK. The syllabus and
program of each centre will be tailored according to the felt needs,
natural resources and the potentials for agricultural growth in that
particular area

13. • The three fundamental principles, viz. (i) agricultural
production as the prime goal, (ii) work-experience as the
main method of imparting training, and (iii) priority to
weaker sections of the society, are the backbone of the
KVK program. The main idea is to influence the
productivity to achieve social justice for the neediest and
deserving weaker sections of the society like the tribal
farmers, small and marginal farmers, agricultural
laborers, drought and flood affected farmers, and so on.
• Need-based training courses are designed for different
types of clientele. Courses are based on the information
received through family and village survey. No certificate
or diploma is awarded irrespective of the duration of the
courses. After the training, follow-up extension programs
are organized for converting the acquired skills of the
trainees into practice. While designing the courses, the
concept of farming system is taken into account to make
the enterprises commercially viable.

14. The main objective of the KVK is to provide a strong
training support for bringing about production breakthrough
in agriculture. The specific objectives are as follows:
• 1. Plan and conduct survey of the operational area to prepare the
resource inventory with special reference to identify the training
needs of the farming community.
• 2. Compile all relevant recommendations/package of practices for
the district to be meaningfully utilized in the training courses and the
follow-up extension programs.
• 3. Plan and conduct production oriented, need-based, short and
long duration training courses both on the campus, as well as in the
villages for various target groups with priority on the weaker and
poorer sections.
• 4. Organize Farm Science Clubs, both in rural schools and in
villages to inculcate in the younger generation a liking for and an
interest in agricultural and allied sciences and for scientific farming
through supervised projects.

15. • Develop and maintain the campus farms and demonstration units on
scientific lines as the facilities for providing work-experience to the
trainees as also dissemination of the latest technical know-how.
• 5. Provide practical training facilities of the centre to the teachers
and the students of vocational agriculture of higher second schools.
• 6. Impart some general education to the rural illiterates and school
drop outs in order to make them not only good farmers but better
citizens.
• 7. Provide training facilities in homemaking and nutrition education
for rural community and gradually encompass 0 important areas
such as home crafts and cottage industries consistent with the
requirements of integrated development, in collaboration with
concerned organization.

16. • The objectives stated here are common
for all the KVKs. In addition, each KVK has
to have a MANDATE i.e. a specific set of
responsibilities to perform. The mandate of
a KVK is unique for it and is determined on
the basis of the most important needs of
the clientele, their resources & constraints,
and nature of the ecosystem. The success
of a KVK is judged by the extent to which it
fulfills its obligations specified in the
mandate.

17. • The first KVK was established in 1974
at Pondicherry under Tamil Nadu
Agricultural University. The priority for
establishing KVKs is given to hilly areas,
drought prone areas, forest areas, coastal
areas, flood prone areas, and areas
dominated with tribal farmers, weaker
sections, small farmers and landless
laborers. The objective is to gradually
cover the entire country with one KVK in
each district, priority being given to the
backward areas.

18. Reorganized KVK System
• With effect from 1st April, 1992 all first-line transfer of technology projects of
the ICAR viz. ND, ORP and LLP have been integrated with the KVKs. In the
reorganized system, the major mandates of the KVK are to conduct-
• (i) Training programs
• (ii) Frontline demonstrations
• (iii) On-farm testing
• Various types of extension activities such as field days, farmers' meetings,
kisan melas and mass media programs are undertaken by the KVKs. For
proper functioning, the KVKs are to convene Scientific Advisory Committee
meeting once in six- months. To make the KVKs self-sustaining, they are
also encouraged to take up proper operation of the Revolving Fund
scheme.
• In view of constraints of funds for establishment of new KVKs, the ICAR
took up an alternative proposal for strengthening of the existing Zonal
Agricultural Research Stations which were established in the Agricultural
Universities under the National Agricultural Research Project, to take up
additional functions of KVK, where there was no KVK.

19. i) TRAINING PROGRAMMES
• : The most important function of the KVKs is to
conduct need based training programs to impart
firsthand knowledge and skills to the farmers,
farm women, rural youth and extension
functionaries. The emphasis is to impart
knowledge of the subject with thrust on skill
involved and guidance for project
implementation wherever required.
• Trained farmers suggested that training
programs of KVK should be preceded by
practical demonstrations, field trips, and group
discussion with progressive farmers and experts.

20. ii) FRONTLINE DEMONSTRATIONS
• : The field demonstrations conducted under the close supervision of the
scientists of the National Agriculture Research System are called frontline
demonstrations, because the technologies are demonstrated for the first
time by the scientists themselves, before being passed on to the main
extension system of the State Departments of Agriculture. The objective is
to demonstrate newly released crop production and protection technologies
and their management practices in the farmers' fields under different agro-
climatic regions and farming situations.
• While demonstrating the technologies in the farmers' fields, the scientists
are required to study the factors contributing to higher crop production, field
constraints of production, and thereby generate production data and
feedback information. Frontline demonstrations are conducted in a block of
two to four hectares land in order to have better impact of the demonstrated
technologies on the farmers and field level extension functionaries. For this
purpose, technologies of national importance and local relevance are
generally selected.

21. iii) ON-FARM TESTING
• : These are conducted on the farmers' fields on such problems
where the appropriate technologies are not available for particular
agro-climatic situation to transfer, and the relevant research
information available does not suit the situation from the point of
view of the farmers. The main objective is to give overriding
importance for farmers' perspectives and participation at all the
steps of on-farm testing viz., problem diagnosis, planning,
experimentation and extrapolation.
• The importance of location specificity in development of appropriate
technologies, keeping agro-ecological, socio-economic and cultural
parameters in view, is gradually being appreciated. This has paved
the way for technology assessment in different micro-environments
and its refinement to suit varied situations, through participatory
approaches. This is worked out through institution-villages linkage.

22. MONITORING INDICES FOR KVK
TRAINING
• 1. Training Participation Index, TPI = Tp/Ta x 100
• Where, Tp= Number of trainees participating in the
program.
• Ta = Number of trainees anticipated.
• 2. Training Utility Index, TUI = Te/Tpx 100
• Where, Te = Number of trainees who found the training
useful.
• 3. Training Effectiveness Index. TEl = Te/Tax 100
• At present there are 415 Krishi Vigyan Kendras (KVKs).

23. 4. Lab to Land Program
• The LAB to LAND PROGRAMME (LLP) was
launched by the ICAR in 1979 as a part of its
Golden Jubilee celebration. The overall objective
of the program was to improve the economic
condition of the small and marginal farmers and
landless agricultural laborers, particularly
scheduled castes and scheduled tribes, by
transfer of improved technology developed by
the agricultural universities, research institutes
etc.

24. The specific objectives of the lab to land program,
according to Prasad, Choudhary and Nayar (1987) were-
• 1. Study and understand the background and resources of the selected farmers and
landless agricultural laborers. To introduce low-cost relevant agricultural and allied
technologies on their farms and homes for increasing their employment, production
and income.
• 2. Assist the farmers to develop feasible farm plans keeping in view the availability of
technologies, needs and resources of the farmers, and the resources which could be
made available from external sources and agencies.
• 3. Guide and help the farmers in adopting improved technologies as per their farm
plans, and demonstrate to them the economic viability of those technologies as well
as methods of cultivation and farm management.
• 4. Organize training programs and other extension activities, in relation to their
adopted practices, and prepare them for active participation in agricultural
development programs of the State.
• 5. Make the farmers aware of the various opportunities and agencies 'which they
could utilize to their economic advantage.
• 6. Develop functional relations and linkages with the scientists and institutions for
future guidance, advisory services and help.
• 7. Utilize this project as a feedback mechanism for the agricultural scientists and
extension functionaries.

25. Critical Inputs provided
• :
• Crop demonstrations: Seeds, fertilizers,
insecticides, fungicides, agril implements etc.
• Poultry Inputs: Chicks, health cover & feeding
supplements
• Dairy: Feeds, health coverage, nutrition garden
• Piggery: Piglets & feeds
• Sheep & goat, Fisheries: Fingerlings, nets
• Sericulture: Trays, Chandrikes
• Apiculture: Bee boxes, Honey extractor

26. 5. Extension Education Institutes
(EEIs)
• To cater to the extension education and training
needs of the large number of extension
professionals in the country, four Extension
Education Institutes (EEls) were established in
India at the regional levels. These were: i)
Nilokheri in Haryana (1959), ii) Anand in Gujara-
t1962), iii) Hyderabad in Andhra Pradesh (1962),
iv) Jorhat in Assan (1987). Though some of the
institutes were independently set up, these were
subsequently integrated with the Agricultural
University system the States (Misra, 1990).

27. 6. National Institute of Agricultural Extension
Management (MANAGE)
• With the introduction of the Training and Visit system
agricultural extension, the importance of management in
extension was felt. This led to the se up of the National
Institute of Agricultural Extension Manage (MANAGE) at
Hyderabad in 1986. The mission of the institute facilitate
the extension officers, managers, scientists and
administrators in all sectors of agricultural economy to
acquire managerial technical skills that would enable
them to provide most effective support and services to
farmers and fishermen for practicing sustainable
agriculture. The institute aimed to promote effective
management of the agricultural extension system of the
country through consultancy, training, research,
information and documentation.

28. 7. Land to Lab Program
• Objectives of the program
• To promote interactions between agril. Scientists,
farmers & extension workers.
• To discuss, concretize & document field realities
particularly socio-economic constraints & technological
deficiencies as perceived by grass root level
functionaries/farmers in order to improve the research,
education & training systems.
• To keep scientists/educators/trainers abreast with the
problems of the farming & the farmers.
• To document the basic constraints & gaps as seen by
farmers in R & D systems

29. How the program is implemented?
• The farmers representing different agro-
climatic regions are invited at the cost of the
project for 2 days to the university. On the 1st
day, they are taken around to show various
activities in different departments & experimental
units. On the 2nd day they are requested to
present their views on the ongoing program &
the effectiveness of the technologies in a
seminar to a group of scientists, researchers &
extension workers of the university.

30. All India co-ordinated Operational Research
Project on SCs & other Backward communities
• Year of start: July’ 1983
• Objectives
• Improving agriculture & livestock production
• Establishing a suitable infrastructure & the knowledge to approach the
problems of the area
• Formulating an inventory of economically viable enterprise
• Organizing informal training program to impart skills & crafts to upgrade the
professional efficiency to both farmers as well as the landless labors
• To create a co-operative base for supplies & services as well as for
marketing operations
• To establish links between the people and the various development
agencies & credit advancing institutions
• Promote nutritional programs
• Promote literacy through adult education & other modes of educational
systems

31. IVLP
• Objectives
• 1. To assess and refine technologies with multiple options of stability and
sustainability for enhancing the productivity of small production systems
• 2. To assess the impact of refined technologies in different production
systems
• 3. To identify extrapolation domains and outer limits for new technology
modules and strengthen linkages with the extension system in the district
• 4. Introduce appropriate post-harvest technologies, value additions
• 5. Characterization of natural resources of each centre by participatory rural
appraisal (PRA) techniques through Agro Ecosystem analysis
• 6. Identification of felt needs of farmers through focus group interactions
• 7. Introduce appropriate technologies to remove drudgery, increased
efficiency & high income to farm women
• 8. Identification of appropriate technologies for assessment and refinement
• 9. Documentation of technological modules, focusing bio-physical and
socioeconomic parameters

32. • Duration: 2 years
• Participating institutions: ICAR institutes, SAUs, KVKs
• Requirements: Multidisciplinary scientists, lab facilities
& transportation
• Initially started in 40 centers. 15 centers in ICAR
institutes & another 25 centers in SAUs
• Selection of villages: one village/cluster villages- 1000
families
• Agro-ecosystem analysis: PRA, Secondary source of
data
• Monitoring of the project: ICAR + host institution
+Farmer representative
• In 1996-97, Malali (HN Pura) 38 families out of 1037
population
• Potato: True potato seeds = seed rate 600-800 kg
instead of 400 kg & intercropping of Redgram in Potato
& Ragi