Doubling Farmers’ Income by Entrepreneurship Development for Local Inputs Production and Consumption: A Model from Aquaculture Based Interventions Among Tribal Farmers in an Aspirational District Sonebhadra, U.P.

The country has made tremendous progress in enhancing the production and productivity agriculture and allied sectors. The income of farmers, however, has not shown corresponding egalitarian rise. Moreover, tribal communities live in various ecological and geo-climatic conditions ranging from forests, hills to plains and islands. The decline in the access and availability of local natural resources, however, have had an adverse impact on the subsistence economy of tribal communities which they had practiced for centuries in harmony with nature. Therefo re, the Govt. of India has undertaken several steps for rapid socio-economic development of tribal people. Under the Scheduled Tribes Component (STC), of the Govt. of India, the ICAR-National Bureau of Fish Genetic Resources, Lucknow has undertaken a variety of development programmes and activities for the socio-economic development of tribal people in various areas of the country. The present paper presents a case study of the entrepreneurial success achieved in Sonebhadra district of U.P. wherein a fish seed production enterprise established by a young tribal farmer benefitted other tribal people in that region in various ways. This case study shows that small need based models can be built up and implemented using aquaculture based enterprises which can provide not only direct developmental support to the targeted beneficiaries in terms of their enhanced livelihoods and nutritional security, but also lead to achieving the goal of doubling farmers income. The paper discusses various aspects of this strategy and outcomes achieved. Key drivers of change which emerged from this success story, are also highlighted.