Impact assessment of village adoption programme (VAP) interventions on production, income, and livelihood security

Krishi Vigyan Kendra, Tiptur, Tumkur made a concerted effort to assess the influence of technological interventions initiated through the “Village Adoption Program (VAP)”. The VAP aims to boost agricultural production, encourage farmers to adopt scientific farming practices, and enhance their understanding of technological options to uplift their socio-economic status. In this context, Chikkahonnavalli village of Tumkur district was selected as the adopted village under VAP for a period of three years (2019-2022). Initially, the majority of farmers lacked awareness of scientific cultivation practices, improved crop varieties, and modern production technologies. Following KVK interventions and the supply of critical inputs, farmers were motivated to enhance their knowledge and adopt advanced agricultural technologies. These efforts significantly reduced drudgery in field operations and improved farmers' understanding of animal rearing and scientific crop management through a series of training programs, capacity-building activities, on-field demonstrations, and dissemination of educative extension materials. A key highlight of the intervention was the promotion of backyard nutritional kitchen gardening, which added to household nutritional security. As a result of these comprehensive efforts, there was a notable rise in farmers’ awareness, empowerment, and capacity to utilize available resources effectively. Crop diversification using improved varieties, coupled with integration of livestock components, led to enhanced productivity and profitability, particularly for small and marginal farmers. Consequently, the total agricultural income of the village rose from Rs. 1.31 crore to Rs. 1.82 crore, and the per capita income of farm households increased by 39.12%, from Rs. 79,035 to Rs. 1,09,955. All these positive transformations were made possible due to the successful implementation of the Village Adoption Programme.