On 14 December 2023, Birendra Singh will defend his research exploring how farmers in the water- and food-scarce Bundelkhand region of north-central India acquired, combined and shared knowledge forms about their water requirements for navigation purposes.
He further delves into how processes of knowledge combining and sharing helped different social groups of local farmers to continue their agricultural operations.
Bundelkhand is a semi-arid, drought-prone and ecologically fragile region. The region is known for its ancient temples which, in addition to being of spiritual significance, offer examples of traditional water harvesting and management practices.
Conducting three rounds of ethnographic fieldwork in different seasons resulted in data in the form of life stories, everday experiences and local folklore. This primary data was suplemented with secondary data garnered from documents, reports and vernacular literature. The resulting findings offer unique challenges and opportunities for future research on frugality.