Towards promotion and dissemination of indigenous knowledge: A case of NIRD

SummaryThis paper describes what indigenous knowledge (IK) is and why IK is important. This paper highlights the concepts of rural technology and indigenous knowledge. It also explains the initiatives of the National Institute of Rural Development (NIRD) towards development, promotion and dissemination of IK to the rural community to improve their quality of life. Explained in brief are the practices of IK at NIRD like traditional mud houses, handmade paper, vermi compost, medicinal plants nursery, etc. Among the issues covered are collection, recording and documenting, storage, problems, intellectual property rights, documentation and dissemination of IK, and the role of ICTs in this regard. Finally, it also proposes a digital information resources base on IK.