Design Interventions in Farm Equipment for Indian Small Farmers

This thesis investigates the challenges confronting small and marginal Indian farmers, emphasizing the inefficiency of traditional farming tools and the lack of intermediate technology. Utilizing a design studio-based research approach, it explores vernacular rather than purely visceral interventions to enhance farm productivity, incorporating industrial design, simple technology, and human-centred design principles. It identifies design drivers through tool analysis, observations, prototyping, and interviews. The contribution lies in a highly novel approach to innovating in this product category: a design framework for creating context-specific, human-centred farm equipment, addressing livelihood and food security concerns. And an example artefact, a portable, human-powered rice thresher.