Peer appraisal only works if no one appraises their own farm. When a worksheet or portal entry shows an appraiser against their own plot, the appraisal cannot be accepted. This episode explains the rule, how to find self-appraisals, and how to reassign teams.
The short version
- No one appraises their own farm, or a close family member's.
- The appraisers' own farms are appraised by another team.
- Find self-appraisals by matching appraiser names against plot owners.
- Reassign, then re-appraise if the farm was not properly inspected.
The Rule
An appraisal signed by the farm's own farmer proves nothing; another team must appraise it.
Peer appraisal rests on farmers checking each other's fields. The guidelines require the peer reviewers' own farms to be inspected by another peer reviewer group, and each inspection to have at least three appraisers, with no reciprocal reviews.
Treat close family members the same way. An appraisal of a brother's or spouse's farm is open to the same doubt.
Finding Self-Appraisals
Match each appraiser's name against the owner of the farm they appraised.
- List appraisals.Farm, farmer, appraisers and date for every entry.
- Match names.Any appraiser who is the farmer, or a close relative, is flagged.
- Check the worksheets.Confirm from the signed Format-9 who actually appraised.
Illustrative workload. At about two minutes per farmer, a 30-farmer group takes an hour; 50 groups take over 50 hours a cycle.
Reassigning the Team
Build a rota so every farm has two independent appraisers, and re-appraise any farm that was not properly inspected.
- Draw up a rota: appraiser A and B inspect farmer C, and so on, so no one inspects their own farm.
- Where a farm was only 'appraised' by its own farmer, a proper appraisal must be done within the crop window.
- Correct the portal entry to match the new, signed worksheet.
Portal screens and messages change from time to time. If an option described here is missing, ask your Regional Council, or the PGS-India Secretariat at the National Centre for Organic and Natural Farming.
Check yourself
Tap an answer to see whether you are right, and why.
Who appraises a peer appraiser's own farm?
- The appraiser
- Another peer reviewer team
- No one
No one appraises their own farm.
A farm's only appraisal was signed by the farmer. What must happen?
- Accept it
- A proper appraisal by an independent team
- Delete the farm
Only an independent appraisal counts.
Remember these things
- No self-appraisal.
- Treat close relatives the same way.
- Match appraisers against owners.
- Re-appraise where needed.
Independent appraisal teams are what make a PGS certificate believable. KrushiFlow validates these fields and submits farmer records to the portal in bulk.