This document is the Inception Report of the DFID NRSP Research Project R8100 (March 2002 – May 2003), managed by the NACA. The purpose of the project is to identify, test and promote mechanisms for the delivery of improved rural services critical to the development of rural livelihoods, with emphasis on services in support of aquaculture objectives, strengths and constraints of marginalised groups and their complex diverse livelihoods.

An inception visit was made from 17-24 March 2002. The team met with colleagues in Mumbai, Delhi and Ranchi, where discussions and field visits were conducted to inform this Inception Report. Summaries of these activities can be found in Appendix 2. The Inception Report highlights the project’s poverty focus, its geographic scope and key stakeholders, a potential policy change mechanism, the project workplan and its revised logframe.