As a part of corporate social responsibility (CSR) activities, the Rural Electrification Corporation Limited (RECL) has partnered with International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid-Tropics (ICRISAT) here to improve the livelihoods of smallholder farmers.
The major activities under the project include rainwater harvesting, soil and moisture conservation, reuse of domestic water, selection of appropriate crops based on market demand, growing forage for livestock and rehabilitation of wastelands.
The initiative, 'Farmer-centric Integrated Watershed Management for Improving Rural Livelihoods', would benefit more than 10,000 families in Mahabubnagar district of Telangana state and Anantapur district of Andhra Pradesh, covering about 11,000 hectares, an ICRISAT statement said.
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The thrust would be on conserving rainwater and augmenting the groundwater and surface water resources.
ICRISAT Development Centre (IDC) headed by Dr Suhas P Wani would spearhead the project.
Rajeev Sharma, Chairman and Managing Director, RECL, said, "This is the first time RECL has undertaken agricultural interventions under CSR and we would be glad to expand this collaboration.
William D Dar, Director General, ICRISAT said the institute will employ all the necessary expertise and technical help to ensure the success of the project.
