i)

The NGO or its key personnel should have at least 3 years experience in rural development work.

It must enjoy a good reputation and should have integrity and commitment in terms of its work and financial dealings.

It should have a basic understanding of watershed development.

ii)

The community must agree in principle to come together and take responsibility for project execution and maintenance.

They should be willing to accept and enforce social disciplines like ban on free grazing and tree felling for non-household purposes.

They should be willing to contribute voluntary labour towards the effort, which is necessary for ‘ownership’ and stake-building.

In order to concretize and institutionalize their intention and commitment, they need to set up an executive body i.e. Village Watershed Committee (VWC) which has representation from all social groups and geographical areas of the watershed.

iii)

There are other social and technical criteria for the watershed to be included in the Watershed Program such as an average area (500 ha to 1500 ha), primary catchment or upper portion of a drainage, not more than 20% irrigation, non-skewed land holding, general backwardness etc.,

Once these initial qualifying criteria are fulfilled, the NGO, and the watershed dwellers undergo a dynamic and interactive induction process envisaged through the 'Participatory Operational Pedagogy'. This operational pedagogy is a result of WOTR’s experience in supporting community-managed watershed development interventions. It is a 24-step strategy spread over a period of 12 to 18 months, where the supporting NGO, watershed dwellers, and the executive body (or VWC, which is nominated by the villagers, roughly after three months from the identification of watershed) undergo progressive awareness, skill enhancement and managerial and social capability improvement, supported by WOTR. During this phase, the NGO, the village community and the VWC prove their credentials, commitment and their desire and willingness to undertake the responsibility and management of the intervention. 
 
This involves a two-pronged strategy, i.e.

i)

fulfillment of the self selection conditionalities by the actors which gauge their commitment and readiness to undertake the intervention; and

ii)

support for capacity enhancement in technical, managerial, institutional and social (including gender) issues of participatory watershed management.

Self Selection Conditionalities:
For an NGO to participate in the Watershed Development Program, it has to demonstrate that it has a committed cadre of staff and a pro-people and participatory strategy, as well as has built a rapport with and enjoys the confidence of the watershed dwellers.

The NGO should mobilise the watershed dwellers to undertake four work-days of voluntary labour, generally in soil and water conservation activities. Besides this, it should get the consent of the watershed dwellers for social discipline, voluntary contribution of labour and the formation of the VWC. If all the villagers come together and undertake the voluntary labour, it proves their trust and confidence in the NGO as well as their willingness to accept project discipline and take up the responsibility for managing the activities. This also proves the functional unity of the people in the face of factions based on caste, tradition, economy, politics etc., which characterise most of rural India.

In the initial phase, neither the NGO, nor the village community would be fully aware about the ‘what’ and ‘how’ of participatory watershed management. This is the time when they require support and ‘hand-holding’ and the support organisation, WOTR, undertakes this responsibility through participation in meetings, awareness building support, trainings, exposures (expenses partly borne by the villagers), technical and social support etc.
 

The Process of Capacity Building :

Capacity Building is the crux of the Participatory Operational Pedagogy and during this period the interaction between the support organisation (WOTR), the supporting NGO and the watershed dwellers is very close, dialogical and mutually supportive. Once the NGO and the villagers meet the essential qualifying criteria and select themselves, both undergo a step-by-step pedagogy of Capacity Building. The basic principles and strategy of this capacity-enhancing exercise are:-
 

1.

Watershed dwellers-to-watershed dwellers extension:  Exposure visits of the emerging watershed dwellers to successful projects are very important. People believe when they see the ‘success story’ and interact with the creators of this success. The dialogue between the guest and the host villagers (who are often in the same social and economic situation and mental geography) plays a crucial role, as it is much easier for the villagers to understand and accept what others like them have achieved, than what an external person/agency is promising. Assistance and external support from successfully implemented project villagers is also encouraged and provided for a newly emerging watershed community.
 

2.

Theoretical explanations and assumptions involved in the socio-technical strategy of watershed management may be very abstract for the villagers initially. Real understanding and learning is possible only through the actual doing of the activities. This also helps to actually see the benefits that result from these activities. Hence a micro watershed is selected (100 to 150 ha. of area within the larger watershed) near the village for treatments. This serves as both a learning ground as well as a demonstration site. Here the villagers, especially the VWC, are involved in the actual planning and implementation of different measures and the discussions about the expected benefit. They are also trained in various techniques and skills such as layout and work, measurements, record-keeping, supervision and monitoring of the work.

In order to enhance farmers’ participation in the desired activity in terms of measures and land use planning, and to bring together traditional wisdom of land management and modern scientific knowledge in land husbandry, the ‘Participatory Net Planning Method (PNP) developed by WOTR is used. Here the farmer and his wife, the NGO and the VWC come together (in the concerned farmer’s field) and plan the measures according to the field situation. A detailed discussion about the land capability, use, technically necessary treatments for improvement and expected changes in land use and benefits, is undertaken with the farmer and his wife during this exercise. The supporting organisation provides theoretical and on-field training in PNP to the NGO staff and the VWC.
 

3.

The quality and skill of the people involved in the project implementation influences the quality of the project. Hence a minimum of training input is incorporated in the capacity building exercise. This is provided for both the NGO personnel and the VWC in the form of structured and field-based ‘hands-on’ methods. The NGO staff is provided training in technical, social and managerial issues including accounts training. They are provided inputs in the theoretical and practical aspects of the technical work, social mobilisation and community participation, women’s involvement, self-help group (savings and credit) organisation and management, communication skills, conflict resolution etc..

The VWC and the PLS (Panlot Sevak - Village volunteers) are also being provided inputs in technical, social and management aspects of participatory watershed development, including maintenance and updating of all the necessary records. To create sufficient transparency about the activities, they have to update and display on a continuous basis in a public place, the activities undertaken and the expenditure incurred in the project.

WOTR has developed the curriculum and course content on the basis of the need emerging from the field and which has a direct impact on the project implementation. Curriculum and course content are more realistic and theoretical issues are subordinated to practical requirements. Watershed Shibirs (workshops) and Melawas (fairs) are also organised for VWC members, women SHG members and watershed dwellers, generally for a cluster of villages. These programmes serve as a platform for experience sharing and mutual learning. They also in still a sense of unity and belonging among the watershed dwellers as well as a feeling that they belong to a larger endeavor.
 

In the initial stage of project implementation it is expected that mistakes will be made, but participatory monitoring done by WOTR along with the VWC members and NGO staff, helps in understanding these mistakes and makes it a learning process for all the actors involved. Monitoring is a detailed review of the measurers undertaken, involvement of the community and the VWCs, women's participation, record maintenance, etc., done jointly with the above-mentioned persons through dialogue and discussions. This creates clarity, sensitivity and ability to assess the quality of work; provides opportunities to learn from mistakes and helps in self-evaluation. Mistakes are not frowned upon, but provide a basis for clarification, reflection, correction and learning. Hence in the CBP allowances are made for mistakes, so that the same do not arise when the large-scale implementation is undertaken.
 

5.

Open Lines of Communication and Frequent Exchange of Information :

A transparent and open system of communication creates trust, and at the village level this is done through the regular VWC meetings and their accountability to the Gramsabha (village assembly). As mentioned earlier, federated meetings (Melawas) at cluster level also help in exchange of information and knowledge. At the NGO level regular coordination meetings are conducted for those involved in the Watershed Program, for mutual learning, reflection, sharing and evolving new strategies.
 

6.

Linkage Building :

Comprehensive and integrated development requires support from other institutions and departments like Government departments, the banking sector, etc. Watershed development creates a sustainable infrastructure on which the overall development of the village is possible, with additional support from other institutions. From the initial stages of the project itself, efforts are made to link the NGOs and the villagers to the formal developmental network, particularly where such linkages are not adequately established.

Through this initial 'learning process' of actually doing the work and managing the project at the local level, the following changes at the institutional and social level have been observed :

1.

The watershed dwellers become more aware about the relation between their environment and its impact on their lives. They become part of their own development process by following social disciplines, participating in the land use planning of their land and through contribution of voluntary labour. A change also is brought in the pattern of resource utilization; from the earlier competitive and conflictual utilization pattern to a more judicious and consensual one.

2.

Local institutions like VWC, Forest Protection Committee (FPC) and women Self-Help Groups (SHGs) emerge, which regularly meet, plan and review their activities and responsibilities. Through training inputs they learn to manage their own affairs.

3.

The capacities of NGOs and their personnel in technical, social / gender and managerial issues are enhanced and they become proactive catalyzing the development endeavor of the watershed dwellers.

4.

Systems and procedures, developed as part of the pedagogy, become routine and a sense of discipline emerges, which is a requirement for any learning process and institutional functioning.