ABSTRACT:

MYRADA is a Non-Governmental Organisation which has been intensively involved in developing and applying Rural Appraisal Methods in its work mainly in South India. Characterised by its approach which is participatory in nature and implies an on-going presence and engagement in well defined rural areas, MYRADA prefers to term its approach ‘PARTICIPATORY LEARNING METHODS’ (PALM). It thus chooses to avoid using the terms ‘Rapid’ and ‘Appraisal’.

In its work, MYRADA has discovered the abundant and untapped resource -- that of the rural people themselves and the knowledge and the experience that they possess about their own situation. The attempt is, therefore, to build on this resource for sustainable rural development.

In the course of applying rural appraisal methods in the local context, MYRADA has evolved and is still developing a suitable and effective methodology. This consists of village camps organised for those involved in rural developments. During these camps a series of interactions take place between and among the Villagers and Outsiders which lead to an enhanced and shared understanding of complex rural situations.

The methodology is not rigid but is flexible, adaptable and what is more important, constantly and rapidly evolving.

The quality of outputs obtained by using this method justifies its advocation and extensive use. But how this has to be achieved is a question before us.....

MYRADA is a Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO) which has been involved in Rural Development since 1968. It works in approximately 2,000 villages in South India, in the states of Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Tamilnadu. MYRADA initially started as an Organisation which resettled refugees from Tibet. Since then its role has expanded and today it has six major programme thrusts.

1. Participative resource development and management projects, (particularly in semi-arid areas). These include wastelands and watershed development programmes.  
2. Resettlement and Rehabilitation of released bonded labour and landless families.  
3. Development of Women and Children in rural areas.  
4. Development of Rural Credit System.  
5. Development of appropriate institutions and management systems in the rural areas.  
6. Training -- evolving training methods which are appropriate to the Indian Context -- particularly in the rural areas.

In India, particularly in South India the last 12 months have been significant in the development of participatory methods to understand and assess rural situations -- and plan for their development. In the course of applying RAPID RURAL APPRAISAL (RRA) Methods in its work, MYRADA came to the conclusion that ‘Rapid’ cannot be ‘participatory’.  

Prominent features of MYRADA’s style of functioning are:

a) Its emphasis on the participation of village people in their own development AND  
b) Its active and on-going presence in a defined rural area not as a ‘patron’ and ‘benefactor’ but as a ‘catalyst’ and ‘partner’ in development.

What was required therefore was a method which did not stop just at ‘Appraisal’ but which went beyond it into a shared analysis and understanding of rural situations. This, in turn should lead to developmental activities that are creative, productive and sustainable over a period of time.  

Thus, it was that PALM evolved -- PARTICIPATORY LEARNING METHODS, and indeed there was plenty to learn about -- from, with and about rural people and their situations. The PALM method complemented and integrated well with MYRADA’s approach and the results of this have been quite substantial. 

2. THE PALM EXPERIENCE:

PALM took off much faster than we expected. Since we adopted it a year ago, a little over 40 PALM exercises have been conducted. These have been on a variety of topics and situations. The PALM programme thrust has been on rapid training and exposure, building up of training teams, developing new methods and applications, constantly reviewing and refining the methodology, analysing and documenting experiences and initiating participative developmental programmes based on the outcomes/ outputs of PALM exercises. 

2.1. Applications:

Tentatively at first, and more confidently as we began to understand the methodology better, we worked out ways in which PALM could be applied to a variety of situations. Some of these are:

• -Participatory planning of natural resource development and management projects. These include programmes for the development of wastelands and watersheds, tank and lift irrigation and afforestation programmes.

• Participatory planning of integrated rural development programmes, in which the different sectors such as agriculture, sericulture, animal husbandry, education, health, etc., are integrated into a single programme.

•   Tracking and identification of beneficiaries for appropriate programmes. These include child sponsorship programmes and programmes for health care, poverty alleviation, etc.

•   Studying the coping strategies/mechanisms of the rural poor -- crisis management, credit needs and sources, and credit management.

•   Studying other aspects of rural life -- customs and traditions, trends, confl cts and their resolution, health and nutrition, education, etc. 

•  Participatory impact monitoring and assessment of developmental programmes. Eg. Impact of a road, an agricultural research station, a health programme etc.

Some Features

A typical PALM exercise has about 25-30 persons participating. The participants are drawn from various organisations -- NGOs, Research and Training Institutions, the Government, etc.

A village is selected as a location for the exercise. This village is usually one where there is already an established on-going presence by an outside agency and where developmental programmes are taking place or are being proposed. This stipulation is made out of respect for the Villagers whose curiosities and expectations are raised by such exercises, and to leave the village without a concrete response to expressed needs would not be appropriate.  

The participants stay in the village. This helps in several ways. Apart from simplifying logistics, it gives the ‘outsiders’ a feel for what the village is really like. There is also a greater opportunity for villagers and outsiders to access each other and interact -- especially in the evenings after the days’s work is done. A strong rapport is developed and the degree of sharing extends over many aspects of village life which are more intimate to the villagers than only their work. Village camping thus has a definite impact on participation.  

Participation is also enhanced by introducing the Outsiders to a ‘code of conduct’. There are several Do’s and Don’ts but the most important ones are :  

- Choosing a time suitable to the villagers.
- Following necessary cultural protocol as required by the situation.
- Taking care not to raise the villagers expectations -- particularly if those expectations cannot be responded to.  
- Initiating a few ‘equalising’ exercises -- simple everyday tasks, (basket weaving, transplanting rice, house construction etc.), with the villagers as the teachers. The Outsiders who are usually ‘qualified’ and ‘experts’ find that these ‘simple’ village tasks are not so simple after all. The Villagers on their part begin to feel less inferior and begin to see that their skills have a value and status in the eyes of the ‘educated’ Outsiders. This gives them greater confidence and increases their willingness to participate in the exercises and tell us more about themselves and their situation.  
- Exercising discipline in the mode of interaction is another item aimed at stimulating participation. To be avoided are the superior modes -- lecturing instead of listening and learning and so on.