Despite significant investments in irrigation infrastructure, large tracts of India remain unserved by irrigation water, including much of central India, with over 70% of India’s tribal population, representing perhaps the largest concentration of rural poverty in South Asia. The absence of appropriate policy action to support agriculture development in this region means these communities depend on rainfed farming and distress migration.
The opportunity for enhancing tribal livelihoods through small-scale land and water management interventions was recognized by the IWMI-TATA Water Policy Programme (ITP), launched in 2000 as a partnership between IWMI and Sir Ratan Tata Trust (SRTT) to help policy makers address India’s water challenges by translating research findings into practical policy recommendations. During 2002-04, ITP created the Central India Initiative (CInI) to document proven approaches, through a broad alliance of researchers and practitioners, to land and water interventions for improving tribal livelihoods. From this synthesis evolved a pragmatic strategy for investing in land and water management in the CInI belt.
Mid-way through the research process, in 2003, SRTT decided to adopt ‘CInI’ as a key component of their grant-making program on livelihoods initiatives in this region. CInI research is now being used to assist SRTT-supported field projects in pockets of Jharkhand and Maharashtra and more donors including Sir Dorabji Tata Trust (SDTT) have shown keen interest in joining hands. Further, as part of their Strategic Plan 2006, SRTT identified the region as their area of priority for supporting livelihoods initiatives.
Reference:
Personal Communication, Sanjiv J. Phansalkar and Verma, Shilp, IWMI-TATA Water Policy Program
Shah, Tushaar. 2005. “Forward” in Phansalkar, Sanjiv J. and Verma, Shilp Mainstreaming the Margins: Water-centric Livelihood Strategies for Revitalizing Tribal Agriculture in Central India. Angus & Grapher, New Delhi. This book was launched by Dr. Montek Singh Ahluwalia, Deputy Director, Planning Commission and Former Secretary, Ministry of Finance, India.
Population pressure and increasing water competition in a changing climate require us to take stock of the availability and use of water across scales. Water availability not only influences farmers’ commercial prospects but also irrigation-related enterprises and agri-businesses. Greater water scarcity could jeopardize irrigation and agricultural markets while excessive water use can lead to declining ecosystems, water quality and soil health. IWMI advises development partners and the public and private sectors on all aspects of water resource availability and use through a variety of advanced modeling and remote-sensing products and tools, including 
The ability of farmers to engage in or expand irrigation depends on the prevailing socioeconomic, ecological and political contexts, which are often complex, non-linear and changeable. Overcoming systemic barriers to farmer-led irrigation development while taking advantage of existing opportunities 
A lack of affordable credit, particularly for women and resource-poor farmers, is one of the main barriers to expanding farmer-led irrigation in low- and middle-income countries. But 
Scaling farmer-led irrigation requires strengthening human capacity and knowledge exchange among all actors and stakeholders involved. IWMI takes an action research approach, working with national and international research institutions, governments, extension agents and public and private organizations to co-develop the scaling ecosystem and strengthen capacity to drive scaling networks and collective action. We support the