Employing organizational experience accrued over twenty three years from the close association with marginalized communities in the water scarce regions of Tamil Nadu, facilitating sustainable livelihoods, natural resource management and skill up gradation, IRDT has always focused on promoting natural resource governance by the community for sustainability. By leveraging funds from local administration and linking Panchayat Raj Institutions (PRIs) to community development initiatives, IRDT has been able to reinforce sustainability in its community driven natural resource management endeavours.

The natural resources such as land and water in the selected Bodichipalli Gram Panchayat in Krisnagiri district of Tamil Nadu state are under threat due to unorganized growth in the vicinity with little attention to climate change interventions. The water resources are depleting rapidly in the specified region with lack of attention to water resource management for sustainable agriculture. In absence of water smart agriculture, rain water harvesting, integrated water resource management and community managed water governance, the local agrarian economy is facing serious threats thereby adversely affecting livelihoods and food security of native communities.

With a goal to leverage water conservation to organize climate vulnerable communities to become climate-neutral, influence their local governments, to invest in water, and to create a model that can be replicated by other corporate bodies in the Hosur industrial area, Hindustan Unilever Limited (HUL) approved of a participatory development initiative titled “Leveraging Water Conservation to Organise Climate Vulnerable Communities to Become Climate-Neutral, Influence their Local Governments to Invest in Water, and Create a Model that can be Replicated by Other Corporate bodies in the Hosur Industrial Area” in Krishnagiri district of Tamil Nadu. HUL, a corporate body committed to fostering pioneering ideas for sustainable natural resource management, has partnered with IRDT to promote innovative approaches of Climate Neutral Village concept, Non-Pesticide Management Agriculture and Community Perspective of Water Stewardship in low rainfall regions of Tamil Nadu. IRDT is committed to mobilize Rs. 3,28,00,468/- from PRI and government institutions, and Rs. 4,65,500/-  from the community towards achieving the project objectives over the project duration of three years. IRDT plans to make Water centre-stage at the Gram Panchayat level by making its spend on water a significant percentage. IRDT also plans to showcase this intervention with the help of HUL Hosur to encourage other corporate bodies to adopt GPs for similar CSR-funded development interventions. IRDT will form User Groups (UGs) as its primary governance unit and will organize farmers for Kisan Credit and TcBs (trench cum bunds). In addition, farmers who can benefit from farm ponds and drainage line treatments will also be organized into UGs to apply to the Gram Panchayat for the necessary MGNREGA resources. The UGs for water, trees and Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) especially will be encouraged to have a close link with the Gram Panchayat to allow better synergy in the accessing of Gram Panchayat resources. IRDT will conduct in-situ training for its UGs employing the flow - Planning/ Fund Approval/ Implementation/ Maintenance/ Planning. UGs will be responsible for identifying needs and resources to resolve these, facilitating members to access the necessary resources, and reporting on the use of these resources. IRDT will explain the process of accessing resources from the Gram Panchayat and UGs will be assisted to operationalize this process so that each application is developed as a SOP (Standard Operating Procedure). With focus on climate-vulnerable rural communities, small and marginal farmers, people with disabilities, women and the girl children in the semi-arid regions of Krisnagiri district in North-West Tamil Nadu, this participatory initiative will be a role model for sustainable integration of micro credit, natural resource management, community governance and community-corporate-civil society organization collaboration.