Abstract

                                Indian Farmers Interest Group (FIG) is a self-managed, independentgroup of farmers with a shared goal and interest. FIG is usually formed by15–20 members. When the farmers are facilitated to organize groups,trained and guided properly, they can attain tremendous developmentgoal which would eventually make the group self-reliant and self-sufficient.Analyzing effectiveness of existing tribal FIGs will help to formulate a strategyfor improving livelihood of the tribal farmer through collective action. Thisstudy was conducted in the Erode district of Tamil Nadu with a sample size of100. The specific objective of this study is to study the relationship of profilecharacteristics with the effectiveness of tribal FIGs. The significant findings ofthe study revealed that tribal FIGs had medium level of effectiveness of tribalFIGs. Farming experience, information-seeking behavior, group cohesivenessand group communication of the respondents were the very significantvariables contributing to the variation in the effectiveness of tribal FIGs.

Key words : Tribes; Farmers Interest Groups (FIGs); Effectiveness; Correlation; Multiple Regression Analysis