Marginal Communities in Drought-prone Regions: The Role of NGOs in Watershed Development in South India

In the last few years a participatory watershed program is being implemented in the state of Andhra Pradesh. At present, the Andhra Pradesh Rural Livelihoods Project (APRLP) seeks to scale up the ongoing watershed program activities in the state by providing support in the areas of capacity building, livelihood support, and the provision of other schemes and services to the persons and organizations involved. This article is the outcome of the writer’s field work in Andhra Pradesh. Using a livelihoods approach, the author reveals that the lives of marginal communities have radically changed as a result of the introduction of watershed programs in the drought-prone areas of this region.