Searching for frugality in crises: Knowledge, learning and innovation in, and around, rainwater harvesting based irrigation practices in central India

This investigation is conducted from a frugality perspective. Farmers' efforts include mainly 'back to basics and 'doing more with less' approaches which involve the revival of local rainwater harvesting methods, mixed cropping, organic farming and conventional seed breeding.

At the same time, the extension of scientific knowledge and deployment of technical fixes (solar panel, electric motors, drips, and sprinklers) through training, financial subsidy and diffusion of ICT is being propagated in the region as a suggested 'solution' to water scarcity. 

Singh's research suggests that that integrating local knowledge, that is mainly embedded in local farmers' lived experiences, with suggested and context-specific scientific knowledge is an essential part of local water scarcity adaptation and mitigation efforts. Sometimes, these integrations manifest through material artefacts (e.g., reusing or revamping the irrigation tools and machinery) in the form of frugal innovations.

However, he argues that solutions are context-specific and that frugality is inseparable from its context(s). Contextual factors determine not only what is frugal or not, but they also determine 'who' can be frugal or not.