They
are two simple, rural women, living in rural Andhra Pradesh, in an area known
for its arid soils, its resultant lack of food and its poverty. And
unbelievable as it may seem, the answer to the healthy skins of Chandramma and
Narsamma lies in good nutrition. Keya
Acharya has more.
19 Mar 2009
19
March 2009 - Both of them have
skins that look way younger than their years, glowing with a sort of ‘oiled
moistness’ that would need jars of expensive creams for us city slickers to
achieve. And yet, they are two simple, rural women, living in Zaheerabad, Medak
district of Andhra Pradesh, an area known for its arid soils, its resultant
lack of food and its poverty. How could they be so healthy then?
Unbelievable
as it may seem, since they come from a poor and arid background, I think the
answer to the healthy skins of Chandramma and Narsamma lies in good nutrition.
“Eat
some of these”, Chandramma, standing in the middle of a field flowering in a
feast of sunflowers, offers me some young, green, ‘channa’ . “You city people
use sprouts, but eating a handful of this channa for one month is equivalent to
six months of sprouts”, she says by way of explanation of the nutrition in
green, ‘red gram’, better known as ‘desi channa’ or horse gram.
You
can’t see the horse gram in the maze of sunflower. But on peering deeper into
the acre of flowering yellow in a little village called Bidakanne, some 25 kms
from dry, dusty Zaheerabad town, I come across an amazing host of
seeding plants interspersed between the tall sunflowers: linseed, chickpea,
jowar, wheat, masur dal, ragi and others, a total of 13 different crops in a
little less than an acre.
“If
I plant sunflower as a monocrop it will deplete the soil and next season I will
need fertiliser”, explains 45 –year-old Samamma, the owner of the acre. “ In my
land, jowar absorbs the fertility, but lentils feed the soils, so I plant in
between. In my type of cropping, one absorbs and one gives to the soil, and I
get all my food requirements, oils, cereals, vegetable greens.”
Organic,
without a drop of irrigation or chemical fertilizers and pesticides, these
rural women in a remote area of Andhra Pradesh are practicing an agriculture
that is ecologically sound, keeps the soil healthy, saves precious water, is
pest-free and of immense relevance in the crisis situation of Indian
agriculture today.
“We
call these ‘satyam pantalu’ [crops of truth]”, Chandramma tells me.
Samamma
says she has been cultivating her dry, non-irrigated lands in this fashion for
the last fifteen years. “I know only this (type of agriculture); I have been
engaged in this since childhood”, she says.
That
one acre, without any chemical or irrigation inputs whatsoever, produces nearly
1.5 quintals (or 150 kgs) of channa, 2 quintals of jowar and at least 25 – 50
kgs of linseed, among others. The dried linseeds are powdered along with red
chilli to make a ‘pudi’, or chutney powder to be eaten with your food. “Very
good for the heart”, says Sammamma. She keeps about 50 kilos of grain, 10-20
kilos of legumes, such as channa, and sells the surplus.
55
year old Chandramma is her neighbour and the ‘overseer’ of a lot of 70 villages
to ensure that planting and sowing are moving organically and well. She works
for the Deccan Development Society (DDS), an organization that has helped
women, mainly dalits, of 75-odd villages in Medak district form women’s
Sanghams (associations) that decide their own crops, set up community grain
banks that collect surplus produce and sell it at lower than market rates to
below-poverty-level members who have no lands, or have not managed to grow
enough food. (There are today 5000 women DDS members who are also part of their
respective ‘sanghas’. )
How
do such ‘banks’ then survive, if they sell grain, sometimes even distribute at
no cost in crisis situations ?
The
answer to this one is a set of economics as amazing as the women themselves,
devised and developed by them at their own meetings. The grain banks have a
current ‘participation’ of 1500 acres in 32 villages under their fold. The
women who own these lands take financial loans from the sangham, repayable in
five years’ time in the form of grain.
The
community grain bank then sells each year’s supply of grains in the market and
deposits the money in a regular bank. The interest earned from these deposits
help cover financial loans and below-market rates of sale to BPL families.
Sangha
members, and other farmers from the villages also borrow every year’s seeds
from the seed banks that go with these grain centres, payable back again as
grain. The grain bank sells grains not good enough for seed in the open market
and the money is again deposited in a regular bank.
In
Hulugera village, 50 year old Akkamma is the seed bank manager. She brings out
reed baskets of different shapes containing various types of seeds from the
cool mud interiors of her house and displays them in little mounds in her front
verandah. A sangha ‘senior’, she doesn’t remember when exactly she learnt the
know-how for seed storage and collection, but she is very confident about her
methods. “ I check the bands and the characteristics of earheads of grains”,
she tells me. “ I learnt this from my ancestors”. Those ears selected for seeds
are then dried again thoroughly, mixed with ash and neem powder or leaves and
stored in reed baskets or earthen pots.
Indeed
, the entire system of grain banks and open-market sales has now spawned a
retailing of organic cereals to Hyderabad that the DDS women are unable to meet
its high demand. The cereals, millets, grams, lentils and the like, are
certified as organic produce by an organization called the PGS Organic India
Council. A DDS “Organic Mobile’ travels to Hyderabad with grains like millet,
ragi, wheat, sorghum and lentils, selling them to the public. DDS’s director,
PV Satheesh, tells me the women are swamped with the demand for this organic
produce.
And
yet these women sprang up from the oppressed dusts of Zaheerabad’s feudal
system, so to speak. 50 year old Narsamma, a DDS Sangha senior member, says she
would earn one rupee for 2-3 days of work on her landlord’s fields thirty years
ago, sit for hours at her landlord’s house after work in the evening to beg for
some rice for her children at home. Then she heard about the Deccan Development
Society’s sangha in a neighboring village, approached DDS and started a
sangham in her village and began by saving one rupee per week.
Some
of these dalit women then, in subsequent years, got lands from the SC/ST
corporation, others graduated to buying their own lands through their savings
in the sanghas. Most of these lands were dry, rocky and barren. With DDS sangha
borrowings, they began by clearing the lands of rocks and then mixing the
remaining soils with farmyard manure in a bid to reclaim them, a two-year
procedure generally, thus bringing back to life an ancient agriculture system
that had very nearly disappeared.
Ratnamma,
another DDS member in her fifties, says she worked as a menial for Rs. 2 a week
and, like Narsamma, heard of the DDS from a neighbouring village and approached
the organization for help. Their sangha subsequently worked on village common
lands on a social forestry scheme raising a nursery of 50,000 plants. “ I got
good wages and grew from there”, she says.
Her
two sons were educated at DDS’s secondary school at Pastapur, 2 km from
Zaheerabad town. She has now built a new house, bought cattle and bought some
land too with DDS sangha borrowings coupled with government help. “ Now the
landlords come to me for seeds”, she laughs.
“I
could not even think of traveling to Zaheerabad in my earlier life, now I have
traveled [through DDS] to Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, London and Peru, telling
others about our type of agriculture”, she tells me. “She’s a frequent
traveler”, jokes Suresh Kumar, joint director at DDS.
But
behind the jesting is a serious issue of rural autonomy of a strata of Indians
that get excluded from even the panchayati system . “ We have thus had no
choice but to work independent of the government and establish our own
sanghas”, says PV Satheesh.
These
women have also contributed an agricultural system that now spills over onto
the national scene. One which tackles India’s depleting soils, saves the
country precious money in fertilizer subsidies, and most importantly does not
need rainfall and irrigation.
These
women have thus demonstrated an ideal alternative for climate change.
Keya Acharya
Keya Acharya
is a Bangalore based development and investigative journalist. She visited
Pastapur and the villages around it in Zaheerabad in February 2009. Mixed cropping, organic farming and water saving technologies help Naidu turn barren land into a green farm
S Sainath| Hyderabad 29 Feb 2016,
At a time when
farmer suicides continue unabated in TelanganaState, a 62-year-old
farmer, Gudivada Nagaratnam Naidu, defies the second consecutive drought
season, setting national records in paddy and groundnut yields, and showing the
way to prosperity with innovative methods and intelligent farming.
“There is even a
flourishing apple tree on my farm,” declares G.N. Naidu – the altitude and
rainfall demanding apple tree being symbolic of what he has achieved on his
17-acre farm on what was once parched land in Taramathipet village, about 25 km
from Hyderabad.On this February morning he has just arrived at his farm at 8:30
a.m. from his modern duplex home in Dilsukhnagar in Hyderabad. Usually he takes
the State-run bus, as does his 93-year-old mother Muni Ratnamma.All along the
way, through the Himayatnagar mandal of Ranga Reddy district, the landscape is
the barren and rocky land synonymous with the Deccan
plateau. Not a patch of green, or even a shrub. Certainly no apple tree!This
was where it started in 1989. Naidu, a service engineer, along with his wife
Satyavathy, an office assistant, both working in Associated Marketing Agencies,
an electronic goods firm in Hyderabad, resigned and made their way back to
their roots.Born in Balakrishnapuram village in Chittoor, Andhra Pradesh, Naidu
had followed the conventional trail of school, studying electronics in a
polytechnic, and finding work in the capital city. But it was farming that
called to him.
Initially an acre
was made fertile and the first investment was the purchase of two cows – now
they have 12. The rocks still persevere. So does the gritty threesome.
Satyavathy says, “Even now we keep removing rocks that sprout from nowhere!”
The turnaround came
when Naidu read about SRI cultivation in a journal. SRI or the ‘System of Rice
Intensification’ is an agro-ecological methodology for increasing the
productivity of irrigated rice by managing plants, soil, water and nutrients.
A man of science,
Naidu decide to adopt it, and learnt that long-standing misconceptions are
responsible for low yield of crops, such as paddy. According to him, paddy
requires water but is not a water plant as is generally believed; secondly,
farmers plant too deep in the soil with their fingers. It works better to just
place the plant on top of the soil and allow the roots to search for water.
Precise distances
between two plants and rows, and comparatively less water ensures that “the
root will search for water and absorb micronutrients in the surrounding areas.”
Importantly, the
number of seeds used per acre is far less in the SRI method of cultivation than
traditional ways; while conventional farmers use 30 kg of seeds per acre, only
2 kg of seeds is required in the SRI method.
“If one could
collect the seeds wasted every year, we could feed the nation for 22 days,”
says Naidu in a rough but insightful and amazing estimation. Naidu had made a
good decision with SRI. It doubled his yield of paddy. If 35 bags per acre is
the maximum yield that a farmer gets, Naidu managed 92 bags!
News of Naidu’s
farm and its golden harvest spread far and wide. Accolades started pouring in
from Chief Ministers and Union ministers. In
the process thanks to the spotlight on it, Taramathipet village got good tar
roads when the then Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh, Late Y.S. Rajasekhara
Reddy, visited Naidu’s farm.
Agricultural
scientists thronged to the farm – more than 40 scientists from as many
countries. Not just that, in 2006 the State government chose Naidu to interact
with US President, George W. Bush, who visited the then united Andhra Pradesh,
where Naidu explained SRI cultivation to him.
This season, for
want of water and electricity, Naidu is not cultivating paddy; instead he is
relying on the fruit, vegetables and floriculture to assure him and his team of
a dozen workers financial stability.
“Mixed cropping
assures farmers a continuous income,” Naidu says. “If I were to depend on just
paddy, I too would have been in trouble.” His use of mixed cropping, organic
farming and dry-land water saving technologies has paid off. Naidu does not use
pesticides and fertilizers; cow dung and neem cakes are enough to replenish the
soil.
Naidu’s
agricultural philosophy and methods have become an inspiration. He is most
sought after to share his rich experiences at agricultural universities and
research centres. Till date he has trained more than 50,000 students across India in the
farming practices he employs.
He has bagged
nearly 300 awards in the State and in the country, besides international
honours such as a certificate of appreciation from the Association of Land
Reforms and Development, Dhaka, Bangladesh in 2007, a letter of honour from
ICRISAT (International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics) in
2008 for implementing organic farming practices in groundnut cultivation and
generating a record yield of 95-110 kg pods from 2 kg seeds, and the best SRI
farmer award from WWF Netherlands.
In an
agriculturally bleak State where 2,000 farmer suicides were reported in the
last two years, Naidu stands as an affirmation of life and accomplishment, grit
and determination. “I want to make impossible possible,” Naidu says. And he
has.
The three-foot
apple tree bears testimony to this.
“When I first went
with friends to survey the land, everyone discouraged me,” Naidu says. “They
said it was impossible to till in this rocky terrain.” His friends were right,
but Naidu was determined.
For want of money,
men and machinery, he along with his wife and his mother – just the three of
them –pulled out rocks, weeds and shrubs, and enriched the land with cow dung.
It took all of six years and 300 lorries of rocks removed for the resolute trio
to get the farm in shape.
This was in 2004.
And there was no looking back.
In India he has
delivered lectures in farming communities in Gujarat, Karnataka, Maharashtra,
Uttar Pradesh, Uttaranchal, Madhya Pradesh and Haryana, to name a few, and also
in South Africa, Ethiopia, Bangladesh, Malaysia, Thailand, Singapore and China,
among other countries.
Apart from the five
acres set aside for paddy, Naidu grows papaya on three acres – stacking up to
45 tonnes of this fruit seasonally – besides flowers of 20 regular and exotic
varieties which are transported to Bengaluru every day, and a range of
vegetables including brinjal, okra, beans, tomato and green leafy veggies.
Add to that list:
guava, banana, five varieties of mango, coconut, almond, jamun and sapodilla,
and you know why today, apart from providing salaries to 12 employees in a
massively debt-trapped population, every month Naidu takes home close to a lakh
rupees – along with the coffee, pepper and cardamom he grows for personal use.
Oasis Organic Farm, Kuppam
Two years ago, they began organic farming. Now they're spreading the knowledge to the locals.
It was in 1987 that Raghavendra Rao and Shylaja Rao met Masanobu Fukuoka, the patron saint of natural farming. Fukuoka, author of One Straw Revolution, a book that served as a principal catalyst of alternate thinking for young minds across the globe, had come on a visit to their university—the Salim Ali School of Ecology and Environmental Sciences in Pondicherry. The Raos were among the first batch of students, studying for an MS in ecology. And during that decisive moment of contact with Fukuoka, they quietly resolved that one day they would have an organic farm of their own.
After spending 15 long summers earning a livelihood and also conserving resources to realise the dream, they began cultivation on their farm of 27 acres, Oasis, in Nakkanapalli village of Kuppam in Andhra Pradesh, in July 2003. To begin with, the Raos have restricted organic farming to just 4 acres on Oasis, lest the whole project becomes "unwieldy" and "impractical." Although they plan to grow a variety of fruits later ("a polycultural orchard") they are confined to musk melons for now, but grow a good number of vegetables that include cucumber, radish, spinach, okra, capsicum, baby potatoes, jalapenos, baby corn, bitter gourd, cherry red tomatoes, ridge gourd, zucchini, french beans, chilli sweet banana and drumsticks. "The normal impression about organic farming is that you are going back a 100 years, but it’s not so, especially if you are trying to make it commercially viable. It’s actually a blend of natural principles of ecology and modern technology. This makes it a very knowledge-intensive activity," says Rao. The example set by the Raos has had its impact on the villages in and around Oasis where farmers still grow paddy, which is water-intensive, in a drought-prone area. "They have watched us in the last couple of years and feel confident to shift to natural farming. We’re already teaching them rainwater harvesting. We also want to get the younger generation to be involved so we’re planning summer eco-camps for children," say the Raos. According to the Raos, growing one’s own seeds is an activity that most farmers in the area have forgotten. Seeds are the defining aspect of organic farms. The Raos make their own seeds and store it. "We allow fruit or vegetables to ripen on the plant naturally and then collect them. The workers on the farm initially thought we were fools to not pluck them, but now they understand. It’s really surprising that villagers have forgotten the primordial activity of seed-making, they have become accustomed to buying it at a seed shop," the Raos lament. This is one area where the couple want to create awareness. Oasis is in the drought-affected district of Chittoor. There has been no decent rain here in the past four years. Very often, the entire year’s rain comes down in one or two sharp and short spells. So conserving water is vital. One has to dig as deep as 400 feet to hit water below the ground. The Raos have landscaped their farm in trenches and bunds. They are staggered from the highest point of the farm to the lowest point to facilitate rainwater harvesting. In addition, drip irrigation is essential to save on water. The local farmers are also learning these methods of water conservation from the Raos. The quality of their produce has been approved by IMO Control, a Swiss-based certifying agency which is accredited by the Union ministry of commerce. In fact, Oasis was the first organic farm to be certified in AP. The Raos use no chemical pesticides but go in for natural alternatives like neem cake and pest-repelling plants like tulsi and marigold. Contact the Raos at: Oasis Farm, Nakkanapalli Village, Gudipalle Mandal, Chittoor District, AP. Tel: (08570) 256433, (0)98490-95005.
the Raos at: Oasis Farm, Nakkanapalli Village, Gudipalle Mandal, Chittoor District, AP. Tel: (08570) 256433, (0)98490-95005.
—Sugata Srinivasaraju
Courtesy outlookindia.com
Adarana shows the way in best farming
THE HANS INDIA | Jan 04,2017 , 04:09 AM IST
Agriculture Polytechnic set up in the farm at Hampapuram village in Raptadu mandal
Raptadu (Anantapur): The vast integrated agriculture farm at Hampapuram village in Raptadu mandal established by N Rama Krishna, a progressive farmer bustles with activity with hundreds of visitors, farmers and government officials coming to have a glimpse of the model farm and study the best agricultural practices.
The farm dubbed as ‘Aadarana Padi Panta’ was established in 2011 and ever since has become a cynosure of all eyes and a place worthy to visit.
Rama Krishna believes in the farm practices advocated by Subash Palekar of Maharashtra, who promotes natural farming practices, and calls upon farmers to return to farming practices of old.
The students of Agriculture Polytechnic set up in the farm call themselves as lucky people as they are exposed to practical farming and also to interaction with leading scientists and agriculturists, who visit the farm.
The serine climate in the green campus provides the perfect environment for them to study and also get exposed to practical training.
Sailaja, an agricultural polytechnic student is overjoyed to study in the lovely and serine campus. “We are privileged to study in the campus.
We have opportunities to interact and learn from several experts who visit the campus and studying in the campus is an enriching experience,” she stated.
The 125-acre lush green organic vegetable and horticulture integrated farm with dairying and sheep rearing is a model organic farm and an educational centre for farmers to have exposure on farm mechanisation, organic farming, marketing and exporting of produce.
As one enters the sprawling farm with even an agriculture polytechnic, it gives one an experience of being in Konaseema with rich greenery and best agriculture practices.
Rama Krishna talking to The Hans India at his farm house stated that he is engaged in cultivation, marketing and even export of products.
He also procures from small farmers, who follow his line of agriculture practices and markets them along with his produce.
Cultivation, packing and marketing through own transportation forms part of his integrated project.
He frequently travels abroad and educates himself on the best agriculture practices and implements them in his farm apart from organising marketing tie-ups with international agriculture and horticulture producer companies for exporting Indian produce.
He helps the farmers in direct marketing without any role for middlemen to ensure higher profits to his co-farmers.
He has 18 borewells in the campus always teeming with life and even in the hottest summer, his bores did not fail him, he says with pride as he dug large farm ponds and trenches to conserve every drop of rain water.
These measures helped recharging of borewells and there was no dearth of water in summer.
As part of mechanisation, he introduced JCBs, tractors, ploughing machines, drum-seeders, thrashers, groundnut decorticators, de-stoners, millet cleaning machines, banana fibre and bio-mass pellet machines in his farm.
As part of integrated farming, he is running a dairy with 70 animals and rearing 500 sheep and goats.
More than 100 people live in the township, who are fortunate enough to get pure milk and curd, organic fruits and vegetables and unpolished rice.
A Farmers Training Centre is in place for according training to small and marginal farmers.
A big cold storage facility would shortly be established for storage of 8,000 metric tonnes of produce with the cooperation of the Central government.
The agriculture farm has emerged as a modern farm with even the government utilising the infrastructure and training facilities to train agriculture officers of the department.
Farming is their way of life
Farming is their way of life
- Anitha Pailoor
Farming community, the backbone of our country is never free
from difficulties. For years, the food providers have been queuing up in front
of the moneylender's house to fill their stomach! What else can be the greatest
humiliation to the largest population in the country? While many have
surrendered their life to hunger, very few have shaped their life amidst
adversities. One among them is Mr. A.P. Anantharajaiah (85), a farmer in
Holabgare of Belur Taluk near Hassan, Karnataka.
In 1952, Mr. Anantharajaiah purchased the land, which was a
dense forest and started farming in1957. He started experimenting different
crops from food grains to fruits and vegetables. He was successful in most of
his ventures. His association with the agriculture department helped in
enhancing the activities. In 1972, due to his old age and ill health, he divided
his 97 acres of fertile land and gave the ownership to his 6 sons and two
daughters. Now this happy - healthy man has associated himself with his second
son Mr. Jinachandra's family who has successfully followed his father. Mr.
Anantharajaiah's views on agriculture are thoughtful when he says, "Farming has
the capacity to either sustain a farmer's life or end it. It is up to the farmer
to employ it in the right way." Though Mr. A.P's conviction and hard work have
provided a strong base for the Kshetrapala farm, the stable and long lasting
bond between the three generations has kept the farm secure and the spirit
alive.
When you walk through this 35-acre farm, a world of hard work
and commitment starts unveiling. The chemical turned organic farmers (from 1996)
are satisfied with the performance of the land that has become rich by consuming
natural inputs. The main source of manure for the farm is vermicompost that is
being produced in the farm in a quantity of about 50 tones per year.
Vermi Compost
Mr. Jinachandra (60), who is in charge of the vermiculture, has
changed the place of production from a well-established shed to an open area in
the coconut farm. He found the trial successful and now the shed is used for
some other purpose. Mr. Jinachandra says that ants haven't created any problem
to the worms inside. He cuts the naturally available leaves using a manual
chopper and puts into the vermi bed. The family brought 1,000 Eugenia earthworms
from the agriculture department, which has now multiplied into hundreds of
thousands of worms.
Water, Stop!
When Mr. Anatharajaiah purchased the land there were 6 open
wells. Till recently they had enough water to feed the coconut trees in the
farm. But when they started growing arecanut, water requirement was more. They
started digging bore wells. When only 2 bore wells out of 12 dug had water, the
family sought after a sustainable technique. Three years back they constructed
trenches all over the farm. With out the percolating structures Mr. Prashanth
(Mr. Jinachandra's son) says, "The situation would have been worst last summer
when we could not feed the farm with water." Trenches of 3x3 ft size are
constructed after every two rows of coconut trees. To make percolation more
effective, a 2 ft gap is maintained after 30 ft length. There are 4 water
(percolation) ponds in the farm. A bund of 20 ft width, 250 ft length and 8 ft
depth at the end of the farm takes in all the water that flows from the hills
next to the farm. They have grown Napier grass at the side of the bund, which
meets a larger portion of the grass requirement for the cattle at home. One acre
of land near the bund has not been irrigated after it was formed. Most of the
water conservation structures are well planned while constructing and
positioning.
A check dam has been constructed on the other side of the farm
with the government initiative. But the structure is not convincing and Mr.
Jinachandra explains the shortcomings of the dam including improper positioning.
He has a better idea in mind. He says, "Had the government allotted us half the
amount of what it has used for the check dam, we would have built an efficient
one." Now the family plans to improve its efficacy by making a few changes. An
appropriate example for how government's development programmes remain of no
help to the local people.
Diverse Crops
Coconut is their major crop. Arecanut and mango are planted as
intercrops. There are significant number of other plants like lemon, soap nut
tree, banana, cinnamon, silver oak, neem and some fruit trees. They also grow
vegetable in a small portion of the farm, but not as intercrop due to some
practical problems like shading. Holbagare family has grown arecanut as a
monocrop also. They have converted a hill into an areca farm. They have not
leveled the farm, they don't even till it. Vermicompost (3 kg per plant) is the
only outside manure for the trees. The areca leaves and various weeds that come
up in the farm are its manure.
There are 1,000 coconut trees of which 800 are yielding. Fifty
to sixty trees are 50 years old. The trees are planted at a distance of 30x30
ft. Due to mite menace, the yield has gone down from 90,000 nuts in 2000 to
70,000 in 2001. They haven't applied any 'advised' medicine for the problem. "We
can't control nature. The mite problem has come from it. Nature itself will
control it," Mr. Anantharajaiah feels about the menace. They put caster cake or
neem seed along with vermicompost (15 - 20 kg per tree) to the coconut trees.
Other inputs are its own produces and weeds grown in the area. Instead of
pesticides, local herbal produces are mixed and sprayed.
There are 600 mango trees of which some are 38 year old. There
are both local and hybrid varieties. To name a few: Alphonse, Rasapuri,
Sindhura, Baiganpalli, Malgoa, Totapuri and Desari. The distance between the
plants is 30x30 ft.
There is a special lemon plant of Australian origin in
Kshetrapala farm. One of Mr. Anatharajaiah's friends gave an Australian lemon to
him long back. He successfully planted it, now the variety has spread all over
the farm. This plant starts yielding from the 3rd year of sowing the seed and
yields through out the year. He has experimented planting both local and
Australian variety at distance of 6 ft. He observes that both the plants yield
fruits throughout the year. He doesn't know the reason, but speculates that
cross-pollination must be taking place. He has distributed this juicy lemon
variety to many farmers who visit the farm. Eventually the variety is popular as
'Holabagere lemon' among the farming community.
Market
The family doesn't give any portion of the land (particularly
mango farm) on lease (giving mango trees on lease is commonly practiced in the
region), fearing that they might practice chemical farming. Mango is sold at
Arasikere and Tipatur markets in Karnataka.
In 1998 Mr. Anantarajaiah and family came in contact with Mr.
Neelakantaiah, another farmer from Arasikere through Parisara Priya Krishikara
Sangha (Nature friendly farmers' group) in Hassan. Mr. Neelakantaiah gave them a
success formula for making the copra. Since then they are following that method
and are making profit out of it. There are three separate sheds to dry the
coconut. The sheds are constructed at a cost of Rs. 1 lakh with the locally
available material. The sheds are 10 ft high. One shed is 100 ft long while
other two are 40 ft in length. The sheds have enough space for air to pass
through it. The wall is not concrete but made using wooden planks. The roof is
made of Asbestos sheet.
For one year the nuts will be inside the shed. Once they are
taken out, the outer cover will be removed and again dried for a month. Then the
dry coconut will be cut and becomes copra. Unlike coconut, copra has good demand
in the market and the rate is considerably high. As Mr. Ashok Kumar (Mr.
Jinachandra's son) estimates, they get a net profit of about 4 to 5 lakhs by
making copra.
While talking about the present status of the market Mr.
Anatharajaiah feels that direct marketing is the only solution to the problem.
In his opinion, the entire marketing system is in the clutches of the middlemen.
"Farmer works and the middlemen make the profit," he says. The Family
The entire family has a good understanding and love and liking
towards farm life. They feel the pulse of the farm. Mr. Jinachandra's sons are
educated but never thought of getting out of farm life in search of a job. As
they say they didn't know about the counter effects of chemical farming till
they came in contact with Hassan's Parisara Priya Krishikara Sangha in 1996.
Then their vision about life has changed. They attend all the meetings that the
sangha organises and feel that many doubts can be solved and experiences can be
exchanged only through such meetings.
Mr. Jinachandra feels that chemical farming kills the farm
while organic farming nourishes the soil and the life in it. Several animals and
birds live in the farm. There are 25 peacocks in the farm. Holabagere family is
a radio listening family. They also read farm magazines for more information.
The family is least dependent on farm labourers. In other
words, all the works are shared by the family members. For farm related works
they use a tiller and a tractor. Mr. Jinachandra's sons Mr. Ashok Kumar, Mr.
Kirthi Kumar and Mr. Prashanth share the responsibilities and work on par with
their father. Obviously, Mr. A.P. Anatharajaiah's words of experience boost the
morale of the family.
Holabagere people have adopted organic farming in their lives.
They have a clear understanding of the concept and concerns of organic farming
and are working close to nature. Farming has become their way of life, not just
an easy-chair occupation.
Address: A.P. Anantharajaiah Shree Kshetrapala
Farm Holabagere, Hagare Road Belur Taluk, Hassan District Karnataka,
India Phone: 08172- 20750
A novel movement on eco-friendly farming
by Vijay Angady With their own finance and initiative, hundreds of
farmers in Hassan District of Karnataka (India) are conducting need-based
programmes on eco-friendly farming since 1996. This is a successful example of
self-help extension. Mr. Vijay Angady narrates this success story. Planting trees is not the only way of environmental
protection. Putting an end to hazardous chemical usage preserving crop
diversity, precious water and soil conservation and recycling of huge organic
wastes play major role in retarding environmental degradation.
You can see such developments in many villages of Hassan district of
Karnataka. A large group of farmers have created wonders since 1996. They have
constituted an informal club known as ‘Parisara Priya Krishikara Sanghatane’
(Forum of eco-friendly farmers). With the active support of farmers they are
organizing eco-friendly farmers' workshops since 1996 to disseminate information
on organic farming, low/no cost technology, alternatives for chemicals,
importance of mulching, utilization of weeds and organic wastes and soil-water
conservation. The concept was mooted and the functioning of the forum is being supervised
by Karnataka Rajya Vignana Parishath’s Hassan Unit. KRVP is a state-level body
involved in popularising science among common people. Till 1999 monthly workshops were conducted. Now it is conducted once in three
months. The workshops are held in the farmers’ field and participants are
informed about the recent developments in the farm sector, shortcomings,
desirable modifications required etc. Seven tours have already been conducted
(once in six months) to expose themselves to new ideas of farmers of other
districts. Expenses regarding conducting workshops and tours will be borne purely by
farmers. This farmers’ forum has not accepted financial assistance from the
government or any finance organization. Everything is a person-to-person
communication. As such no ledger of account book has been maintained, but
systematic accounts will be submitted in the meetings. A membership fee of
Rs.100/- to print small booklets along with invitation and to bear postal charge
and guest expenses is being collected from an obliging farmer.
Till November 2000, 36 fruitful programmes in different farmers’ fields have
been organised. In all these functions, an experienced farmer-guest conducts the
programme like a teacher and participating farmers are the students. Hundreds of
farmers (Irrespective of their caste, creed, sex, age, position and political
background) will sit together in the field for discussion. Host farmer will
provide food with great pleasure for all the farmers on that day. Marvelous developments and changes have been noticed through this movement in
this area. Many farmers have reduced usage of chemical fertilizer and pesticides
and adopted organic farming with low cost technologies. They have learnt about
proper utilisation of farm wastes without burning, minimum tillage, preparation
of enriched compost, preservation of promising local varieties, conservation of
soil and water, preparation of biopesticides and vermicompost. They know the
importance of crop diversity for becoming self-sufficient and to minimise
production costs. Results are clear. KRVP estimated that more than six crore
rupees has been benefited through high yield, reduced expenditure on pesticides,
fertilizers and labour, less dependency on underground water by adopting low/no
cost indigenous techniques. Lot of awareness has been created to grow produce
without application of harmful chemicals and fertilizers to maintain good health
and good environment. VIJAY ANGADY Honorary Convenor, KRVP,
No-2102/A, Rangolihalla, Hassan - 573201 Karnataka State,
INDIA Telephone : 91-8172-61787
Tying a thread to a hillock
“Did you enquire anyone about me before
you came here? If you had enquired they would have asked, hey! What do you see
in his garden?” When Veerappa of Vittalapura in Chikmagalur district, Karnataka
said so we were at a loss how to reply. Veerappa greeted us with these words
when we visited him with a batch of fifteen farmers. This trip was organized by
Corporations Bank’s Self Employment Training Institute for the farmers of local
villages.
Expert on earthworms
“I have not ploughed my garden for 10-20
years. Earthworms themselves do the ploughing. Come and see for yourself,” he
said as he led us to the vermicomposting unit behind his house. Constructing the
unit had cost him Rs.2 lakhs for which he made bank loan. The Khadi and Village
Industries Development had given a grant of Rs. 50,000 for the unit.
There were 4 pits each of size 35 feet long, 4 feet broad and 2
feet deep. He had used Kadapa slabs to construct the pits. Two inch thick
concrete layer at the base the pit prevents leaching of water and earthworms
descending into the soil. Outside the first and the fourth tank, GI pipes of 3
inch dimension are erected in two rows supporting the iron rods, over which a
roof of zinc sheets is laid for protection from rain and sun.
Two kilos of earthworms (Eudrillus variety) are let into each
pit. Now every pit has 70-80 Kg of earthworms. He said that one kg of earthworms
prepares 1 to 1 ½ kg of compost everyday. He has sold more than 10 tons
vermicompost of year. “Some people mix soil with the compost and sell. We don’t
do so. That is why there is good demand for our vermicompost,” he said.
Preparing vermicompost
The tank should be filled with leaves up
to 3/4 feet height and over that dung should be spread. Over this layer, another
two similar layers should be laid. Then each tank should be drenched with 10
pots of water once in 4 days for 20 days. This is not required during rainy
season.
Because of application of dung the leaves decompose and compost
is formed. On the 20th day it should be turned upside down (to bring down the
temperature). After that two kilograms of worms should be let into it. Amidst
the rich manure the earthworms work, day and night to produce vermicompost in
2-3 months. In the farm earthworms eat up organic matter to 15 feet depth and
prepare manure, Veerappa informed.
He explained the easy way to remove the manure from the tank:
Remove the top 6 inch manure from the top and heap them outside. This way
removes step by step a layer of two inch thickness. Finally leave a layer of 2
inch of manure at the bottom. This would later be heaped at a corner inside the
tank. After this, fill up tank again with leaves, dung and garbage.
Zero cultivation
From there we were taken to the 15 acre
garden about half a kilometer away. Coconuts and areca were the main crops in
that farm. Nutmeg, Dalchini, betel leaf, turmeric, pepper, vanilla and papaya
were planted as intercrops. There was continuous drought for the last 3 years in
Tarikere taluk (Chikmagalur District). Amidst adversities, Veerappa’s farm has
managed to survive at good condition.
According to Veerappa zero cultivation and application of
Jeevamrutha has helped to maintain the farm satisfactorily. Soil moisture could
be found down to two feet deep at his garden. He explains, “I did not convert
the entire garden to zero cultivation in one year. I changed only 10 gunta (25
cents) at a time. It took 20 years to bring the whole garden to zero
cultivation.” Water scarcity Veerappa faces acute water shortage like
other farmers in Tarikere taluk. There is an old well in his farm. As the yield
of water started decreasing he dug another well. Water from this well was also
not enough for the expanded garden. Hence there was urgency for digging a bore
well. “I got dug 18 bore wells. But water was not struck in any of them. At last
I got a bore-well dug near this rock. There I struck water at 60 feet depth. We
can’t understand the secrets of the earth,” he shared his experience.
He has installed drip irrigation to his areca and papaya plants
and sprinkler to the old coconut garden. When we examined, there was moisture in
the base of the plants eventhough there was no rain for the last 2 years. He
removes the soil 3 feet away from the base of the coconut trees at 6 inch depth,
spreads the earthworm manure and then covers it with the soil.
After two years of drought, last year there has been little
rain till October. “I have made all preparations for rain harvesting, eventhough
rainfall was very less.” He showed a bore-well to us. He has dug a pit (5 ft
length, 5 ft width and 15 ft depth) around the casing pipe. He has made holes in
the casing pipe in one feet length of the pipe (just 2 ft above the bottom of
the pit). He has covered those small holes with a piece of plastic mosquito net
and tied it with a wire. Then, he has filled stones around the casing pipe.
He has done water recharging in a similar method for the
bore-well near his house and as a result of which water level has increased in
that bore-well. “All farmers should harvest rain water. It is very easy to
harvest rain water. The articles written by 'Shree' Padre have inspired me
towards this,” he said.
Don’t hesitate to take risk
Veerappa has procured costly papaya seeds
from Pune, grown seedling and planted them. There are 3000 seedlings. The cost
of the seeds is Rs.1, 800 per 10 grams. “We should not hesitate to take risk of
cultivation just because seeds are costly. We must procure the seeds and grow
the crop,” he said with enthusiasm. His calculation goes like this: If one grows
papaya plants and irrigates them properly, income will be Rs. 1, 75,000 from one
acre. One plant yields 300 Kg fruits. The rate in the market varies from one and
a half rupee to Rs.3 per Kg. If 5 tons papaya is available middlemen themselves
come to the farm and purchase it. If 5 to6 farmers grow papaya together in one
acre, it is easy to sell.
Veerappa has seen many ups and downs in his three decades of
farming. What he stated when we left his farm is the essence of his experience.
“In farming I follow a rule” he said, “Tie a thread to the hillock and drag it.
If the thread is cut, it does not matter. If it pulls the hillock, I gain.”
Contact address: K.Veerappa alias Gangappa Vittalapura
–Neralekere Tarikere Taluk Chikmagalur District Karnataka, India
Tel: 91-821-242402
The 'Organic Couple'
Organic farming is not just an alternate for chemical farming. The concept has
been evolved with an aim to shift life - from concrete to the natural. Basic
features are self-reliance, eco friendly and economical. Many are yet to
understand this. Anitha Pailoor documents the farm life of Kusuma - Dharmalingam
couple who has realised the realities.
They are no more dependent on the MNCs for synthetic fertilisers or a wide range
of pesticides. Certain farmers in and around Hassan in Karnataka have formulated
indigenous solution to enrich the soil fertility and keep away the pests! The
much annoying weeds have a place in their farm as they use it as manure. Market
downfall- they are least bothered! The multiple cropping system protects them
against the shaky market. They do not regret for being farmers. Agriculture is
not a means to make living but it is their life itself. The credit of making
these farmers self-reliant, nature friendly and sustainable goes to
Parisarapriya Krishikara Sanghatane (Eco friendly farmers group) in Hassan,
whose efforts in propagating sustainable farming has helped the otherwise
chemical farmers to change their attitude and feel proud of their occupation.
Parisarapriya Krishikara Sanghatane under the leadership of Mr. Vijay Angadi has
committed completely to practicing and propagating organic farming. Not to
forget the role of the local All India Radio (AIR) station in influencing the
farmers to shift from the hazardous chemical farming to nature friendly organic
farming. Mr. Vijay Angadi who is with AIR, Hassan has effectively utilised
'Krishi Ranga' (Farm programme) to encourage farmers' eco friendly efforts and
to sustain the movement.
The
results are good. It is clearly reflected in the activities of the
farmers and the fertility of the land they hold. Each farm illustrates a
different story and gives a new vision. When you visit these
non-chemical farms, a world of experiments and exchanges gets revealed.
Kusuma
- Dharmalingam couple, associate of the group, has made a dense
organic farm, 'Vijayashree Estate' in Alur Taluk near Hassan. The then
chemical farmers have shifted completely to organic farming after coming
in contact with the group. The 13 acres of land has coconut - arecanut
-8 varieties of mango - sapota - jackfruit trees and banana - coffee -
papaya plants. Silver oak and Coral tree trees, planted uniformly in
the entire farm produce manure and act as shading plants for coffee.
Pepper vines lean on most of the trees in the farm. Here one variety
helps the survival of the other. 1000 Teak trees surrounding the farm
act as a live fence for the Estate. An excellent example for
intercropping.
Coconut
trees (300) are planted at a distance of 30 ft. x 36 ft., while
arecanut plants have a gap of 15x15 ft between them. Coffee (4 year
old) has been planted as intercrop throughout the farm. They have
stopped tilling the land. It is more than three years that the
Dharmalingam couple purchased manure from outside. They collect silt
from the backwaters of River Hemavathi and the lake nearby. Ms. Kusuma
says, "The waste produced in the farm is not taken home. Instead it is
used as manure for the plants. Thus compost gets prepared at the farm
itself. Stopping the outside input has helped us financially."
Everything in their farm is of some use for them.
In
Vijayashree Estate weeds that make the ground cover are used as
compost. The recent development in the farm is that weeds don't come up.
The leaves shed from the trees in the farm cover the whole farm
leaving no space for weeds! Interestingly, Kusuma and Dharmalingam have
a nursery of a certain variety of weed plant.
This
farm situated in the backwaters of River Hemavathi, which otherwise
doesn't have any water problem, had to face water scarcity during last
summer. Ms. Kusuma feels that organic method of cultivation has saved
their farm from water scarcity. The difference is clear between the
neighbour's non-organic farm and that of Vijayashree Estate. The
nine-year-old coconut plants here yield 500 tender coconuts per week.
The overall yield of the farm might be less, says Mr. Dharmalingam, but
we don't have any loss as the input is not even low-cost but no-cost.
More than anything else the farm is fertile, healthy and non-chemical.
They have formulated an organic decoction as alternate to pesticides and
insecticides. Parthenium, coriander leaves, turmeric, neem and buttermilk are
mixed with water and cow urine (Ganjala). The proportion of water to cow urine
is 10:1. It is ideal to prepare the solution a day before spraying. Ganjala is
sprayed even on mulberry leaves to control pests. They also have a sericulture
unit.
For market, this couple has to depend on Hassan. Since this
young farm is yet to start yielding at its full strength, marketing has not
disturbed them much. But definitely, the downfall of the sericulture in
Karnataka worries them.
Kusuma and Dharmalingam's vision for life and nature is beyond
their farm. Both of them are well educated and have clear thoughts on organic
farming. Mr. Dharmalingam says, "Neighbour's laugh at my farms poor yield saying
that I'm mad to follow this method. But no matter what they say about me and my
farm, I've understood the nature's laws and I'm going to follow them." Ms.
Kusuma adds, "Only natural farming can help in sustaining the life on this
planet. Ours is self-reliant farming. The estate is like our child, we love
spending most of our time here talking with the plants and observing their
behaviour." Not only plants, animals like rabbit and snake have made this 'farm
forest' their home.
Mr. Dharmalingam and Ms. Kusuma read farm magazines regularly
and are of the opinion that magazines have improved over time. Radio is their
best companion. They don't mind listening to 'Krishi Ranga' working at the
estate, but never miss the programme. Mr. Vijay Angadi has influenced the lives
of these people to a greater extent. 'Vijayashree Estate' in the name of Mr.
Vijay describes the respect towards their beloved 'Guru'.
Address: H.N. Dharmalingam - Kusuma Vijayashree Estate Hasaganur,
Kadabagala Post Alur Taluk, Hassan Karnataka State, INDIA
Phone: 91-817-328940 Indraprastha
He
could have continued at a lucrative 9 to 5 job after his
engineering degree. But he opted for a life many engineers can't even
think of.
Mr. A.P. Chandrashekhar of Mysore, a mechanical engineering graduate,
opted for a farm life and succeeded. Now he is the leading force of
organic movement in
Karnataka. Dr. Niranjana Vanalli writes about the farm and life of Mr.
Chandra who has turned his farm into a mini organic forest and his home
an
experimental lab.
"Let
us incorporate leaves in our
diet. It will solve our food and health problems," Mr. A.P.
Chandrashekhar,an organic farmer near Mysore gives a simple solution to
the major problem, the the
country is facing! Conversely, 2000 and odd plants in his farm describe
you his equation between life and nature.
'Indraprastha' has changed from an
ordinary farm to a small 'man-made-forest' at a span of about 17 years. 13 acres
of land in Kalalavadi Village, 17 km from Mysore on Manandavadi road is Mr.
Chandrashekhar's dream come true. It is not an ordinary effort. Mr.
Chandrashekhar has taken pains to make it a resource land for the interested. He
has explored ways to integrate nature with life. Not surprisingly, Indraprastha
is full of life.
He
joined as an employee at a private firm in Kerala after
studying mechanical engineering at Mysore. Though he had his roots in
Puttur (60
km from Mangalore towards Madikeri in Karnataka), Mr. Chandrashekhar
decided to
purchase a farmland in Mysore after quitting the job, which he found
lifeless. The story now begins! The man with an experimental mindset
decided to try out various plants from across the country in his farm,
thus
making it a 'diverse land'. One can feel the trace of Western Ghats in
Indraprastha.
Coming to his plantation, He
adopted 'density planting' technique by planting banana, coffee, lemon and fruit
trees along with areca and coconut plants. A small portion of the farm is used
to grow paddy. In the beginning, for 5 to 6 years, Mr. Chandra used chemical
fertilizers apart from organic compost. He observed that lemon plants yielded
hundred lemons on an average irrespective of the fact that whether chemical
fertilizers or organic manure is used. This led him to conclude that use of
chemicals was not required. Further experiments drew his attention towards the
hazards of using chemicals. Slowly within 5-6 years, Mr. Chandra transferred
himself as organic farmer and in the last decade, he has become the driving
force of organic movement in Karnataka.
Chemical-free farm
Now chemical fertilizers and pesticides have no entry into
Indraprastha. "Give nutrients to the plants and leave it to the nature, it will
do the rest," Mr. Chandrashekar's solution to control pests. "I don't kill rats
in my farm, even rats have the right to live on this earth. Grow more tubers and
rats will eat them. Don't kill snakes, they control the rats. That's how we have
to allow biological control mechanism," says Mr. Chandra.
His observation reveals that all
plants try to adjust to the available conditions and human intervention is not
solicited. Mr. Chandrashekhar is not very particular about watering his
plantation. He applies liquid cattle manure to 75 per cent of his farm. He has
developed an internal balance, thus limiting external feeding to the plants. He
has stopped irrigating a small portion of his farm. The yield has not been
altered, he feels.
With his areca growing family
background, he wanted to test whether the same can be grown in Mysore, as areca
was not being cultivated here. He succeeded in planting areca with coconut
inter-crop.
Mini forest
Now let me list out the plant
varieties in Indraprastha - 30 types of green chilli, 13 varieties of arecanut,
15 types of banana, 159 fruit varieties, 89 tubers, 65 leaf vegetables, 60 types
of vegetables, 150 species of medicinal plants, 59 aromatic plants, 15 grasses,
more than 150 flowering plants, about 100 cacti, and more than 200 forest
species. Mr.Chandra's intention is to plant as many varieties as possible. As he
says, diversification of plant species may sustain the farmers against the
falling markets. "This year 'Aadusoge' (Adhatoda vasica), which is grown in
plenty here fetched me rupees 10 per kilo. This 'weed' was found as an effective
medicine for the poultry. No plant is useless in our farm," he says. Of course,
when most of the plants there constitute his diet
Indraprastha's food habits may
sound peculiar for our fast food cult. But when you understand, it inspires you.
Even here, Mr. Chandra's experimental nature is clear. He has tried using most
of the plants, fruits, leaves and tubers as food. Traditional food habits with a
pinch of innovation results in tasty diet in Indraprastha.
Nesara, the organic shop
He has also pioneered in marketing
organic produces in Karnataka, which otherwise is a problem for organic
producers. The pro-organic people in Mysore have created an outlet for the
organic produces called 'Nesara'. The shop is running smoothly having a range of
produces and products from grains to fruits to soap powder. Nesara with a
membership fee of Rs 1,000 has 115 members who get preference while purchasing
the goods. Non- Indians constitute the major part of the consumers, says Mr.
Ranganath, who is incharge of this successful organic shop. Even though produces
come from Gadag, Melkote and from villages neighbouring Mysore, Mr.
Chandrashekhar is the major supplier to Nesara.
Many more remain unsaid. Visit
Indraprastha to feel it and understand..
Address: A.P. Chandrashekhar 'Indraprastha' Jeevadharaka
Sasyavaata Kalalavadi village, Post Udbhooru, Mysore - 570 008 Karnataka,
India Phone: 0821- 597936 Cherkady here...
Forty years ago, a Japanese young man noticed a few paddy ears
sticking out from the grass and weeds in an unploughed, neglected patch of land.
That was the origin of 'One-straw Revolution' of Masanobu Fukuoka : the
discovery of a farming method - a method without water/tilling/fertiliser in
land 'unfit' for farming; which has now become a historical landmark.
Almost around the same time a young man from Udupi District in
Karnataka State, India, Cherkady Ramachandra Rao realised the Gandhian concept
of self-reliance, in a similar situation. The 'Cherkadi' Paddy growing method
was originated, when he noticed a healthy, buxom paddy plant growing in pepper
filled slopes.
This method can be adapted even by the hill tribes who have no
irrigation facility at the hilltop. If the wave of 'Green revolution' had not
drowned Cherakdi's discovery, we wouldn't have had to turn the pages of
'history' to know more about it.
There are remarkable similarities between Fukuoka and Cherkadi
Ramachandra Rao. Both stress the importance of self-reliance, without external
inputs, and have followed self-sustained agricultural methods. While Fukuoka is
recognised world-over; our own people do not know about 'desi thinker' -
Cherkadi Ramachandra Rao, a true Gandhian. His farm life not only demonstrates
the strength of eco-friendly farming but also the relevance of Gandhian
ideology.
Self reliance:
Ramachancdra Rao, who is now 84, still recollects the old
memories which were a turning point in his life: "When I was working in Khadhi
Board, I used to make my own cloth. In 1948-49, famine struck, and I was caught
by Gandhi's call to produce our own food and clothing. This I ended up in this
field, and grew my cloth. A new thought came when I saw a paddy plant forked
into 16 branches, growing in the middle of pepper climbers. I could gather ½
kilogram of paddy from that! I sowed more paddy in between pepper, which gave
enough paddy for two us. People, ministers, collectors came. Syndicate
Agricultural Foundation popularised this effort."
Read
this note by a visitor to Cherkadi farm: “When I heard about Fukuoka; I
wondered whether it is practical. After seeing this farm by Cherkadi, I
realised that there is no point in searching for Fukuokas outside! Let
Cherkadi be a model to those who kill agriculture by sowing the seeds
of techno-culture!”
On
road to Hebri from Brahmavar in Udupi District in coastal Karnataka,
Ramachandra Rao has one hectare of land. Mango, coconut, black pepper,
cashew, cotton – all grow in this dry-land. A small cottage. No
electricity, Kerosine lamp for light. A traditional well, a pond, no pump set.
At this old age, Rao draws water from 40 feet deep well, to water 20-30 trees
every day. The other works are shouldered by his youngest son Ananda Rao.
Varieties of crops:
There are 8-10 mango trees, like Alfanso, and other hybrid
varieties, which bring 4000 rupees per year. Cherkadi also sells the silk cotton
pods. The pepper veins yield 200-250 kilograms per year. If the banana brings
1000 rupees, the coconut palms’ dry fronds are easily sold as fuel bringing 1000
rupees. Cashewnut of 4-5 quintal per year; and 2000 coconuts are harvested per
year.
The silk cotton’s dry pod is used as domestic
fuel wood. The cottonseed oil is sometimes used as a substitute for kerosene. He
used ‘sarvodaya pully’ to draw water it requires a little woodwork and fitting
accessories. “We could draw 100 buckets of water in 10 minutes.”
“ See, now there is water even in May. With pump, the well
would have become dry in just three months”. The tree base is covered with dry
leaves, and grass. “Look, how wet the soil is!” he proudly shows. “ I never was
interested in Areka or Jasmine. I give importance only to food grains and
fruits. My jack tree from Ceylon yields fruits worth 1000 rupees every
year!”
Not for nothing that Fukuoka explained the self-replenishing
power of the soil. We just need to assist the earth, that is all, he says.
Rao does not believe in insuring the crop. “ These long
standing perennial trees are insurance! Which can be relied upon in drought. Oh;
here is my fixed deposit. Ginger crop – when the market rate of the harvested
crop is not good, I bury them like this, till I get good rates ... they are like
buried treasure ...!”
Manure from human waste:
A 3x3 feet square pit in dug, and a septic tank is fixed at the
top. The bottom lid automatically opens downwards when weight falls on it, and
closes again. The pit is added with dry leaves every day. “Good manure in 3-4
months –without any bad smell.”
While he sells pineapple - he places the crown of pineapple at
the root of coconut trees, where there is plenty of moisture. They take root,
facilitating easy transplantation during rains – “Agriculture means, tapping of
such minute benefits.” Another interesting discovery he made is: plants grow
well near the anthills.
Cherkady Rao leads a peaceful life, without grumbling about
poverty and meager income. “I have set no target for any tree to yield a fixed
quantity of crop. Let the trees give me what they can naturally grow. It is
wrong to force them to yield more by spraying, etc. The necessities are met when
the profit comes from different origins.” In this dry land forming, Rao saves
almost 20,000 rupees per year! “My intention is, to do farming, without
exploiting excess of water. Taking loan is something I would never agree
with.”
Recently, a bank official came forward to give loan for solar
lights. Rao said, “when I calculated the interest that I would be paying, I
decided to continue using kerosine lamp, which costs less than that interest!”
One of the sarvodya activists had published ‘Cherkadi – methods’ in a book form.
Rao says: “we should use machines only when absolutely needed
and not let them rule us. We should not be a burden to the nation/society/our
children”. He also adds three ideals, “we should be self reliant, at least 75
per cent. We should not desire for the unreachable goals. When we face
unexpected crisis in agriculture we better accept it/yield to it.”
One of the senior bank officers who visited Rao’s farm
nobserved that “Instead of giving loans under IRDP – Integrated Rural
Development Programme -to farmers, they
must be told this success story to be tried in their fields.” Nature is God:
What can the children learn about nature, caged within four
walls? Nature is God. Why go in search of another God? Let us not be ticks
sucking blood from mother but be children who drink the milk from nature”- Rao
gives the message.
He buys very little; some kerosene, Khadi cloth, a little oil
cake for farming. It anyone needs to realise how helplessly we are caught up in
the consumer culture and push-button techno-society, he should visit Cherkadi’s
farm once!
Those who complain about the problem-ridden rain dependent
agriculture must come to Cherkadi’s farm. The small farmers, policy makers,
and extension specialists who have the determination /zeal to do hard work; and
an open mind to observe and learn new things must see Cherkadi once, even if
they don’t believe in Fukuoka’s theory. Rao gladly welcomes anyone who wants
more information.
Address: Cherkady Ramachandra Rao Khadi
Dhaama, Post : Cherkady, Via-Brahmavar Udupi Taluk and District - 576 215,
Karnataka State, INDIA Source: Adike Pathrike Photos: M.G.
Kaje
Punya Bhoomi
Organic farmers in Hasan have gone a step forward to popularise sustainable farming. 'Punyabhoomi' situated in Yedoor Village of Aloor Taluk is a unique organisation formed by 'Parisara Priya Krishikara Seva Samsthe' - an eco-friendly farmers forum in Hasan District. More than 400 like-minded people have joined hands with the organisation by becoming its members.
Objectives of the union are:
Implementing nature- friendly farming systems in its one and a half acre land.
Documenting such methods and informing its importance to farmers and the public.
Organising related programmes in villages.
Fruits, vegetables, cereals, medicines and plantation crops are being grown in the one and a half acre land belonging to Punyabhoomi. Trenches and percolation pits have been constructed in the farm as part of soil and water conservation. Cow-dung manure and organic waste available in the neighbourhood are liquidised and used as fertiliser. Weeding is not done unless a sapling has to be planted in the area. Entire land is developing naturally without much human interference. Vermicomposting is done to meet the needs of the farm. Earthworms are provided to the interested. A house has been constructed with rainwater harvesting and solar lighting facility.
Institute's Honoraray Director Mr. Vijay Angady says, "Farmers in our organisation have distanced themselves from chemical farming which proved very helpful. Now we intend to form a link between organic producers and consumers." For this the organisation supplies organic farm produces to the consumers. It has formed a network to meet the demand. Information regarding nature-friendly farming and related topics are available in its office in the form of press clippings, books, photographs and audio cassettes.
Address: Punyabhoomi Yadoor Village, Post: Hunasavalli Aloor Taluk, Hasan District Karnataka State, INDIA Phone: 91- 8170 - 218180
Background:
Organic movement started a decade back in Hasan has changed the lives of many farmers. When Mr. Vijay Angady, a post graduate from the University of Agricultural Sciences joined the farm section of All India Radio, Hasan, chemical farming was common in the region. Mr. Angady's earnest desire to popularise eco- friendly farming led to the formation of 'Parisarapriya Krishikara Seva Samsthe'. He initiated the programme with a small group of farmers in June 1996 through a meeting.
Now the association has grown considerably, with more and more farmers opting for organic farming. The organisation stands different in its mode of work. All the members come together once in a month in a farm where they get useful guidance from a successful farmer. Dissemination of information is done through exchange of their experiences. According to Mr. Vijay Angady,"Observation and listening along with field exposure has facilitated a smooth livelihood for its members. Farm tours to other regions in the state have added to their knowledge bank." Uniqueness of the forum is that even after 10 years it has limited itself to environment- friendly farming and related aspects, keeping casteism, class difference and politics at a distance.
Encouraged by the success of this effort Mr. Angady and other members decided to have a model farm 'Punyabhoomi', from where Parisara Priya Krishikara Sanghatane would work. Mr. G.S. Giddegowda, an organic farmer and a teacher by profession has been chosen to lead the organisation along. Punyabhoomi intends to implement eco- friendly farming methods in its one and a half acre farm. With this, the association, which has already embraced 400 farmers into its fold would organise programmes to popularise these methods. Punyabhoomi also plans to document related methods and inform the general public on the advantages of organic farming.
Courtesy By
S Ganesh Mallya, a high school teacher cum Sunday farmer in Yedapadavu in Karnataka, has greened his plot without borewells. Using simple techniques to catch rainwater, he has managed to raise the water level in his open well and grow a bountiful farm.
This small plot in obscure Yedapadavu in Karnataka is an unusual manmade forest. It's so thickly populated with plants, that to plant one more, you have to uproot an existing one.
Ten years ago, this was barren laterite land that grew only grass. Forget trees; there was not a single shrub or bush. Today it has hundreds of plants and fruit bearing trees including jack, mango and coconut. "All this was possible because I could catch rain here," says Ganesh Mallya, a high school teacher cum Sunday farmer, who has been responsible for this green transformation.
S Ganesh Mallya, 58, is to retire this December. It was his long cherished dream to have his own farm. His house in Mangalore doesn't have the space to grow even potted plants. So about a decade ago, he bought a plot of 0.37 acre here in Yedapadavu, an hour's drive from Mangalore.
There were borewells all around this plot. "You won't be able to manage without a borewell," neighbours and well-wishers warned him. Mallya didn't like the idea of a borewell; it was also more expensive. At this juncture, his colleague Ganapathy Bhat urged him not to lose heart. On inspecting a neighbour's well, he assumed that the water table of the area was good. "In this area of heavy rainfall, you might strike water in an open well," Bhat suggested.
Open well fails
Unfortunately, the open well failed. At 45 feet depth, there was water, but not enough to lift in a koda, the water vessel. In that summer, Mallya had to stop the compound wall construction halfway because of lack of water. Deepening the well again didn't help much. "If I drew 80 to 100 kodas a day, the well would almost dry up. It would again require three to four days for refilling," he recalls.
One of the labourers who had worked on the deepening project had earlier suggested digging rain pits and catching rain. But Mallya hadn't paid attention to this. After a few months, he came across Adike Patrike, a Kannada monthly run by farmers. It was running a series on success stories of rainwater harvesting done at low cost by ordinary citizens. Mallya thought of trying his hand at this.
In 2001, he constructed a new house on his plot in Yedapadavu. At that time, he had had three infiltration pits dug — each of the size 4 feet X 4 feet X 10 feet. They were filled the coarse sand and jally (granite stone bits). There was immediate benefit. This land slopes towards the road. The surface run-off that used to wash away lot of top soil and even some sown seeds was stopped. Next year, the water level in the well rose to two feet.
Catching water at every opportunity
Mallya has since not wasted a single opportunity to catch water. Run-off from the neighbouring school made his compound wall collapse one monsoon. Instead of fighting with the school authorities, Mallya raised the wall again, this time leaving a small hole in between. Mallya directs this water into his site through a catch pit. He considers this water that his neighbour treats as waste as a bonus for his own land.
For the initial couple of years, to protect his mango plants, he had kept earthen pots near each of them. (In areas where there is severe shortage of water or on hills where water can't be easily transported, earthen pots filled with water are kept near the bottom of the plants. These ooze out water in small amounts and are usually manually refilled once empty.) Mallya too would manually refill these pots every week.
As his conviction in rainwater harvesting increased, he tried out another method. He selected a site where some more run-off was still gathering and dug an infiltration pit there. Along with increasing the subsoil (soil beneath the topsoil), catching water increased the water level to six feet in the open well. Mallya was then able to pump water through hose pipes for regular irrigation.
One foot to ten
Later, he had many trenches dug across the slope of his land. With the digging of trenches, the well water has risen to 10 feet. In addition to this, whatever water flows from the school compound is also put into the earth on the topmost side of Mallya's farm. Now with the help of a one HP motor, he irrigates all his plants in summer once a week. This requires 150 minutes of pumping. At the end of pumping, the water level goes down by 2.5 feet. But it regains original level in three to four days.
There is one more reason for this improvement — the numerous plants and trees Mallya has planted all over the plot. Teak on the borders, sapota, malayan apple, wax apple, bread fruit, jack, coconuts, moringa, banana, bamboo, rattan, bimbli, jamoon and several varieties of mango. With good irrigation, the trees have grown to the height of his two-storied house.
This vegetation also helps to check the rainfall. Mallya never burns the fallen dry leaves. The organic matter that builds up on the soil increases its water - holding capacity as well as percolating ability. The roots of the trees also enhance percolation. With all these changes, except for the walkway and the small front yard, all the rain that falls on the site never goes out. Mallya has been able to create a zero run off situation with his simple water catching techniques.
Strong attachment for farming
Though a Sunday farmer, Mallya seems to be more dedicated to farming than many professional farmers. Sunday 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. is his farming time. Come what may, he never misses his weekly farm visit. Sporting soiled shorts, he works hand in hand with Kariya, his helping hand on the farm. He wears a waist belt carrier with tools required to fix broken pipelines or to cut twigs. He grows vegetables like cowpea and ladies finger in pots. A staunch believer in poison-free farming, he seldom uses chemical inputs.
Ganapathy Bhat has been advising Mallya on farming methods. Says Bhat, "Though a mathematics teacher, he never compares the income from his farm to his investments. He is keenly interested in new varieties of fruits and other plants and buys them at whatever cost. He happily offers these seeds to others. He never sells his fruits and vegetables. Instead, he gifts them to friends."
Low costs
In seven years, Ganesh Mallya's almost dry well has attained ten feet water. Neighbour Diwakar Karanth's farm is still below the slope. Earlier, his well used to dry up by March. Now it has water enough to run the motor till summer end.
Initially Mallya had spent Rs.35,000 for the well. Later re-deepening, inserting cement rings, etc. cost him another Rs.25,000. But it was only after he dug the recharge pits that the well was made live and bountiful. As he has used the leftover sand and stone bits to refill these pits, the total cost of all his rain harvesting has amounted to only about Rs.3,000.
Drawing from his own success in such a small land and very little expenditure, Mallya had suggested the headmaster at his school to take steps to percolate huge run-off from their playground. Says he, "If not the school, the society would have benefited; students would learn from this." But his suggestion has not been heeded.
The Sunday I visited Mallya's farm, he had been made an offer by the school. "Half a day's work on Sunday as examiner would have brought me Rs. 900," he says. "But I said, today is my farm day and excused myself." After his retirement, Mallya intends to make his farm house his headquarters. "It's purely for my satisfaction that I have been farming," he says. But his experiments with rainwater harvesting are examples others can benefit from. ?
Dr Sanjeev Kulkarni has raised a variety of fruits and vegetables on his farm, Sumana Sangama, ten kilometres from Dharwad. He has also raised other trees that are endemic to the Western Ghats. The farm also has a rainwater harvesting system in place, and none of the crops are dependent on chemical fertilisers, writes Poornima Kandi
Uniformity is not nature’s way; diversity is nature’s way - Vandana Shiva
“You can find 80-100 varieties of birds and 20-25 species of butterflies in this farm. It can qualify as a butterfly park,” Dr Sanjeev Kulkarni remarks, while walking on his farm, which he likes to call a ‘forest-farm’. A barren patch of land, 15 years ago, has been nurtured into a big, diverse farm. Having realised early the perils of monoculture crops, Sanjeev Kulkarni decided to make his farm as diverse in nature as possible. A place where not a single tree stood, today stands lush green. Kulkarni, a doctor and an avid nature lover has fondly named his farm ‘Sumana Sangama’.
Celebrating bio-diversity ‘Sumana Sangama’ means the ‘confluence of flowers’ and the ‘confluence of good minds’. This farm is about 10 kilometres from Dharwad and is situated on the edge of the Western Ghats. This 17-acre land has undulating slopes and has flowering trees, fruit-bearing trees, timber, water bodies and colourful birds and butterflies. Out of the 17 acres, nine acres of the land is used for horticulture and forest trees. Crops such as paddy, sugarcane and vegetables such as radish, brinjal, chillies and leafy greens are grown here.
The meandering narrow lane leading to the farm is greeted by wood rose and two neem trees. The flowers of wood rose are of ornamental importance and are widely used for decorative purposes. The wood rose, Sanjeev Kulkarni explains, invites a lot of bees to the farm, which in turn helps in pollination. A small house built with sun-dried bricks at the entrance is idyllic in nature. The sound made by the casuarina trees and chirping of birds welcome you to the farm.
There are silver oaks, giant bamboo and teak trees on this farm. As the name suggests, Sumana Sangama has several flowering trees and plants, some seasonal and some perennial. To name a few flowering plants, jasmine, hibiscus, bakula (commonly known as Indian Medlar), calliandra and many others. The calliandra, commonly known as powder-puff plant, was in full bloom with pink fluffy flowers. Bakula, as it is known commonly, is a large evergreen tree and when in bloom has star-shaped fragrant flowers, which bloom during the months of April and June.
Trees of Sumana sangama Bamboo, agave, acacia, cactus and many other plants are used as natural fencing at the farm. Fruit-bearing trees include mango, jackfruit, jamun, chiku, custard apple, wood apple and papaya, varieties of lemons, pineapple, cashew, star fruit, butter fruit, bread fruit, eggfruit, ramphal, laxman phal and hanuman phal. It is interesting to note that five fully grown mango trees were transplanted to this farm. Sanjeev Kulkarni says, “we transported five fully grown trees from Dharwad and transplanted them on our farm and they are growing very well.
These trees were 30 ft tall and were 20 years old and we brought them to our farm from Dharwad. The branches of the tree were cut off and the trees were lifted from the ground with their roots intact.” Five coconut trees have been transported similarly. Some special trees which are relatively uncommon to this part of the region adorn this farm.
Gloriosa superba, which is endemic to the Western Ghats, rakta chandana (Pterocarpus santalinus)(whose wood is used to make toys), litchi, beggars’ bowl (double coconut) and baobab trees (Adansonia digitata), one of the longest living trees in the world are the ones which need special mention. The crowns of bright orange-red flowers of ‘Flame of the Forest’, commonly known as Palas tree, are a sight to watch. The flowers provide a brilliant orange-yellow dye.
Water management The farm has gentle slopes on the three sides and has naturally made it easier to harvest rainwater, which has played a major role in shaping this eco-friendly farm. Sanjeev Kulkarni explains, “the groundwater levels were so low when we bought this land. With enormous efforts we recharged the groundwater and dug up ponds to harvest rainwater.”
The farm has a well, located on the lowest part of the land. With the help of contour bunding, he was able to harvest rainwater and recharge the well. There are five ponds on the land, each with unique names, the Sampige honda, Maina honda, Raghu teertha, Kavali kola and Bodhi kere.
The Sampige honda holds water for almost four months after the rainy season. The Raghu teertha, named after Sanjeev Kulkarni’s deceased younger brother, is a quadrangular pond. The Bodhi kere is the largest of all. This pond gets the name from the Bodhi tree, which is in the middle of the pond, on an island. It forms an ideal place for boating, fishing and meditation.
Unique features This farm has a small sitting area, which is located amidst the slopes of the farm. Several discussions and gatherings are held here. The structure is a simple slope, which has been shaped by levelling the land by using cow dung. The steps and a pedestal adjoining it, make it ideal to hold discussions or book reading sessions.
The other area worth mentioning is the Antharanga, a roofed structure built out of discarded IV fluid bottles collected from Sanjeev Kulkarni’s hospital in Dharwad. This place is ideal for social gatherings. Film screenings and several workshops are held here. Children from Baala Balaga School, run by Sanjeev Kulkarni and his wife Pratibha, are regular and eager visitors to this place. The IV fluid bottles also find a place in two more structures namely, Kaj Mahal and Sheesh Mahal, owing to the nature of the material used.
More than a farm For the last three years, the organic produce from his farm which includes vegetables and fruits, have been popular among residents of Dharwad. As many as 100 people visit the shandy, which is held at the Gandhi Peace Foundation, in the vicinity of District Court Complex. The joy of eating healthy food, free of pesticides, is priceless.
For Sanjeev Kulkarni, this land is more than just a farm. “The returns from this farm cannot be quantified,” he exclaims. Dr Sanjeev Kulkarni admits that constant nurturing of the farm is a challenge, as it demands a lot of his time.
The farm represents a perfect communion with nature. It not only gives healthy produce free from pesticide, but also great joy. The farm is a result of the hard work put in over a period of 15 years. The farm attracts visitors in plenty. Be it winged beauties, avid nature lovers or children, this place offers solace to all of them in different ways.
Courtesy by Deccan Herald
MAN OF THE WOODS LIVES IN HARMONY WITH NATURE
If you want to know how a person's perseverance and love of nature have transformed a barren stretch of land in to green heaven, meet Kareem at his ‘hand – grown’ forest! He has practically proved that "where there is a will, there is a (green) way!" For him, love of nature is not just a philosophical statement: It is his breath and dream of life. While many others have wrung their hands helplessly in despair, and shied away from the monumental, never-ending work of 'growing a forest’, he has hung on long enough to create a miracle of sorts. Forts and empires have collapsed over time- but Kareem's gift to the earth will remain forever: If we don't exchange it for the concrete jungle, that is.
"Plastic bags are strictly prohibited. No eating and drinking. Walk through pathways only." No, you are not entering a zoo or wild life sanctuary, but treading into the forests Abdul Kareem, a 30 acre lush expanse which the ' man of woods’ watered and developed over the last 24 years.
An airlines ticketing agent, he always had the craze for woods in him.
In 1977, he purchased a five-acre rocky wasteland in Puliamkulam (32 kms from Nileswaram in Kasargod district, Kerala, India) and dug a huge well. And then he began ploughing savings into his dream project and adding more land and amenities. Now Kareem's forest is home to 1500 medicinal plants, 2000 varieties of trees, rare birds, animals and insects.
In a corner of his small almirah, lies a photograph. It shows Amitabh Bachchan honoring Kareem with Kapil Dev looking on. Several accolades, including UN recognition has come his way.
"While I was foiling in the rocky arid terrain people branded me as insane. My family scorned at me for spending several Lakhs on barren land. Now they realise what I was doing," says the 53-year-old environmentalist.
Fertilizers or insecticides are banned and no leaves or twigs or waste is removed from the forest for commercial purposes.
"If I sell the wastes (leaves and twigs) I can earn at least Rs.10, 000. In 1989 the World Tourist Organization wrote to me to convert the woods into a resort. Recently, a well-known resort group approached me with an offer to launch an ayurveda resort. But I declined these offers," he says.
All nature- lovers, particularly students, are welcome here. He is ready to teach and in case of doubts, he rushes to agricultural scientists, who are regular visitors here. And he has no hesitation in giving plants and seeds to the needy for free.
"I wanted to spread the message that only if trees, animals and birds survive, human beings will have a future," Kareem says.
He has nothing but aversion towards those who cut trees in the name of development.
"Dams and reservoirs will not solve the problem of water scarcity. Thy only provide momentary relief at the cost of the earth. Plantation is not the answer. Growing plantation crops is nothing but exploitation of nature," he says.
Though he has passed only his higher secondary school, Kareem is a born botanist.
He can give you a brief lecture on sandalwood trees, medicinal qualities of kanni konna (casiapistula) or importance of maruthu.
"I have lost count of how much I invested in here. But I am glad this is my biggest investment for the next generation." he says.
Kareem is here to help people, who want to know more about trees and plants at:
Address : Mr Abdul Kareem Puliyarakonam, Post :Parappa Kasaragod District, Kerala Phone : 0499 - 754233 (Mail from: Works - Jamul Safety & Environmentpssprasad@acccement.com)
The many benefits of tree-based farming
Punnyavathi Gouli S, Feb 14, 2017
Miscellany
Like many other parts of the State, Haveri district has also been suffering from acute rain deficit for many years now. As a result, farmers have been hit the worst and acres of rainfed farmlands lie barren. However, despite the agro-climatic problems, some farmers, like the 43-year-old Irfan Gudusab Kamdolli, are still flourishing.
Five years ago, Irfan Gudusab
Kamdolli spent his life shuttling between his village Hirebendigeri in Haveri district, and cities like Goa, Hubballi and Karwar. Irfan stayed home only for six months a year and he was forced to migrate to other cities as farming work could not last beyond six months a year due to harsh weather conditions.
Irfan stayed home when there was work in the three-acre land; and went to the towns to work as a daily wage labourer. The earnings from agriculture were a meagre Rs 20,000 annually, and it was impossible for the family — wife, two children and aged parents — to scrape a living. With Irfan away for a good part of the year, his wife struggled to manage the household.
In his farmland, the circumstances were equally grim. Though Irfan opted for locally-grown crops like green gram, sorghum, red gram, finger millet, pearl millet and foxtail millet he or even his father had not considered mixed farming system. The non-availability of water for irrigation made farming much more
difficult for them.
In 2011, the agricultural programme officers of the Deshpande Foundation (DF) in Hubballi came across Irfan during an on-ground survey. The visit was part of the foundation’s work with the Bharatiya Agro Industries Foundation (BAIF) Research Foundation to promote sustainable farming. After interacting with the officers, Irfan decided to build a farm pond in his land to store water and facilitate irrigation of his crops.
With the foundation’s help, he built a 30x30x10 feet pond that has a capacity to store about four lakh litres of water. Irfan received training from BAIF, in tree-based farming system (TBFS), and ways to grow commercial crops such as mango, coconut and sapota that would fetch him better revenues along with food crops. This made him aware of the potential areas of improvement in farming such as crop selection, farming techniques as well as financial management.
“The teams from BAIF and DF supported me in implementing my learnings. For instance, I was guided on minute details such as the ideal distance between saplings, depth of pits to plant the seeds and so on,” he says. New crops such as green chilli, marigold, mango and coconut were cultivated along with the present ones.
The turnaround
Today, Irfan is able to grow many crops like mango and coconut, and crops like chilli, peanut, tomato, tamarind, corn, finger millet, chickpea, horse gram, guava and lemon through crop rotation method. Apart from these crops, Irfan has planted 600 trees on the borders of his farmland. Apart from being a live fence, the trees also act as wind-breakers. Their timber has high commercial value too.
Irfan changed his farm step by step and gradually, the biodiversity of the farm
enhanced and, with a mix of field, horticulture and commercial crops, the income has considerably improved. Today, his annual income from farming is around Rs 1,50,000, a substantial increase from Rs 20,000 he used to earn five years ago.
As the crop diversity and yield from the farm increased, life has become more comfortable for Irfan and his family as they could afford to buy basic necessities.
Infusing new life into tanks
Nrupathunga S K, Feb 28, 2017
Collective action
The presence of tanks and lakes in the villages indicates the significant role they play in nurturing rural lives.
As the years rolled by, tanks lost their prominence due to many reasons and gradually, they became defunct. Though many government and non-governmental efforts have been initiated to rejuvenate tanks, not many have achieved success. But some villages of Shivamogga district have set an example by reviving five tanks through community participation.
The seeds of tank revival were sown in 2012 when a group of enthusiasts led by Harish Damodar Nawathe, a resident of Sagar town, realised the need to bring village waterbodies back to life. Harish says, “Initially, it was an uphill task to convince people to join the effort as tanks were no more part of their lives.” The beginnings
As a way forward, the team decided to organise activities, particularly swimming, to attract people. When people realised that the rejuvenated tank could be used for swimming activity apart from irrigation purposes, they started showing interest. Harish explains, “Convincing people that the work doesn’t involve money and is not for anyone’s benefit took some time.”
Manchale Tank was the first one to be rejuvenated. Initially, the team visited each household in the village and conveyed a message that their family members could learn swimming if the tank is cleaned. The team did not ask them to join the cleaning work. They only asked them to witness the team’s work. Gradually, the villagers got involved in the work. The news spread and the residents of neighbouring villages also joined hands. Needless to mention, most of these volunteers were eager to learn swimming. The tank was cleaned in 20 days. The pushkarini (sacred tank) in Anandapura was the next waterbody to be cleaned. This tank is dated back to the period of Shivappa Nayaka of Keladi Nayaka kingdom. Hundreds of people of Anandapura and Malanduru worked diligently for three months to clean it.
People of Anandapura town extended their cooperation in one way or the other. Some hoteliers in the town provided free food to the volunteers and some provided materials required to clean the tank. Later, Purappemane Tank was cleaned. The fourth tank to be cleaned was Bheemanakone Tank and the fifth was the one in Suryanajaddi. The area of each rejuvenated tank is between two to four hectares.
Of all the rejuvenated tanks, Bheemanakone Tank is the best maintained one. The credit goes to the active involvement of the villagers. The tank, locally known as Karadi Kere, has become an integral part of the village.
Participatory approach
The revival work of Bheemanakone Tank was done in stages. The work began with 10 people. After two weeks, the residents realised the usefulness of the work and joined hands. The water level in the tank rose from 10 feet to 15 feet after the cleaning work. It took around 20 days to start swimming sessions after cleaning the tank. After three years, now it is common to see villagers of all age groups swimming in the tank. Everyday, they clean the tank in the morning and evening. It is mandatory for all those who swim in the tank to remove waste and weeds around the tank before jumping into water. Not only has the revived tank facilitated a healthy lifestyle among these villagers, it has also enhanced the ground water level of the region.
Men, women, children and elderly people of the village try many swimming styles and floating in the water in yoga postures is one of their favourite pastimes. “Such activities have ensured proper maintenance of the waterbody, making it central to village life again,” Harish says. “We have realised that the health of the tank is closely linked to human health,” says a villager.
Cost-effective low density and high density thermocol flotation devices and fishing balls are used to learn swimming. The swimming equipment is made by the villagers themselves. Many people, who had never dreamt of swimming a few years ago, have become expert swimmers now. Vinaya, a villager, says, “I was very scared of water initially. Even my husband was under the impression that swimming was not meant for women. After watching other women, I made up my mind to learn swimming. It took more than a month for me to swim confidently. Now, I swim everyday.
It has helped me overcome back pain and headache and I have lost body weight.” Shobha K, principal of Hongirana school at Amatekoppa near Bheemanakone, says, “Bheemanakone villagers have adopted innovative methods to maintain the tank. It is a model for other villages too. The significance of this initiative is that it has helped people surpass all the inherent barriers like age, sex, caste, race etc. Now there is a feeling of oneness among the villagers and there is no hierarchy here. Most importantly, the work is not led or facilitated by any formal organisation. By all means, it is a community effort.”
Farmer Narayanaswamy B K says, “We are all connected to the tank and have an emotional attachment with it. So, none of the villagers dump even a small piece of paper into it.”
Kere Habba is celebrated once in a year when all the villagers gather in the tank premises. Apart from swimming and yoga, cultural programmes are also organised on the occasion. Deputy Commissioner M Lokesh says, “I appreciate the efforts of Bheemanakone villagers to rejuvenate the tank without seeking any assistance from the government. It is high time we realise the importance of tanks and the need to conserve them. The district administration is committed to lend a helping hand to the team and spread the practice to other parts of the region too.” Those who want to know more about the initiative can contact Harish on 8277552679.
Ten years back, Prabhakar Mayya gave up teaching and took to agriculture in a tiny village in Belthangady taluk of Dakshina Kannada district. Today, he has experimented with all kinds of crops, from arecanut to banana and pepper. What’s more, Mayya has conducted training sessions for farmers and has served as a role model for them, reports Ronald Anil Fernandes
When he quit the teaching profession about 10 years ago, he did not imagine he would earn fame thanks to farming, especially at a time when people think twice before taking up agriculture activities.
In fact, at a time when most farmers gave up agriculture because of several problems that include severe shortage of farm labourers, Prabhakar Mayya, then a 30-year-old teacher took to agriculture in a tiny village of Nada in Belthangady taluk of Dakshina Kannada district, has not only succeeded in reaping yield from a once barren land, but also has been a role model for other farmers in the region.
Believe it or not, he ventured into farming with just five kilograms of ginger and five kilograms of elephant yam (that would have cost him less than Rs 200 then) 10 years ago and he reaped 25 kg in the next year. In the fourth year, he reaped a whopping 5,000 kgs of ginger and elephant yam! However, by that time, he had also planted cucumber, cow-peas beans, brinjals and many other vegetables, besides planting jasmine saplings. With the money he received from ginger yield, he dug a borewell and also planted more vegetables like gherkins, yard-long beans, pumpkin and urad dal. It was followed by a plantation of betel leaves. About five years ago, Mayya reaped 40 quintals of cucumber, 50 kgs of urad, 500 kgs of gherkins and about 700 banana clusters. A model farmerToday, after 10 years, Mayya has tried his hand at almost all kinds of agriculture activities. Be it arecanut, coconut, banana, paddy, pepper vines, betel leaf vines, cocoa, teakwood, jasmine, vegetables, cattle, azolla pond (to feed cattle), fish pond, bee keeping, vermi-compost, gobar gas...the list is exhaustive. You name it and perhaps Mayya has it. Amazingly, he has grown all these on just six acres of land.
The common problem farmers face today is an acute shortage of labourers. But Mayya’s innovative ideas have helped him manage farm activities with very few workers. Pointing to the roots of arecanut plants, he said he does not dig or heap compost at the base of the tree (as is usually done). Instead, he dumps the compost between two trees. “The mother-root which helps the tree grow is not at the bottom of the tree, but at a distance of four to five feet,” he says and adds that by doing so, one can get a better yield. At the same time, Mayya does not dig pits to plant arecanut saplings. Instead, he digs trenches and plants the saplings in the trenches. “This method is called ‘contour method’ which is popular in North Eastern states,” he said. Bee-keeping, fish pondBesides, Mayya also has honeybee boxes and a fish pond with a variety of fishes like Catla, Rohu and Common Carp. “Many people have taken up fishing from the pond,” he says.
One of the reasons for better yield on Mayya’s farm is perhaps the quality manure which is generated on his farm. Be it vermi-compost (for areca, paddy field) or azolla (for the cattle), Mayya arranges for the manure himself. “I needed more than Rs 60,000 just to purchase manure from the market for my plantations,” he says and points at two huge vermi-compost tanks with different species of earthworms.
Similarly, he also has a pond for azolla. After feeding azolla to cows, Mayya said there was thick cream in the milk. “However, only a limited quantity should be given to cows, lest the cows fall ill,” he cautions.
Apart from this, he also has a gobar gas facility. “The cow dung generated from seven cows is enough to produce gobar gas which the family uses for cooking,” he says.
Mayya lives in a joint family. While his eldest brother serves as a priest in a temple nearby, his other two brothers work as cooks. All of them help Mayya after they are done with their work.
His brothers’ wives also help him out, by milking the cows and extending help in regular farm activities, because of which Mayya never feels the shortage of labourers. In fact, the entire family with nine members involves itself in carrying out all the activities on the farm. Training centreFollowing Mayya’s successful venture, the District Agriculture Training Centre held a ‘Kshethrotsava’ at Mayya’s home wherein about 100 farmers took part and learnt the innovative methods adopted by Mayya. Besides, six training sessions of three-day as well as five-day duration have been held at Mayya’s home as part of ‘Agriculture Training and Management’ with help from the Zilla Panchayat and Agriculture Department.
Training on cultivation of azolla and paddy transplantation were part of the activities. “Because they believe in the adage of ‘seeing is believing,’ we organise hands-on training in our fields,” Mayya explains.
Agriculture Department Deputy Director Putra G T, who heads the District Agriculture Training Centre at Belthangady, said farmers like Prabhakar Mayya have been a model for other farmers through their innovative methods adopted keeping in mind short-term as well as long-term returns.
Mayya has been awarded the ‘Best Arecanut Farmer’ award (taluk-level) for 2009-10 and ‘Best Farmer Award’ in September 2010, instituted by Gandhi Krishi Vignana Kendra (GKVK), Agriculture University, Bangalore.
Farmers like Prabhakar Mayya come as a ray of hope for Karnataka, in creating another ‘green revolution,’ which is the need of the hour.
In 1952, Mr. Anantharajaiah purchased the land, which was a
dense forest and started farming in1957. He started experimenting different
crops from food grains to fruits and vegetables. He was successful in most of
his ventures. His association with the agriculture department helped in
enhancing the activities. In 1972, due to his old age and ill health, he divided
his 97 acres of fertile land and gave the ownership to his 6 sons and two
daughters. Now this happy - healthy man has associated himself with his second
son Mr. Jinachandra's family who has successfully followed his father. Mr.
Anantharajaiah's views on agriculture are thoughtful when he says, "Farming has
the capacity to either sustain a farmer's life or end it. It is up to the farmer
to employ it in the right way." Though Mr. A.P's conviction and hard work have
provided a strong base for the Kshetrapala farm, the stable and long lasting
bond between the three generations has kept the farm secure and the spirit
alive.
Mr. Jinachandra (60), who is in charge of the vermiculture, has
changed the place of production from a well-established shed to an open area in
the coconut farm. He found the trial successful and now the shed is used for
some other purpose. Mr. Jinachandra says that ants haven't created any problem
to the worms inside. He cuts the naturally available leaves using a manual
chopper and puts into the vermi bed. The family brought 1,000 Eugenia earthworms
from the agriculture department, which has now multiplied into hundreds of
thousands of worms.
A check dam has been constructed on the other side of the farm
with the government initiative. But the structure is not convincing and Mr.
Jinachandra explains the shortcomings of the dam including improper positioning.
He has a better idea in mind. He says, "Had the government allotted us half the
amount of what it has used for the check dam, we would have built an efficient
one." Now the family plans to improve its efficacy by making a few changes. An
appropriate example for how government's development programmes remain of no
help to the local people.
There are 1,000 coconut trees of which 800 are yielding. Fifty
to sixty trees are 50 years old. The trees are planted at a distance of 30x30
ft. Due to mite menace, the yield has gone down from 90,000 nuts in 2000 to
70,000 in 2001. They haven't applied any 'advised' medicine for the problem. "We
can't control nature. The mite problem has come from it. Nature itself will
control it," Mr. Anantharajaiah feels about the menace. They put caster cake or
neem seed along with vermicompost (15 - 20 kg per tree) to the coconut trees.
Other inputs are its own produces and weeds grown in the area. Instead of
pesticides, local herbal produces are mixed and sprayed.
There is a special lemon plant of Australian origin in
Kshetrapala farm. One of Mr. Anatharajaiah's friends gave an Australian lemon to
him long back. He successfully planted it, now the variety has spread all over
the farm. This plant starts yielding from the 3rd year of sowing the seed and
yields through out the year. He has experimented planting both local and
Australian variety at distance of 6 ft. He observes that both the plants yield
fruits throughout the year. He doesn't know the reason, but speculates that
cross-pollination must be taking place. He has distributed this juicy lemon
variety to many farmers who visit the farm. Eventually the variety is popular as
'Holabagere lemon' among the farming community.
There is a special lemon plant of Australian origin in
Kshetrapala farm. One of Mr. Anatharajaiah's friends gave an Australian lemon to
him long back. He successfully planted it, now the variety has spread all over
the farm. This plant starts yielding from the 3rd year of sowing the seed and
yields through out the year. He has experimented planting both local and
Australian variety at distance of 6 ft. He observes that both the plants yield
fruits throughout the year. He doesn't know the reason, but speculates that
cross-pollination must be taking place. He has distributed this juicy lemon
variety to many farmers who visit the farm. Eventually the variety is popular as
'Holabagere lemon' among the farming community.
In 1998 Mr. Anantarajaiah and family came in contact with Mr.
Neelakantaiah, another farmer from Arasikere through Parisara Priya Krishikara
Sangha (Nature friendly farmers' group) in Hassan. Mr. Neelakantaiah gave them a
success formula for making the copra. Since then they are following that method
and are making profit out of it. There are three separate sheds to dry the
coconut. The sheds are constructed at a cost of Rs. 1 lakh with the locally
available material. The sheds are 10 ft high. One shed is 100 ft long while
other two are 40 ft in length. The sheds have enough space for air to pass
through it. The wall is not concrete but made using wooden planks. The roof is
made of Asbestos sheet.
Planting trees is not the only way of environmental
protection. Putting an end to hazardous chemical usage preserving crop
diversity, precious water and soil conservation and recycling of huge organic
wastes play major role in retarding environmental degradation.
There were 4 pits each of size 35 feet long, 4 feet broad and 2
feet deep. He had used Kadapa slabs to construct the pits. Two inch thick
concrete layer at the base the pit prevents leaching of water and earthworms
descending into the soil. Outside the first and the fourth tank, GI pipes of 3
inch dimension are erected in two rows supporting the iron rods, over which a
roof of zinc sheets is laid for protection from rain and sun. 
According to Veerappa zero cultivation and application of
Jeevamrutha has helped to maintain the farm satisfactorily. Soil moisture could
be found down to two feet deep at his garden. He explains, “I did not convert
the entire garden to zero cultivation in one year. I changed only 10 gunta (25
cents) at a time. It took 20 years to bring the whole garden to zero
cultivation.” 
After two years of drought, last year there has been little
rain till October. “I have made all preparations for rain harvesting, eventhough
rainfall was very less.” He showed a bore-well to us. He has dug a pit (5 ft
length, 5 ft width and 15 ft depth) around the casing pipe. He has made holes in
the casing pipe in one feet length of the pipe (just 2 ft above the bottom of
the pit). He has covered those small holes with a piece of plastic mosquito net
and tied it with a wire. Then, he has filled stones around the casing pipe.
They are no more dependent on the MNCs for synthetic fertilisers or a wide range
of pesticides. Certain farmers in and around Hassan in Karnataka have formulated
indigenous solution to enrich the soil fertility and keep away the pests! The
much annoying weeds have a place in their farm as they use it as manure. Market
downfall- they are least bothered! The multiple cropping system protects them
against the shaky market. They do not regret for being farmers. Agriculture is
not a means to make living but it is their life itself. The credit of making
these farmers self-reliant, nature friendly and sustainable goes to
Parisarapriya Krishikara Sanghatane (Eco friendly farmers group) in Hassan,
whose efforts in propagating sustainable farming has helped the otherwise
chemical farmers to change their attitude and feel proud of their occupation.
This
farm situated in the backwaters of River Hemavathi, which otherwise
doesn't have any water problem, had to face water scarcity during last
summer. Ms. Kusuma feels that organic method of cultivation has saved
their farm from water scarcity. The difference is clear between the
neighbour's non-organic farm and that of Vijayashree Estate. The
nine-year-old coconut plants here yield 500 tender coconuts per week.
The overall yield of the farm might be less, says Mr. Dharmalingam, but
we don't have any loss as the input is not even low-cost but no-cost.
More than anything else the farm is fertile, healthy and non-chemical. 
Ramachancdra Rao, who is now 84, still recollects the old
memories which were a turning point in his life: "When I was working in Khadhi
Board, I used to make my own cloth. In 1948-49, famine struck, and I was caught
by Gandhi's call to produce our own food and clothing. This I ended up in this
field, and grew my cloth. A new thought came when I saw a paddy plant forked
into 16 branches, growing in the middle of pepper climbers. I could gather ½
kilogram of paddy from that! I sowed more paddy in between pepper, which gave
enough paddy for two us. People, ministers, collectors came. Syndicate
Agricultural Foundation popularised this effort."
Cherkady Rao leads a peaceful life, without grumbling about
poverty and meager income. “I have set no target for any tree to yield a fixed
quantity of crop. Let the trees give me what they can naturally grow. It is
wrong to force them to yield more by spraying, etc. The necessities are met when
the profit comes from different origins.” In this dry land forming, Rao saves
almost 20,000 rupees per year! “My intention is, to do farming, without
exploiting excess of water. Taking loan is something I would never agree
with.”
Fruits, vegetables, cereals, medicines and plantation crops are being grown in the one and a half acre land belonging to Punyabhoomi. Trenches and percolation pits have been constructed in the farm as part of soil and water conservation. Cow-dung manure and organic waste available in the neighbourhood are liquidised and used as fertiliser. Weeding is not done unless a sapling has to be planted in the area. Entire land is developing naturally without much human interference. Vermicomposting is done to meet the needs of the farm. Earthworms are provided to the interested. A house has been constructed with rainwater harvesting and solar lighting facility.
Now the association has grown considerably, with more and more farmers opting for organic farming. The organisation stands different in its mode of work. All the members come together once in a month in a farm where they get useful guidance from a successful farmer. Dissemination of information is done through exchange of their experiences. According to Mr. Vijay Angady,"Observation and listening along with field exposure has facilitated a smooth livelihood for its members. Farm tours to other regions in the state have added to their knowledge bank." Uniqueness of the forum is that even after 10 years it has limited itself to environment- friendly farming and related aspects, keeping casteism, class difference and politics at a distance.
