june 2019 volume 21 no.2 leis india...leisa india june 2019 2 a june 2019 volume 21 no. 2 indi leis...

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Magazine on Low External Input Sustainable Agriculture INDILEISA

June

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Recycling resources inagroecological farms


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AJune 2019 Volume 21 no. 2

INDILEIS Dear Readers

LEISA India is published quarterly by AME FoundationAddress : AME FoundationNo. 204, 100 Feet Ring Road, 3rd Phase,Banashankari 2nd Block, 3rd Stage,Bangalore - 560 085, IndiaTel: +91-080- 2669 9512, +91-080- 2669 9522Fax: +91-080- 2669 9410E-mail: [email protected]

LEISA IndiaChief Editor : K.V.S. PrasadManaging Editor : T.M. Radha

EDITORIAL TEAMThis issue has been compiled by T.M. Radhaand K.V.S. Prasad

ADMINISTRATIONG.G. Rukmini

SUBSCRIPTIONSContact: G.G. Rukmini

DESIGN AND LAYOUTS Jayaraj, Chennai

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COVER PHOTOFarms are being transformed into eco-friendly farmsthrough resource recycling.(Photo: AME Foundation)

The AgriCultures NetworkLEISA India is a member of the global AgriculturesNetwork. Seven organisations that provide informationon small-scale, sustainable agriculture worldwide,and that publish:Farming Matters (in English)LEISA revista de agroecología (Latin America)LEISA India (in English, Kannada, Tamil, Hindi,Telugu, Oriya, Marathi and Punjabi)AGRIDAPE (West Africa, in French)Agriculturas Experiências em Agroecologia (Brazil).

The editors have taken every care to ensurethat the contents of this magazine are as accurate aspossible. The authors have ultimate responsibility,however, for the content of individual articles.The editors encourage readers to photocopyand circulate magazine articles.www.leisaindia.org

Board of TrusteesSri. Chiranjiv Singh, IAS - Chairman; Dr. Vithal Rajan - Member; Sri. B.K. Shiva Ram - Treasurer; Dr. M. Mahadevappa - Member; Dr. N.G. Hegde - Member;Dr. T.M. Thiyagarajan - Member; Prof. V. Veerabhadraiah - Member; Dr. A. Rajanna - Member; Dr. Venkatesh Tagat - Member; Dr. Smita Premchander - Member,Shri. Ashoke Chatterjee, Member

MISEREOR founded in 1958 is the German Catholic Bishops’ Organisation for DevelopmentCooperation. For over 50 years MISEREOR has been committed to fighting poverty in Africa, Asiaand Latin America. MISEREOR’s support is available to any human being in need – regardless oftheir religion, ethnicity or gender. MISEREOR believes in supporting initiatives driven and owned bythe poor and the disadvantaged. It prefers to work in partnership with its local partners. Togetherwith the beneficiaries, the partners involved help shape local development processes and implementthe projects. This is how MISEREOR, together with its partners, responds to constantly changingchallenges. (www.misereor.de; www.misereor.org)

AME Foundation promotes sustainable livelihoods through combining indigenous knowledge and innovative technologies for Low-External-Input natural resourcemanagement. Towards this objective, AME Foundation works with small and marginal farmers in the Deccan Plateau region by generating farming alternatives,enriching the knowledge base, training, linking development agencies and sharing experience.AMEF is working closely with interested groups of farmers in clusters of villages, to enable them to generate and adopt alternative farming practices. Theselocations with enhanced visibility are utilised as learning situations for practitioners and promoters of eco-farming systems, which includes NGOs and NGOnetworks. www.amefound.org

LEISA is about Low-External-Input and Sustainable Agriculture. It is about the technical and socialoptions open to farmers who seek to improve productivity and income in an ecologically sound way.LEISA is about the optimal use of local resources and natural processes and, if necessary, the safeand efficient use of external inputs. It is about the empowerment of male and female farmers andthe communities who seek to build their future on the bases of their own knowledge, skills, values,culture and institutions. LEISA is also about participatory methodologies to strengthen the capacityof farmers and other actors, to improve agriculture and adapt it to changing needs and conditions.LEISA seeks to combine indigenous and scientific knowledge and to influence policy formulation tocreate a conducive environment for its further development. LEISA is a concept, an approach and apolitical message.

AMEF is a member of AgriCultures Network, which is involved in co-creation and sharing ofknowledge on family farming and agro ecology. The network is locally rooted and globallyconnected. Besides magazines, the network is involved in multi stake holders’ engagement andpolicy advocacy for promotion of small holder family farming and agroecology. The network consistsof members from Brazil, Ethiopia, India, Netherlands, Peru and Senegal. The secretariat of thenetwork is located in IED Afrique, Dakar, Senegal.

Agroecological approaches are based on closing the cycles, reusing and recyclingresources. These approaches not only help in productively utilizing ‘farm wastes’, recyclingnutrients, minimizing investments, reducing farm expenses, and improving net incomes.While these approaches make farming more profitable, they also serve as emulatablemodels for several addressing several challenges concurrently – improving productivity,increasing farm incomes, minimizing harmful emissions and better capture and utilizationof soil carbon. In true integrated approaches, the outputs from one enterprise serve asinputs for another enterprise- like crop residues as source for composting; excreta asfood and manure for another enterprise.Moreover, they are simple, affordable and doable. We are grateful to all those who sharedthese inspiring examples.We remain indebted to all the contributors of articles who keep the content relevant andinteresting. We are forever thankful to the readers, the contributors and all those whohave been instrumental in knowledge sharing and exchange on simple and practicalalternatives which is further fostering field level adaptation and innovation.

The Editors

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CONTENTSVol. 21 no. 2, June 2019

4 Editorial

6 Recycling ResourcesPath to sustainable livingJasbir Sandhu and Shivananda Matapati

9 Bhoomi SudhaRecycling biomass for enhanced soil fertilityBikash Das, Pradip Kumar Sarkar, Mahesh Kumar Dhakar,Sushanta Kumar Naik, Sudarshan Maurya, Priya RanjanKumar, Shivendra Kumar, Arun Kumar Singh, B P Bhatt

13 MicrobesFacilitating resource recyclingDhananjaya P Singh and Renu

16 AgroecologyTowards climate resilient food systemsRanchitha Kumaran and Bhaskarabhatta Joshi

19 Small farms can be profitableNidhi Jamwal

22 Fuel from farm wasteAnand Karve

25 Farmers DiarySustainable production and Collective marketingA way out for farmers

26 In the news

29 Converting waste into valuable resourcesExperiences from organic home gardensSuresh Kanna K

31 New Books

32 Sources

33 Recycling for resource efficiencyA practical model for up scalingAnithakumari P and Induja S

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6 Recycling ResourcesPath to sustainable livingJasbir Sandhu and Shivananda MatapatiPromotion of sustainable agroecological practices throughrecycling and reusing of resourcesnot only reduces dependency onexternal sources, but alsominimises waste. On farmdiversity results in better nutritionand income while building anautonomy for better living. Thestory of Laxmi and Shankrappa proves this.

Bhoomi SudhaRecycling biomass for enhanced soil fertilityBikash Das, Pradip Kumar Sarkar, Mahesh Kumar Dhakar,Sushanta Kumar Naik, Sudarshan Maurya, Priya Ranjan Kumar,Shivendra Kumar, Arun Kumar Singh, B P BhattFarmers in Khunti and Ranchi districts in Jharkhand are benefittingfrom including biomass yielding plants in their fruit orchards.Mulching of biomass in the plant basins was found to result insignificant increase in soil moisture, soil nutrients and organicmatter content which is reflected in terms of increased plant vigourand yield.

Fuel from farm wasteAnand KarveAppropriate Rural TechnologyInstitute (ARTI), through theirexperiments, brought out manynew insights in the technology ofbiogas production. Whiledispelling the myth that cowdungis essential for biogas production,ARTI’s experiments concludedthat pure carbohydrates devoid of any nitrogen also yielded biogasin ample quantities. Agricultural waste which mainly consists ofcellulose, hemicellulose and lignin was found as an alternativeresource in producing biogas.

Recycling for resource efficiencyA practical model for up scalingAnithakumari P and Induja SSystematic recycling and value addition of organic farm residuescould make the farm more productive and self reliant. Contributingin several ways, recycling resources will also enable farmers toprovide ecological service. Resource recycling attains greaterimportance in ensuring climate resilience, especially for the smalland marginal farmers.

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With increases in food production crop residuesare also increasing. It is estimated that about500 Mt of crop residues are generated in India

annually. Burning crop residue has caught the nation’sattention, not only for wasting a resource which has apotential to improve farmers income, but also for pollutingthe environment, affecting the health of the citizens.

While crop residues have multiple uses like serving assoil mulching, bio-manure/compost, thatching for ruralhomes, bio-gas generation, livestock feed, beddingmaterial for animals, etc., yet it is being burnt for variousreasons in recent years, for example shortage of humanlabour, high cost of removing the crop residue from thefield and mechanized harvesting of crops. The problemis, however, more severe in the irrigated agriculture,particularly in the mechanized rice-wheat system of northwest India.

It is estimated that burning of one tonne of rice strawaccounts for loss of 5.5 kg Nitrogen, 2.3kg Phosphorus,25 kg potassium and 1.2 kg sulphur besides, organiccarbon. Generally crop residues of different crops contain80% of Nitrogen (N), 25% of Phosphorus (P), 50% ofSulphur (S) and 20% of Potassium(K). This shows thepotential of the crop residues to improve soil fertility whenploughed back to the soil. When managed efficiently, useof crop residues also leads to many other benefits, likeimproved farm incomes and safe environment. This issuefocuses on those farmers experiences who havesuccessfully recycled farm wastes to their benefit.

Recycling resourcesSmall family farms are designed for utilizing the resourcesto the maximum and appropriately, by integrating various

components on the farm, to meet the family needs andincome. Such recycled farms transform into eco friendlyfarms, multiplying the beneficial effects. Recycling offarm resources reduces input costs, enables low relianceon external inputs, improves quality of produce andultimately ensures farm sustainability under climatechange conditions. Such farms have been simply handedover by generations as a way of life.

Traditionally, women farmers in small homesteads areespecially good and innovative at recycling of farm


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resources. They utilize the farm residues as fuel wood orfor nutrition gardens. Mrs. Usha from Pathiyor Panchayatin Kerala uses cowdung slurry in producingvermicompost, which is applied to her kitchen garden(Anithakumari P and Induja S, p.33). Laxmi Bai fromBorgi village in Karnataka, made Panchagavya by mixingnine different ingredients easily available in her kitchenand farm like. This served as immunity booster for cattleand raised the milk yield, when added in their feed. (JasbirSandhu and Shivananda Matapati, p.6).

Farmers in Khunti and Ranchi districts in Jharkhand areusing biomass as mulch for fruit trees. Bhoomi Sudha(Tephrosia candida) has been identified as a biomassyielding plant and has been included in the fruit croppingsystem. Recycling of biomass as mulch in plant basinswas found to result in significant increase in soil moisture,soil nutrients and organic matter content which is reflectedin terms of increased plant vigour and yield. (Bikash Daset al., p.9). Also, planting of leguminous plants with deeproot systems to enhance the nutrient uptake from deepersoil layers, combined with N inputs from N fixation, isconsidered to be one of the most effective ways ofimproving nutrient cycling onfarm.

Innovative farmers like Ramesh Chander Dagar havemultiple uses for farm wastes. He uses the agro wastesfor his dairy, produces biogas from the farm wastes andalso uses for composting. Besides, Dagar’s farm pond isthe site of yet another innovative cycle. His farm pondcollects rainwater, which is used in the dairy to washbuffaloes. “I have also introduced fish into the pond; thatfetches me about Rs 30,000 per annum. So, I am not onlyrecharging groundwater, but also making money out ofit,” explains Ramesh Chander Dagar. (Nidhi Jamwal,p.19). Mr. Krishan Rai from Nepal too is an exemplaryfarmer. Human and animal excretions make up thefertilizer bank of Mr Rai, which is converted to vermicompost, vermic tea, fertilizer capsules and liquidfertilizers while powering bio-gas as well. In this way,every kind of organic waste is efficiently converted intopowerful fertilizers completing the bio-cycle withoptimum utilization of available resource.

Institutions too have played their role in helping farmersrecycle their agro wastes. For instance, Appropriate RuralTechnology Institute (ARTI), through their experiments,brought out many new insights in the technology of biogas

production. While dispelling the myth that cowdung isessential for biogas production, ARTI’s experimentsconcluded that pure carbohydrates devoid of any nitrogenalso yielded biogas in ample quantities, indicating thatcrop residues which contain primarily cellulose could beconverted to biogas (Anand Karve, p.22). Mainstreaminstitution like ICAR-CPCRI under the Farmer FirstProgram (FFP) evolved a practical model of using cowdung slurry and cow urine in vermicomposting units,utilizing coconut organic residues and farm wastes(Anithakumari P and Induja S, p.33).

Crop residues, a large portion of which go waste, ifrecycled through microbial processes, can add to a lot oforganic carbon. The compost thus produced is furtherenriched and fortified with the desired beneficialmicrobial consortium of nitrogen fixers, phosphatesolubilizers, potassium and zinc mobilizers, iron chelatorsand phytohormone producers by simply incubating it over15 to 20 days in the field. ICAR has demonstrated thisbioconversion method among more than 3500 farmersfrom 30 villages in four districts of Eastern Uttar Pradesh,with good results (D P Singh, p.13).

Way forwardWith all its positive results, if resource recycling has tobe adopted by large number of farmers, it has to be backedby government support. Widespread awareness andcapacity building for farmers and change agents isnecessary. For example, The Learning Exchange onAgroEcology to Sri Lanka, organized during March 2018,by Pesticide Action Network Asia and the Pacific, for itspartners in South Asia, has provided new ideas andpractical learning on effective recycling and managementof farm waste.(Suresh Kanna K, p.29). Beyond awareness,incentives for recycling farm wastes and support in termsof technology for optimum utilization of crop residuesand finance for adopting the technologies, for example,setting up biogas unit, are essential. Also, policies todiscourage crop waste burning are also crucial.

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Jasbir Sandhu and Shivananda Matapati

Promotion of sustainable agro ecological practices through recyclingand reusing of resources not only reduces dependency on externalsources, but also minimises waste. On farm diversity results in betternutrition and income while building an autonomy for better living.The story of Laxmi and Shankrappa proves this.

Recycling ResourcesPath to sustainable living


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Crop wastes are being converted to vermicompost

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Backed financially by RF, the Village Association carriedout large scale deep ploughing, land levelling and borderbunding. Laxmi’s farm was also included. The Villageassociation also organised number of training programson biogas, vermicomposting, biological pest managementand seed treatment using local sustainable solutions.Laxmi with other VA members meticulously learnt thenew skills and started producing and using biogas andvermicompost. RF supported the establishment of 14biogas units and 47 vermicompost units in Borgi village.

Recycling and ReuseLaxmi collects the dung in the morning from the shedand feeds into the digester. The dung is converted intobiogas. The 1.8 cubic meters capacity of the digester issufficient to fuel her kitchen, for preparing two meals forher family. The oozing slurry from the digester is usedto prepare vermi bed. This is mixed with agricultural cropInsecticide sprays madefrom chilli, garlic andginger extract were used totreat leaf caterpillar, stemborer and yellow veinmosaic.

“Nothing was worse than struggle to light the kitchenstove, after a day’s long labour. But now, smokelesscooking with the turn of a knob has made my life mucheasier.” says Laxmibai, Borgi village, Karnataka. LaxmiBai lives with her husband Shankrappa Hanumanthrao inBorgi hamlet in Jojana Panchayat located in Bidar districtof Karnataka. Borgi, inhabited by 280 families is a mixof Lingayat and Muslim communities. Rainfed farmingof maize, jowar and pulses is the major source of incomefor the farmers in the village.

Things were totally different a few years ago. The couple’sjourney started with rainfed farming on their four acresof farm land, growing black gram, green gram, red gramand fodder. One acre was left fallow. Highly undulatingland with poor soil health resulted in low produce. Butthey were able to manage with the little money from land.As the years passed and the family grew, feeding manymouths depending on their farm, became difficult. Onthe advice of local input dealer, they started usingchemical fertilizers and pesticides. Initially it gave thema good result with improved production. The profit earnedfrom the farm was invested in buying cattle – four cowsand one buffalo.

Over years, the couple realized that the quantity ofchemical inputs applied was increasing without bringingin much gains in production. Moreover they had alsostarted taking loan from local moneylender for inputs.Things became difficult in 2012, when erratic rainsfollowed by long dry spells damaged entire crop. Theincome from dairy was just enough to feed the family.They had no money left to invest and the debt startedmounting. This forced them to work as labour that year.

The triggerIn 2013, Reliance Foundation (RF) started itsinterventions in the village to address the uncertaintiesfaced by small and marginal land holders throughparticipatory approach. RF mobilised communities toform Village Association (VA) for collective ownership,decision making and common welfare. Laxmi andShankrappa were part of the first set of people to be apart of VA. Regular meetings and exposure visits furtherstrengthened Borgi VA. Situation analysis done by VAmembers, reflected the prevalent agrarian distress owingto poor land conditions and scarcity of water.

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Biodigester being fed with cowdung


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residues of crops like soyabean, green and blackgram. To this dry leaf material is also addedwhich earthworms feed upon and producevermicompost. In the first round, though it took90 days to generate vermi compost, the cyclesgot reduced to 45-50 days later on.

‘The compost from the unit meets 90%requirement of farm. This has drasticallyreduced the input cost and doubled the yieldfrom 5 quintals to 20 quintals. Seeing thebenefits, we have made two more vermi compostunits. I have also sold earthworms to the womenin my Self Help Group and also to more than 40fellow farmers in Borgi and neighbouringvillage’, says Laxmi.

Further, Laxmi has dug a pit in the cattle shedto collect the animal urine. The cow urine is used as afoliar spray and liquid manure. In one of her visit to thefarm of a progressive farmer organised by VA, she learntto make the organic formulations like Panchagavya, JeevaAmrut and Chilli Garlic spray that can be used to improvethe health of animals and also serve as pesticide andinsecticide. In preparing Jeeva Amruta, she used cowdung, cow urine, jaggery, pulse flour mixed with somesoil and slurry water and left to ferment for two days.She sprayed it after each irrigation and also applied tosoil along with manure to increase the soil health.

Insecticide sprays made from chilli, garlic and gingerextract were used to treat leaf caterpillar, stem borer andyellow vein mosaic. She made Panchagavya by mixingnine different ingredients easily available in her kitchenand farm like – banana, cow ghee, jaggery, tender coconut,milk cow dung and cow urine and fermented it for 30days in a cool shady place. This served as immunitybooster for cattle and raised the milk yield, when addedin their feed, says Laxmi.

Scaling upThe VA also supported Laxmi in constructing an openwell. By linking to various government schemes, the VAhelped Laxmi get a drip and sprinkler system fromagriculture department on highly subsidised rates. Forthe first time, the family cultivated vegetables like tomato,sponge gourd, brinjal, leafy greens in Rabi. They havealso planted an orchard with jamun, sapota, pomegranate,

guava and lemon and also purchased two more cows.Thus, the couple is busy reviving one acre of fallow landthat has been left unused since ages.

ConclusionPeople like Laxmi bai and her husband ShankrappaHanumanthrao – who are small and marginal farmerssupply 70% of our food. They face various challenges intheir farms due to scarcity of water, degraded lands, lackof inputs, market, finance and absence of risk takingability. Moreover, in the past few decades, increasingunpredictability of weather has made rainfed foodproduction system even more vulnerable and uncertain.

The promotion of sustainable agro ecological practicesthrough recycle and reuse of resources has enabled Laxmiand Shankrappa to sustain on their own. It has reducedtheir dependency on external sources, minimising wasteand building an autonomy for better living. Diversity infarm has not only boosted the income but has also addedto and nutrition on her plate improving the health of thefamily. Laxmi is respected and recognised among relativesand community who often seek her opinion on farming.

Jasbir SandhuReliance Foundation,Mumbai, Maharashtra, India.E-mail: [email protected]


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Cow urine collected from cattle shed is used as foliar spray

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Bikash Das, Pradip Kumar Sarkar, Mahesh Kumar Dhakar,Sushanta Kumar Naik, Sudarshan Maurya, Priya Ranjan Kumar,Shivendra Kumar, Arun Kumar Singh, B P Bhatt

Farmers in Khunti and Ranchi districts in Jharkhand are benefittingfrom including biomass yielding plants in their fruit orchards.Mulching of biomass in the plant basins was found to result insignificant increase in soil moisture, soil nutrients and organic mattercontent which is reflected in terms of increased plant vigour and yield.

Bhoomi SudhaRecycling biomass for enhancedsoil fertility

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Mulching with biomass increases soil moisture, soil nutrients and organic matter


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The eastern plateau and hill region of India offerssuitable climatic conditions for successfulcultivation of a wide range of fruit crops. Although

the region receives ample rainfall, constraints arising outof low soil organic carbon, poor water holding capacity,soil acidity, and deficiency of nutrients like phosphorus,boron and zinc contribute towards poor growth and lowproductivity of different fruit crops, particularly underrain-fed conditions. The soils in most of these tropicalenvironments have high acidity and aluminum toxicity,and are rich in oxides and poor in nutrients. Therefore,use of lime and fertilizers accounts for a large part of theagricultural production cost.

Any effort on increasing theproductivity of fruit crops in this regionmust primarily address towardsincreasing the soil organic carboncontent. Maintaining or improving soilorganic matter in soils cultivated intropical humid and sub-humid regionsis a major challenge because of the highrates of decomposition. Agriculturalsystems that combine low soil tillageand high input of plant residues havebeen pointed as efficient alternatives tomitigate soil organic matter losses andto increase overall soil quality. Theincreasing cost of organic manure in therecent years has led to gradual decreasein their application rate in theagricultural fields. The farmers of theeastern plateau region of India alwayshave the inclination for application ofthe available organic manure in theirfield crops and rarely apply any organicmanure in their fruit orchards. Althoughoptions on green manuring crops likeSesbania are available, their annualproduction cycle is a major deterrentfor their adoption in the fruit orchardsgrown under rainfed conditions.Similarly, increasing costs of inorganicfertilizers limit their use in sufficientquantities by most smallholder farmersand this has led to increased interest in

development of integrated soil fertility managementsystems.

Biomass yielding plants in cropping systemsInclusion of biomass yielding plants into the cropproduction system has been found to be effective inimproving soil fertility through addition of leafy biomassto the main crop. The presence of biomass yielding speciesin the alley cropping production system has been shownto contribute to nutrient recycling, reduction in soilnutrient leaching, stimulation of higher soil faunalactivities, soil erosion control, soil fertility improvement


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Mulching bael trees with Bhoomi sudha

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and sustained levels of crop production. The success ofalley cropping based nutrient recycling system is relatedinter alia to the quantity and quality of the pruned materialfrom trees, the amount of nutrients released from residuesduring the decomposition process, and the synchronicitybetween nutrient release and crop requirements. Plantingof leguminous plants with deep root systems to enhancethe nutrient uptake from deeper soil layers, combined withN inputs from N fixation, is considered to be one of themost effective ways of improving nutrient cycling on-farm. Many agroforestry systems accumulate Phosphorusin their biomass and return it to the soil when the litterdecomposes. Through cycling, some less availableinorganic forms of P in the soil are converted intopotentially available forms.

Bhoomi Sudha: A potential biomass yielding plantA number of biomass yielding perennial plants have beenreported for their effectiveness in recycling of soilnutrients. Leucaena leucocephala (Common name-Subabul) is a commonly used plant for alley croppingsystem under the sub-humid subtropics. However, thedifficulties arising out of invasive nature of the specieswarrant for identification of effective substitute forSubabul for integration in alley cropping system.

To identify a substitute to Subabul, from 2014 onwards,a number of farmer participatory studies has been carriedout by ICAR RCER, Research Centre, Ranchi. Thesestudies have been conducted in experiment-cum-demonstration mode, on-farm as well as at farmers’ fieldsscattered over several districts viz., Ranchi, Khunti andRamgarh. Based on the observations, Bhoomi Sudha(Tephrosia candida) has been identified to be an effective

Tephrosia candida (Roxb.) is native to the tropical foothills of theHimalayas in India which has been naturalised and is cultivatedthroughout South–East Asia for varying uses. It also has me-dicinal uses. The species holds promise for agroforestry in thetropics due to its high biomass yield, dense vegetative cover,deep root system, non-invasive nature as well as its nitrogenfixation ability. Tephrosia vogelii and T. candida are some of theshrubs that are already being used as fertilizer trees in Africancontinent. The trees are suitable for rehabilitating degraded land,and raising soil N, P and K levels in proportion to increasedlevels of organic matter.

substitute to Subabul for nutrient recycling in fruitorchards through recycling of biomass.

Model on nutrient recycling in fruit cropsDrawing upon data from five years of experimentation, amodel was developed on sustainable bael (Aeglemarmelos) based production system for the easternplateau and hill region of India. The approach was ofenriching the plant basin through nutrient recycling withbiomass obtained from Bhoomi Sudha plants growing inthe alley area.

In this model, bael plants are planted at a spacing of2.5 m x 5.0 m and in between the rows, plants of BhoomiSudha are grown from seeds in strips of 3.0 m width. Theseeds are sown during July at a spacing of 15 cm x 30 cmin the strips. Loppings from Boomi Sudha can be obtainedat least twice a year (September and March) which canbe used for mulching of bael plants. A comparisonbetween Bhoomi Sudha and Subabul shows thatBhoomisudha is better in terms of yield and nutrientcontent. (Table 1)

Based on the nutrient content in tissue, the amount ofnutrients that can be recycled during the initial three yearsthrough Bhoomi Sudha plants to the root zone of Baelplants are 1.17 t/ha nitrogen, 0.06 t/ha phosphorus and0.42 t/ha potassium. In case of subabul, a total of 0.41 t/ha of nitrogen, 0.03 t/ha of phosphorus and 0.16 t/ha ofpotassium can be recycled through the biomass. Inmonetary terms, the cost of N, P and K that can be recycledthrough the biomass of Bhoomi Sudha during the initialthree years is estimated at Rs 23400/-, Rs 23600/- andRs 25200/- per ha.

Table 1: Comparison between Bhoomi Sudha and Subabul

S.No Parameter Bhoomi sudha Subabul

1 Dry biomass yield (t/ha) 12.8 10.22 Nutrient Content (%)

N 2.94 2.94P 0.24 0.24K 1.06 1.16

3 Micro nutrients (ppm)Zinc 35.35 39.97Copper 19.18 14.07Manganese 177.60 79.54Iron 203.20 159.07

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Effects of mulchingMulching of biomass of Bhoomi Sudha in the plant basinof bael was found to result in significant increase in thesoil content of available Potassium, organic carbon andreduction of soil bulk density after three years. Thedecrease in the soil bulk density can be ascribed toincrease in the soil moisture and organic matter contentwhich helps in creating cogeniality for root penetration.Mango orchards in Khunti and Ranchi districts aresimilarly benefitting from Tephrosia leaf shedding andloppings. In the Guphoo village of Torpa block in Khuntidistrict, Bimla Devi was the earliest adopter in 2014.The technology has now spread out to more than 20orchards in Torpa block and a few more in adjacent Murhublock with the help of PRADAN (an NGO) functionaries.

Mulching of Bhoomi Shudha biomass also resulted inincrease in the plant growth parameters like trunkdiameter, height, canopy spread and yield of five yearsold bael plants. In an orchard of mango, with Amrapalivariety, mulching with biomass of Bhoomi Shudha for aperiod of two years could result in marked improvementin the plant vigour of 10 year old mango plants. Althoughvillagers do not have methods to evaluate the impactempirically, they go by the visible effects on foliage aswell as quality and yield of fruits. One obvious measureis spontaneous demand for seeds from neighbouringfarmers and nearby areas. No wonder that they havelocally christened it as ‘maind gachh’ meaning ‘manuretree’. Adoption is palpably convenient and the wayPRADAN has taken up the task of its wide application, itis hoped that it would become a standard practice in theregion.

Land reclamation through Tephrosia in coal miningaffected areasVast stretches of land left barren after mines had beenspent, asked for efforts to rehabilitate and reclaim.Forestry and fruit trees are being planted and farmers arebeing encouraged to plant Tephrosia in alleys andboundaries. It was planted initially during 2014 at theboundary of one-hectare farm of Mr Sunil Murmu atPhusri village in Ramgarh district. Now, other farmershave also started multiplying them in the alleys. Theyalso use it as supplement in feed for cattle and goats.

ConclusionIntegration of biomass yielding plants like Bhoomi Sudha(Tephrosia candida) in the alley area fruit orchards hasfound to be an effective method for improving the plantgrowth and yield of fruit trees. However, studies at ICARRCER, RC, Ranchi indicated mortality of Bhoomi Sudhaplants after five years, which warrants resowing of theseeds after every five years. It is an effective substituteto Subabul due to the ease in eradication of the plantswhen needed. At the ICAR RCER, RC, Ranchi seeds ofBhoomi Sudha are being produced for distribution to thefarmers and large number of farmers in Jharkhand havealready planted Bhoomi Sudha plants in their orchards.With proper advocacy through the extension agencies,the plant can be utilized in large scale for improving theproductivity of fruit orchards.

Priya Ranjan KumarICAR Research Complex for Eastern Region,Ranchi, Jharkhand – 834010 (India)E-mail: [email protected]


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Dhananjaya P Singh and Renu

Viable biological options that boost on-farm resource recycling andintegrated management have great promise in minimizing threats ofclimate change on crop plants, losses due to indiscriminate use ofagrochemicals and soil contamination due to organo-metal pollutants.

MicrobesFacilitating resource recycling

The exploitative nature of present day agricultureis solely based on promoting maximum soilperformance through continued use of non-

recyclable chemical farm-inputs. Such practices onlyconsider soils as a matter of physical and chemical entitiesand largely ignore or avoid the most vital, vibrant anddynamic biological components through which many ofthe today’s agricultural problems can be resolved. This iswhy we need to advocate for a balanced chemistry andbiology above- and below ground soils, that in supportwith the external environmental factors, determines plantperformance in any agro-ecosystem. The adverseconsequences of excessive chemical usage in agriculturalsystem has forced farmers to explore alternative optionsfor keeping soils live and responsive, failing which, thereseems to be no return towards normalcy of a balancedagro-ecosystem. Microbe-driven agro-ecologicalpractices therefore, can alternatively strengthensustainability of the productive farms because of theirprime focus on enriching biodiversity in the cultivatedarea.

Microbes and their beneficial interactionsBeing major inhabitants of normal, sub-normal andextreme habitats, microbes are evolutionarily evolved

with unique inherent capabilities of recycling,rehabilitating, managing and remediating their ownhabitats. By doing so, they have prospects of rejuvenatingsoil and plant health and supporting crop productivity ifexplored sensibly. Such microbes with specific functionsand robust ecological strength, when developed asmicrobial inoculants (biofertilizers, biopesticides,microbial stimulants) can help manipulate soil ecology, 13


Demonstrating the bioconversion method


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rhizosphere biology and plant functions to obtain provenimpact on crop growth and productivity under normal oreven threatening developmental conditions. Therefore,developing microbial inoculants from a diversepopulation of microorganisms has multifaceted prospectsfor the farmers and agriculture as they live in continuum.

For the crops, microbial inoculants can fix nitrogen,solubilize and mobilize phosphorus, potassium, zinc andiron, chelate siderophores, produce phytohormones,perform carbon sequestration, mineralize nutrients,degrade recyclable residual agro-waste and remediate soilcontaminants in an inevitable manner, silently andcontinuously. Beneficial interactions of microorganismswith the plant promote root growth, induce systemicresistance and/or tolerance against stresses, instigateinnate immunity and modulate chemical biology of therhizosphere (the living root zone in close vicinity of thesoil). Dissemination of entwined information on the aboveaspects of microorganisms clubbed with their agro-ecological linkages and benefits among farmingcommunity can not only improve their understanding onmicrobial processes, plant responses and soil health butcan lure them to adopt microbe-based practices as ansupplementary alternative to external input-based farmingsystem at their own farms.

Microbial inoculants interact with the crops to conferbeneficial impacts under diverse edaphic, climatic andbiophysical factors that affect soil performance and plantcompetence. Increasing farmer’s literacy and awarenesson the understanding of microbial interactions with cropplants and their responses in the soils under stressedenvironment could pave the way for enhancing adoptionof microbial technology at the ground in an unprecedentedmanner. Farmers may not be interested in the underlyingmechanisms of the interactions, but they may certainlybecome keen to know about final results of interactionson crop productivity. This is why training them on theavailable viable biological options around them, modeof delivery via in planta and soil applications, qualityaspects, viability issues, precautions and technologicalreliability always becomes regenerative among masses.

We have demonstrated microbe-mediated practicesamong more than 1200 farmers. They are trained andencouraged to use these inoculants for seed coating,inoculating them on the root surface of the seedlings, and

time-lined application in the soils (prior to crop sowing,in the mid of the crop life and prior to 10 days offlowering).

ResultsThis integrated delivery mode in the rice, wheat andvegetables have shown qualitative and quantitativechanges in the crop yield and produce quality. Manyfarmers are now frequently applying Bio-NPK and Znmicrobial consortium for producing rice, wheat andvegetables. The use of bacterial consortium helped themto reduce application of NPK chemicals up to 30% in thefarms in rice and wheat crops. Similarly, with theapplication of biopesticides like Trichoderma andPseudomonas as seed and seedling inoculants and for soilapplication, the risk of soil borne diseases of chickpeaand several vegetable crops was massively minimized innurseries and at the farmers’ fields. Inoculant’s applicationenhanced almost 40% additional gain in the healthynursery seedlings due to minimum loses from soil bornediseases of vegetables and also led to 7-10% enhancementin the crop produce.

To our surprise, many farmers who once used thesebioproducts, returned to us in search of products anddiscussed many scientific aspects of the inoculants as tohow they function in the soils. In the promotionalprograms sponsored by the Department of Science andTechnology (DST), Government of India distributed thetechnical kits comprising booklets, bulletins and microbialconsortia (both liquid and powder formulations), toencourage adoption. Later on the farmers themselvesstarted obtaining these bio-products from State agricultureline departments or commercial product dealers in theirregions.

Learning aptitude of the farmers has led us to explainmultifaceted and diversified issues of cumulativeunderstanding on the beneficial impact of microbialinoculants on crops. Sustainability aspects, viabilityconcerns, strategic applications, techno-commercialissues and environmental prospects for maximizing fieldadoption of microbe-based practices for better crops andsoils were also demonstrated. Efforts have been made tomaximize large scale applications of microbial inoculants(individual or consortium) as a replacement for chemicalinputs in cereals, oilseeds, pulses, sugarcane and vegetablecrops.


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BiocompostExhaustive crop production systems are devoid of soilorganic matter (SOM) (<0.4-0.5%) and its regain is adifficult task until we look for the carbonaceoussupplements. Soils that lack organic matter for longduration cannot support microbial life and thus, losenatural beneficial traits suitable for good agriculturalpractices. It therefore, becomes mandatory to makeaddition of organic matter to the soils for betterperformance. Addition of external farm yard manure(FYM) or cultivation of green manure crops like Sesbaniaand Crotalaria add to soil organic content. Even then,crop production based on chemical-inputs again restrictsgrowth of beneficial life forms in the carbon depletedsoils.

Throughout the country, chemical-input based croppingpattern produce agricultural residual matter in plenty inall cropping seasons. These residues, a large portion ofwhich go waste, if recycled through microbial processes,can add to a lot of organic carbon. Thus, converting farmresidues into compost through rapid microbe-mediatedbioconversion practices again has a great promise. Notonly this, the compost thus produced is further beingenriched and fortified with the desired beneficialmicrobial consortium of nitrogen fixers, phosphatesolubilizers, potassium and zinc mobilizers, iron chelatorsand phytohormone producers by simply incubating it over15 to 20 days in the field. Now this bio-fortified composthas desired traits with customized applications.

This bioconversion method has been demonstrated amongmore than 3500 farmers from 30 villages in four districtsof Eastern Uttar Pradesh namely Mau, Azamgarh,Ghazipur and Ballia. Biocompost rich in nitrogenfixer and Zinc-rich microbes is being used in paddy cropand iron-rich microbe-based compost is becoming usefulfor vegetables, flowers and fruits. The raw compost mayagain be fortified with disease-controlling microbialspecies like Trichoderma (fungi), Pseudomonas andBacillus (bacteria). Biocompost thus produced is nowbeing promoted for producing seed- and soil-bornedisease-free seedlings of commercial vegetables andsaplings of forest plants. Alternatively, if adopted by agroup of farmers or self help groups (SHGs), the practiceof producing fortified and microbe-enriched compost can

lead to entrepreneurial skilling among farmers foradditional economic benefits.

ConclusionPotential ecological benefits of farm-centric microbe-mediated approaches has been observed in terms ofdirectly reducing farmer’s dependency on agriculturalchemicals, minimizing cost on external inputs, makingsoils more biologically viable and freshness in the produceof vegetables and fruits. It is also a win-win conditionfor farmers that the beneficial microbial inoculants, onceintroduced into the fields, can survive for longer timedepending upon the availability of organic matter,minerals, moisture and conducive environment. Thusunder supportive soil conditions, microbial inoculants candemonstrate their multipronged recycling capabilities tofavor soil and plant health and maintain agro-ecology ofthe whole farm system.

Acknowledgements: Author is grateful to RashtriyaKrishi Vikas Yojna (RKVY), Department of Science andTechnology (DST) and Department of Biotechnology(DBT) for funding support in the form of various R&Dprojects

Dhananjaya P SinghPrincipal Scientist (Biotechnology)E-mail: [email protected];[email protected]

RenuPrincipal Scientist (Agricultural Biotechnology)ICAR-National Bureau of Agriculturally ImportantMicroorganisms,(Indian Council of Agricultural Research, Ministry ofAgriculture, Government of India)Mau, 275101 Uttar Pradesh, IndiaE-mail: [email protected]; [email protected]

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Ranchitha Kumaran and Bhaskarabhatta Joshi

Apart from conserving ecosystem, adopting agro-ecological practiceshas a potential to generate income. Even if 50% of farmers in a villageadopt sustainable agriculture, it could be a major breakthrough in therural economy. It is time to consciously invest towards climate resilientagro-ecological food systems, that promote resource recycling, whileprotecting the agro-ecosystems.

AgroecologyTowards climate resilient foodsystems

I visited Shagoti village of Gadag district in Karnataka.Entering into the village, all I could observe is acomplete silence in the mud road of village which led

me to a place where I noticed a big gathering in front ofa small building. Men and women of the village gatheredthere and were involved in some serious discussion. Thediscussion was about lending a threshing machine inauction. The confidence for taking the machine was lessamong the people due to monsoon failure. It is obviousthat, rainfall decides the destiny of marginal farmer’s lifebeing uncertain because of consecutive droughts since 3years.

However, Mahadevgowda, a farmer, came forward to takethe machine in auction quoting better price for a tenureof one year. While other members were reluctant to takethe machine, he took it because continuous drought didnot affect his farm much as he followed agro ecology asa mandate of farming. The confidence exhibited byMahadevgowda interested me to approach him to


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Mahadevgowda uses sticky trap for pest control

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Table 1: Income expenditure analysis

S No Particular Area (acre)& Harvest Income(Rs) Expenditure(Rs) Total Profit (Rs)2014-15 2015-16 2014-15 2015-16 2014-15 2015-16 2014-15 2015-16

1 Okra 0.5 0.25 10000 15000 3000 3000 7000 120002 Cluster Bean 0.25 0.5 8000 15000 2500 5000 5500 100003 Tomato 0.5 0.5 20000 60000 5000 10000 15000 500004 Chilli 0.25 0.12 7000 5000 2500 2000 4500 30005 Cucumber 0.5 0.5 25000 20000 5000 5000 20000 150006 Ridge Gourd 0.07 0.25 5000 7000 2000 2000 3000 50007 Onion for seed 0.5 0.5 60000 90000 18000 20000 42000 700008 Curry Leaf NA 10 Qtl 6000 20000 6000 200009 Fodder NA NA 2000 2000

(Root sucker)10 Fodder for grass NA 72 Qtl 36500 3600011 Sapota 0 3 Qtl 6000 600012 Banana 600 plants 600 plants 150000 32000 30000 88000

Total 141500 317000

understand how he could address the issue of droughtwhile other farmers were struggling to do so.

I understood that, the gathering is a General Body Meetingof the Village Association named, “Shagoti Grama RaithaSangha”, promoted by Reliance Foundation. From theinitial interactions with Mahadevgowda, I learnt that heconverted his farm from conventional agriculture tosustainable agriculture, with the support of VillageAssociation, in a period of 4 years. While other farmersstruggled to get average produce from farm, he was ableto get double the production and served as a role modelfor other farmers in the village.

The journeyMahadevgowda worked as labourer for many years toearn a living since there was no sufficient income fromhis farm. Later he switched to farming. His initial yearswas very tough as he did only mono-cropping ofgroundnut in his entire farm land of 3 acres. He wasapplying fertilisers like any other farmer did. Rs.25000/year is what he earned which was not sufficient to run hisfamily and meet the medical expenses of his daughterwho is suffering from health issues.

Even though inorganic chemical fertilizers gave betterproduction in initial years, the production kept ondecreasing while demanding more inputs to give sameamount of production which he got earlier. Moreover, he

learnt that application of fertilisers also led to increase inatmospheric carbon that affected environment. Thenitrogen fertilizers release nitrous oxide, the most potentgreenhouse gas. The water in his well was not sufficientto irrigate his farm and the entire crop dried out. At thesame time, he observed few healthy saplings growing ina corner of his farm, where he generally throws agro-waste and stores farm yard manure. The sprouted seedsserved as the sign of positivity. Agro waste acted as naturalmulch and saved the seeds from drying out.

The year 2013 was a turning point in his life. He visitedsome orchard farms and also attended training on nurseryestablishment organised by the Village Association inwhich he is an active member. His interest in practicingsustainable agriculture increased as he visited dry landfarms of successful farmers. Understanding his interest,the Village Association supported him financially andtechnically. He established a nursery and also promotedagro-horticulture in his farm. Presently he has 70 Mango,200 Teak on the border, 200 Sapota, 20 Lemon, 50Cashew nut, 10 Papaya, 600 Banana, 2 Guava, 2 Fig,5 Dates, 10 Arecanut, 25 Coconut, 70 Glyricidia and morethan 500 plants of Curry leaves plants in his 2 acres ofirrigated land. Besides these, he also grows vegetablesand fodder grass in the all the free spaces of the farm.“I always feel that I should offer at least two type of fruitswhen someone visits my home at any time in the year.Everything we grow here is organic. It not only helps us

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to be healthy, but also keeps our environment safe.” Theseare the proud words of the farmer which shows that he isnot only keen in cultivating his own food, but also keepseye on safeguarding ecology.

He substituted inorganic inputs through composting, croprotation, cover crops, trap crops, integrated pestmanagement and increased usage of farm yard manure.They not only increased the organic matter, but alsohelped in capturing maximum carbon from theatmosphere. The increased carbon storage increased soilfertility and nitrogen fixation. Crop diversificationreduced the risk in farming. Adoption of eco-friendlypractices served as a hub for pollinators and also kept acheck on deforestation.

Mahadevgowda practices intercropping, nurseryestablishment, vegetable cultivation, mulching,composting, efficient irrigation, and also manuremanagement through bio-gas digester. He also has vermi-compost units and 2 azolla units. This approach helpedhim to establish a circular economic model that involvesre-cycling, reuse and combining resources to reducedependency on external inputs and cope up with theclimate change. He optimally utilizes groundwater andalso ensured drinking water supply for his family throughRoof Rain Water Harvesting System.

His fruit trees already started production from which heharvests and sells that gives enormous profits. He recyclesthe biomass from trees as material for vermi-compost pits.He has two vermicompost pits. With the use ofvermicompost, the moisture retention has been very goodwhich can be clearly seen by the presence of earthwormswherever he digs in his farm. This has improved the soilstructure of his farm significantly. He is able to take3 cycles and harvest 3 quintals each from eachvermicompost model which altogether gives him18 quintals of vermicompost in a year. He regularly usesJeevamrut (organic formulation).

He also grows fish in his renovated well, which isexpected to provide ample harvest from next year. Themarigold flowers not only trap attention, but also attracta variety of bees and bugs, which play a major role incompleting the ecological cycle. After continuous effortsof three years, his farm is now a hub of nature whichattracts not only visitors’ from several places to learn

sustainable agriculture, but also birds and naturalpollinators that keeps the environment safe and healthy.“Even a bee needs its space to live in. When it fails, onecould easily measure the extent of adverse impact thatwe created in environment which ultimately affects usthrough climate change”, says Mahadevgowda. Theambience in his farm shows healthy atmosphere.

Mahadevgowda dedicates his full time to farming, and isnow earning more than 2 lakh per annum (Table 1).Amidst three consecutive years of drought in the district,his farm serves as a model of agro-ecological farmingsystem and also for resource recycling on the farm.Inspired by him, other members of the Village Associationstarted adopting sustainable agriculture practices. Apartfrom conserving ecosystem, adopting agro-ecologicalpractices has a potential to generate remuneration of Rs.3 crore, if at least 50% of farmers in the village adoptsustainable agriculture. This could be a majorbreakthrough in the rural economy. Thus, it is time toconsciously invest towards climate resilient agro-ecological food systems, so that the increased productionand food security does not come at the expense ofenvironment sustainability.

Ranchitha Kumaran & Bhaskarabhatta JoshiReliance Foundation,RCP, Project Office, 1st floor,Ghansoli, Navi Mumbai- 400701E-mail: [email protected]@reliancefoundation.org


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Diversity on farm gives multiple benefits

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Nidhi Jamwal

Small farms can beprofitable

Rupees 10 lakh every year, from one-hectare (ha)land — an unbelievable proposition for all thosebought up on the much propagated idea that small

farmlands are unprofitable. But Ramesh Chander Dagarhas made this proposition into a reality. A visit to hisfarmland in Akbarpur Barota village, Sonipat district,Haryana can be quite an eye opener. The farmlandresembles the laboratory of any agricultural scientist. SaysDagar, “I am a simple farmer, who has studied only up tothe 10th standard. I used to keep hearing claims of thegovernment that small land holdings are not viable foragriculture. And that set me thinking. About four yearsback, I set aside one ha from my agricultural land andstarted experimenting on it. Today I am confident thatthis land can give a minimum income of Rs 10 lakh perannum.”

Dagar follows what is known as integrated organicfarming. “Such farming does not merely mean not usingpesticides,” he says. “It also comprises many otherpractices such as bee keeping, dairy management, biogasproduction, water harvesting and composting. A goodcombination of all these practices is sure to make organicfarming successful, both ecologically and financially,”adds Dagar.

Today he is busy spreading the message of integratedorganic farming in his home state. With support of other

farmers, he has set up the Haryana Kisan Welfare Club,which has branches in all districts in the state. Close to5,000 farmers are active members of this club and theyare fast spreading the word around. In states such asRajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat there are nowefforts at replicating organic farming clubs.

Learning by doing Dagar started farming with a mere1.6 ha land in 1971; today he owns close to 44 ha, all ofwhich is completely under integrated organic farming.A clear understanding of three factors — the market 19


Dagar on his farm


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demand, the natural resources available and maintainingthe product quality — helped him succeed. Most organicfarmers find it difficult to get good markets for theirproduce, but not Dagar. “Before sowing a new crop, Ifirst do a market survey and understand the demand. It isonly when I am 60 per cent sure of getting returns, do Itake 40 per cent risk,” he says. And in most cases it worksto his good.

Almost all seasonal vegetables, fruits, paddy, wheat,mushroom and flowers are grown organically in Dagar’sfarm. He has also started growing exotic vegetables andfruits, such as lettuce, baby corn and strawberry, forexport. This innovative farmer has set aside one ha forresearch purposes (Dagar’s research lab). “Through thisland, I want to prove wrong all those who doubt theprofitability of organic farming. With a bit of hard workand understanding of nature, any farmer can earn aminimum of Rs 10 lakh per annum. I do not understandwhy everyone is running after a job?” he asks.

Dagar’s research lab Dagar’s lab oratory is a visualextravaganza. One can witness composting taking placeat one end, flowers growing at the other end, a farm pondwith fishes, and a biogas plant. And all these elements inhis farm are interlinked through various agrocycles andtogether generate an annual income of Rs 13-14 lakh (seetable: Farm gold). Moreover, the farm saves preciousenergy by using solar power.

Let us look at the cycle of vermicomposting followed inDagar’s farm. “Almost all Indian farmers burn the leftover of paddy crop, locally known as pawal. Actuallythis is an excellent raw material for vermicompost(compost made using earthworms). Through its use, Iproduce 300 tonnes of vermicompost, annually,” saysDagar. “A part of that is consumed in the fields and restis sold at a rate of Rs 3 per kilogramme (kg),” he adds.

Dagar claims vermicompost is the best soil-nutrient fornot only does it help the soil retain moisture but alsoreduces water consumption by almost 25 per cent. Heprovides 2 kg of earthworms free of cost to farmers, whopledge to go in for organic farming. He also uses the pawalto grow mushroom, which fetch him close to Rs 3 lakhper annum. Apart from vermicompost, Dagar alsoproduces the normal compost; the total annual generationof manure from his farm is about 600 tonnes. Dagar aimsto increase this to 1,000 tonnes by the end of this year.

Another agrocycle at the farm is dairy, biogas andcomposting. There are about 50 buffaloes in Dagar’sdairy. Their gobar (manure) is fed into an 85 cubic metrescapacity biogas plant. Setting up the plant cost him aboutRs 1 lakh. The gas is then used in his personal kitchen,and also used to run the fodder-cutting machine. The‘waste’ from the plant goes to the composting pits.

Dagar’s farm pond is the site of yet another innovativecycle. Most farmers avoid having such a pond since thatwould eat away precious agricultural land. Says Dagar,“We tell farmers to go in for water harvesting, but do notmake sure it makes economic sense to them. Thispredicament set me thinking. And I decided to go in forwater harvesting, which also gives immediate benefits.”His farm pond collects rainwater, which is used in thedairy to wash buffaloes. “I have also introduced fish intothe pond; that fetches me about Rs 30,000 per annum.So, I am not only recharging groundwater, but also makingmoney out of it,” explains the organic farmer.

The most important element of Dagar’s farm practice isbee keeping; it increases his crop output by 10-30 percent (bees are very effective in natural pollination). Alsothe honey produced has great demand . Dagar has about150 bee boxes; each generates about 35-40 kg of honey.His total annual income from honey is Rs 4 lakh. “Beekeeping is a very profitable business that can beundertaken by even a landless farmer. And one farmercan benefit an area of about 2-3 km, the normal areacovered by one bee,” says Dagar.

Dagar has also set up solar panels at a total cost of Rs 4lakh; he spent Rs 67,000 on it and the rest came from agovernment subsidy. At his farm, solar power is used torun the pump that draws groundwater for irrigation. Thesurplus power is used to recharge batteries of thehousehold inverter. The farmland has a green house spreadon an area of 500 square metre, which is used to growexpensive crops that fetch him Rs 1 lakh per annum.

Spreading the wordToday, Dagar is busy spreading the word of integratedfarming throughout the country. Farmers from Haryanaare playing a lead role in the mission. The Haryana KisanWelfare Club gives hands-on training on organic farming.Since most farmers cannot come to the district clubs,workshops are organised at village level. In February this


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21L E I S A I N D I A J U N E 2 0 1 9

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LEISA India magazine reaches more than 20000 people interested in development of agriculture, that is sustainableand eco-friendly. Every quarter, the print and digital editions of the magazine reach farmers, NGOs, academics,researchers, students, government departments, banks etc., who are interested in practicalfield experiences.Produced since more than two decades, LEISA India magazine is known for its practicaland quality content, attractive design, colourful layout, consistency and timely production.It is produced in 8 languages – English, Hindi, Kannada, Telugu, Tamil, Odiya, Punjabiand Marathi.We invite institutions, companies and Universities to advertise their services, products,courses and events which align with the philosophy of agroecology. For details, contactMs.Rukmini at [email protected]

Farm gold

Source of income Annual income (Rs in lakh)Vermicompost 5Dairy 1Mushroom 3Honey 4Fishery 0.3Total 13.3

Source: Ramesh Chander Dagar 2004, Akbarpur Barota village,Sonipat, Haryana, March 30, personal communication

year, a gathering of about 4,000 farmers was organisedat Sonipat. Apart from farmers, experts and agriculturalscientists, bureaucrats were also invited. But, Dagarconcedes that motivating government machinery towardsintegrating organic farming is a big task. “ Jo sarak sarakkar chale who sarkar (The government is something thatcrawls along slowly),” he remarks casually.

But Dagar is not waiting for government help. He hasmade organic farming his mission. “I keep experimentingwith various crops in my field. For instance, right now Iam trying to grow a Chinese plant, which is 300 timessweeter than sugar but is cholesterol free. If I amsuccessful in my venture, I will recommend it to others.Since the plant has medicinal value, it has a hugeinternational market,” he says. Way back in 1987, Dagarhad introduced baby corn in Sonipat on a mere 0.40 haplot. Today, almost 485 ha land in Sonipat is under babycorn cultivation.

Future challengesWith success come new challenges. The cost of organicfood is priced higher than food grown with the use ofchemicals. Dagar has tried to turn this adversity to hisadvantage. He makes use of good marketing tactics toexploit the high premium on organic food. He has alsotied up with voluntary organisations that market organicfood. To be doubly sure, he himself conducts marketresearch to ascertain the demand for various organic foods.

Another, problem for organic farmers like Dagar is thatIndia lacks a streamlined procedure for certifying organicfoods. Also one kind of certificate is not valid for all

countries. “Agricultural and Processed Food ProductsExport Development Authority is the nodal agency whichaddresses the issue of certification internationally. It hasabout 10 companies registered under it, of which onlyone is an Indian firm. A day’s visit of a company officialcosts about Rs 15,000. Which Indian farmer has so muchmoney?” asks Dagar.

The Haryana Kisan Welfare Club has taken up this issuewith the government, but without success. Finally, itapproached a Gurgaon-based private company forcertification. The company should start work within amonth. The club is following group certification schemewhere rich farmers will subsidise the certification processof the poor ones. But it is high time, the Indian governmentfacilitates the procedure and supports farmers like Dagar.

Source: Originally published at https://www.downtoearth.org.in/coverage/small-farms-can-be-profitable-11182

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Anand Karve

Fuel from farm wasteAppropriate Rural Technology Institute (ARTI), through theirexperiments, brought out many new insights in the technology ofbiogas production. While dispelling the myth that cowdung is essentialfor biogas production, ARTI’s experiments concluded that purecarbohydrates devoid of any nitrogen also yielded biogas in amplequantities. Agricultural waste which mainly consists of cellulose,hemicellulose and lignin was found as an alternative resource inproducing biogas.


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Farm waste is an alternative resource for producing biogas

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Our petroleum import during the fiscal year 2018-19 is estimated to be about 113 million tonnes atan estimated cost of about US$125 billion. These

figures represent the largest single item of import intoIndia and also the largest annual outflow of money fromIndia for importing a single item. Petroleum derivativeslike L.P.G., petrol, kerosene and diesel not only have ahigh calorific value, but are also suitable as fuels forinternal combustion engines as these fuels burn withoutleaving any solid residue (like ash) behind. As far as thequantitative availability, calorific value and burningcharacteristics of petroleum fuels are concerned, it is justnot possible to substitute them by any other fuel that iscurrently being produced in India.

Ethanol and biodiesel are being considered as possiblealternatives for the present automotive fuels, butproducing them on a large scale would deprive agricultureof land and water. The same agriculture also generates alot of waste, which is a byproduct of agriculture. As arule of thumb, almost 60% of the biomass produced by acrop plant represents agricultural waste. Taking intoconsideration the official figures of different agriculturalcommodities produced in India, it is estimated thatagriculture in India generates annually about 800 milliontonnes of waste biomass. Although generated in hugequantities, agriculture waste owing to its solid nature andits undesirable burning characteristics is not fit to be usedas fuel in internal combustion engines. It can however bevery easily converted into methane, an automotive fuel.This was demonstrated at the beginning of this centuryby Appropriate Rural Technology Institute (ARTI).

Biogas contains volumetrically about 60% methane (CH4)and about 40% carbon dioxide (CO2). On weight basis,methane constitutes about 35% and carbon dioxide about65%. Till the time that ARTI started working on thisprocess (see Box 1), biogas was being produced in Indiamainly from cattle dung and to some extent also from theresidue of sugarcane molasses left behind after alcoholicfermentation. Both of them are effluents of an anaerobicfermentation reaction. Because such effluents are alreadydepleted of oxygen, they are of no use to the anaerobicorganisms as an oxygen source. Also, the yield of methaneproduced from such substances is low.

Methane has the same calorific value as the traditionalautomotive fuels and it burns cleanly, without leavingresidues like ash or tar behind. This process also producescarbon dioxide, but it is quite easy to separate puremethane from biogas by passing the latter through anysubstance, like calcium hydroxide, which selectivelyabsorbs carbon dioxide. After realization of these facts,the scientists of ARTI discarded cattle dung and theresidues from alcoholic fermentation as the sources ofmethane.

ARTI scientists conducted experiments with oxygen richorganic substances called carbohydrates. In the course ofthese experiments, it turned out that carbohydrates,represented by organic acids, sugars as well aspolysaccharides like starch and cellulose could becompletely converted into biogas. It later turned out thatany substance that was consumed by any animal couldserve as feedstock in a biogas plant.

Agricultural waste consists mainly of cellulose,hemicelluloses and lignin. None of these substances isOne big limitation in usingagricultural waste as afeedstock for biogas is thatthis raw material occurs ina diffused manner,scattered all over thecountryside.

Box 1

The process used in biogas generation is technically calledanaerobic fermentation and the fermentation vessel is called a“digester”. The organisms participating in biogas generation aswell as in all other anaerobic reactions need oxygen like all otherliving beings, but because free molecular oxygen is not availablein the anaerobic environment, these organisms satisfy theiroxygen requirement by taking up the chemically bound oxygenfrom the molecules of the substrate. The substrate moleculesare thereby converted into their reduced form. Thus, in the biogasdigester, organic substances containing oxygen in their molecularconstitution get converted into a reduced compound calledmethane, which is a hydrocarbon.

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digested by humans. However, the cellulose and thehemicelluloses can be digested by animals and thereforethey can be converted into biogas. As stated above, theamount of biogas produced by any material depends onthe percentage of digestibility of that material. If it isassumed that about 50% of the agricultural waste isconstituted by digestible matter like cellulose andhemicellulose, we get a theoretical figure of 400 milliontonnes of biogas, or about 140 million tonnes of methane,which can completely replace all the automotive fuelcurrently being used in India.

Lignin, the material that cannot be digested by anyorganism under anaerobic conditions, comes out of thebiogas plant as effluent slurry. But it is not a uselesssubstance. Lignin is a plastic-like substance. It becomessoft at 200C. At that temperature, it can be molded intoplywood-like boards as well as biodegradable eatingutensils like cups, bowls, saucers, plates and spoons.Lignin can also be briquetted and used as fuel briquettes,it can be charred to produce biochar, or it can be appliedto agricultural fields as organic manure.

The process designed by ARTI has been tried on anexperimental basis on the farm of Mr. SantoshGondhalekar at Pirangut near Pune. Santosh makes hisown methane from agricultural waste, mainly rice strawand sells it as vehicular fuel. Converting the experimentalinitiative to a commercial venture calls for severalpermissions and no-objection-certificates from variousgovernment bodies. Being a pioneer in the CNG business,Santosh had to face a lot of challenges in getting thenecessary permissions. He is in the process of convertingit into a commercial business.

Technology development, limitations and futureARTI’s work on biogas led to many new insights into thebiogas technology. It was earlier thought that cattle dungwas essential for biogas production. But ARTI scientistsshowed that once the necessary bacteria have establishedthemselves in the digester, there was no need for dung tobe added to the digester with every batch of the feedstock.The ratio of carbon to nitrogen, technically called C/Nratio, was also considered formerly to be an importantcharacteristic of the substrate. But this assumption wasproved wrong by the finding that pure carbohydratesdevoid of any nitrogen also yielded biogas in ample

quantities. Another important finding of ARTI’s wasanaerobic predigestion of agricultural waste. This processyielded organic acids, which can be very easily introducedinto the main digester by simple gravity or by pumpingthe liquid from the predigester into the main digester. Bythis process, the non-digestible material is left behind inthe predigester, from where it can safely be removed,without disturbing the main digester.

However, one big limitation of using agricultural wasteas a feedstock for biogas is that this raw material occursin a diffused manner, scattered all over the countryside.Collecting and transporting it to a central location posesdifficulties. This would require the development ofappropriate strategies, if generation of biogas from thisfeedstock is to be achieved on a commercially viablescale. One of the strategies on which ARTI is currentlyworking is to convert the digestible fraction of agriculturalwaste into organic acids. If this reaction is conducted at anumber of local centres, bringing the organic acids to acentral biogas digester through pipelines would not posemuch of a difficulty.

Anand KarveAppropriate Rural Technology Institute,Near Ganeshnagar, Algudewadi,Phaltan-Baramati Road,Phaltan 415 523, Dist. Satara, MaharashtraE-mail: [email protected]


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ARTI experiments proved that carbohydrates in anyform could be converted to biogas.

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Farmers Diary

Krishna Rai is an exemplary farmer and an innovativeentrepreneur. His farm which carpets over a hectare

of land is a magnificent model of a “forest ecosystem”,in a sense that, everything is integrated into a mutual bondin a surprisingly beneficial way. The crop-livestockintegration is done beautifully.

A plastic fish pond, housing 1,000 fishes, greets a visitor’sentrance along a long stretch of around 10 meters. Fromthere onwards, one can amuse himself at the view of pigs,each weigh over 300 kilograms. Attributing to locationof his farm in hill slope – moving downwards – we canfind bottles hanging along with syringe pipes, which arethe drip irrigators for his pot plants. Behind the mini-kitchen garden, there is an 8,000 litre plastic pond withduck weed floating on surface, which is a feed for pigsand ducks. Ducks feed on pigs’ excreta while mitigatingthe production of mosquito larvae in the process.

There are few greenhouse tunnels where tomatoes aregrown, intercropped with Chinese cabbage andcauliflower. Pumpkins and bitter gourds are suspendedabove tomatoes. On the west side, ducks, chickens andturkeys are reared.

Krishna Rai owns 10 cows. Milk is sold and cow dung isused for producing biogas. The bio-slurry is used to makevermi-compost. With so many integrated enterprises,from a hectare farm, Mr Rai reaps a monthly net incomeof around $ 2,000, which is almost ten times the incomeof an average household.”

Facing the cowshed are the toilets. “From farm tostomach, from stomach to farm” is written on toilets.Stool and urine are collected and stored in differentcontainers and are converted into powerful fertilizers.Human and animal excretions make up the fertilizer bankof Mr Rai, which is converted to vermi compost, vermictea, fertilizer capsules and liquid fertilizers whilepowering bio-gas as well. In this way, every kind oforganic waste is efficiently converted into powerful

Sustainable production and Collective marketingA way out for farmers

fertilizers completing the bio-cycle with optimum utilizationof available resources.

“There is a light bulb hangingover the pond. Everyone askswhy? No one might haveguessed it correct, as, toeveryone’s surprise, it is usedto attract insects at night. When insects die, fishes feedon them,” says Krishna Rai. To combat pests & insects,he makes bio-pesticides out of neem (Azadirachtaindica),Garden cress as well as other pungent smelling plantvarieties. Additionally, he reports, “human/animal urineis super effective in repelling pests & insects”.

Mr Rai has invested two decades of his life on convertingthe land into organic habitat and flaunts his organic badgeon his shoulders. He is also the CEO of Sotang AgricultureFarm & Research Centre. Mr Rai has pioneered organicfarming in his village. Also with his leadership qualitieshe has been able to motivate other farmers to adopt organicfarming methods. The village is also tagged as “ResearchCentre” as continuous research, innovations andimprovements are being made with respect to efficientand effective farming techniques. Collective marketinghas empowered the whole village as this community isan example of how agriculture can transform lives. Illam,the hilly district in East Nepal, embarking on sustainableproduction and collective marketing of cash crops, isamong the most prosperous districts in Nepal. It has thedistinction of having the lowest migration rate and lowestrate of poverty in Nepal. In Rai’s own words, “Propertechnique bolstered by market power is a way out forfarmers.”

The story was shared by Mr. Raj Uprety, Monitoring,Evaluation and Knowledge Management Officer,Samriddhi-Rural Enterprises and Remittances Project/IFAD, Ithari, Sunsari, Nepal. He can be contacted [email protected] 25


Light bulb hung overpond to attract insects


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Fifty food items have been identified as ‘future food’in a report released by German brand Knorr, the World

Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) and Adam Drewnowski,director of The Center for Public Health Nutrition at theUniversity of Washington on February 20, 2019.

“Seventy-five per cent of the global food supply comesfrom only 12 plant and five animal species. Just three(rice, maize and wheat) make up nearly 60 per cent ofcalories from plants in the entire human diet”, the reportstates.

Other important products among the 12 include palm,fruit, oil, potatoes, soybeans, sugar beets, sugar cane, andtomatoes.

The diversity on the plate and on farm lands globally hasreduced as only these 12 crops are focused on in terms ofcultivation. The cost of this has reflected on both, humanhealth and environment. Since 1900, a staggering 75 percent of the genetic plant diversity in agriculture has beenlost, says the report.

Another recent research done by Adam R Martin, assistantprofessor, Department of Physical and Environmental

IN THE NEWS

By Rachel CrowellMay. 7, 2019 , 12:30 PM

To grow the world’s wheat, corn, and beans, farmersneed phosphorus – an essential nutrient that comes

from bird and bat droppings and rock deposits. But theglobal supply of easily mineable phosphorus is dwindling;to stave off the coming drought, scientists are exploringan alternative: recycling animal manure for its phosphoruscontent. Now, they’ve come up with the world’s first mapof this underappreciated resource, which shows that mostmanure is exactly where farmers need it – in their ownbackyards.

To make their map (above), researchers used data onlivestock density and calculated the annual amount ofphosphorus excreted by cattle, pigs, chickens, sheep, andgoats globally – as much as a whopping 130,000kilograms per square kilometer, they report in anupcoming issue of Earth’s Future. (Various estimates puttotal global production between 15 million to 20 millionmetric tons per year.) The researchers found “hot spots,”areas in which manure-based phosphorus is a widelyavailable, but underused, on every continent exceptAntarctica. Unsurprisingly, many of those hot spots arenear farming communities and river deltas whereagricultural runoff abounds.

But reusing old phosphorus is easier said than done. Toprocess pig and cow poo, farmers must break it downwith bacteria or use special equipment to crystallize itsstruvite – the same phosphate mineral that makes up somekidney and bladder stones. These processes are alreadyused by many commercial farms, which together helprecycle about half the global supply of manure. But theyare costly for small family farms, which supply most foodin parts of Asia, sub-Saharan Africa, and Latin America.

The researchers hope their map will encourage countries,including India, Brazil, China, and the United States(which together use 66% of the world’s phosphorusfertilizer), to support phosphorus recycling. Not onlywould more recycling reduce imports, but it would alsohelp the environment by eliminating manure – and itsphosphorus – from the water supply. It could also put afew more years on our phosphorus clock.

https://www.sciencemag.org/news/2019/05/global-map-manure-could-help-save-agriculture-we-know-it

This global map of manure could help save farming as we know it

Future 50’ food items identified in new report


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Sciences and The Centre for Critical DevelopmentStudies, University of Toronto, Scarborough, Canada,states that ‘large industrial-sized farms in Asia, Europe,North and South America looks very similar’. The authorsays that this is because all are focusing on commercialcrops and soybeans, wheat, rice and corn are crops whichcover over 50 per cent of the world’s agricultural lands.

For the research, they used data from the United NationsFood and Agricultural Organization (FAO) to look atwhich crops were grown where on large-scale industrialfarmlands from 1961 to 2014. The study also found thatregionally, the varieties are increasing but on a globalscale, they have dipped after 1990.

These shifts have given rise to malnutrition. Childrenunder five face multiple burdens: 150.8 million arestunted, 50.5 million are wasted and 38.3 million areoverweight, states the 2018 global nutritional report.

Food sovereignty under stake

With current reduction in crop diversity, food sovereigntyhas become a big issue along with food security. Foodsovereignty is the right of peoples to healthy and culturallyappropriate food produced through ecologically soundand sustainable methods, and their right to define theirown food and agriculture systems.

In Thailand, for example, the 16,000 varieties oncecultivated, have dropped to just 37 varieties. In the pastcentury, the United States has lost 80 per cent of itscabbage, pea and tomato varieties.

In India, over 80 to 100 different kinds of seasonal, wild,cultivated and uncultivated foods form a part of the regulardiet, especially among tribal and Dalit communities.These continue to be strongly embedded in the localecological and cultural context. Nutritional analyses ofthese diets shows that the foods can meet and countermalnutrition including micro-nutrient malnutrition suchas Vitamin A Deficiency (VAD). The has been stated inthe report “Exploring the Potential of DiversifiedTraditional Food Systems to Contribute to a HealthyDiet” authored by members of the Food SovereigntyAlliance (FSA), India, along with the Catholic HealthAssociation of India (CHAI).

The Future 50 foods have been recommended toovercome health issues by following sustainable farmingmethods. The criteria for choosing the 50 foods has beenbased on their high nutritional value, relativeenvironmental impact, flavour, accessibility, acceptabilityand affordability.

The 50 have been divided into various category like algae,beans and pulses, cereals and grains, fruits and vegetables,leafy greens, mushrooms, nuts and seeds, root vegetables,sprouts and tubers.

https://www.downtoearth.org.in/news/food/-future-50-food-items-identified-in-new-report-63339

If the planet has to be saved from catastrophic climatechange, by 2040, the world’s food production systems

should absorb more carbon than they emit; in other words,act as a carbon sink, a global report has found.

The EAT- Lancet Commission on Food, Planet andHealth, comprising a team of over 37 experts from 16countries, including India, has cautioned that it would beimpossible to contain global warming unless foodproduction systems, of which agriculture is a vitalcomponent, are not overhauled.

Under the 2015 Paris Agreement, 195 nations agreed tokeep average global warming to well below two degree

Celsius compared to the global temperatures in the pre-industrial era. There is already a rise of one degree inglobal temperatures since 1900.

“In this geological epoch, the Anthropocene, pace andscale of local environmental effects have grownexponentially since the mid-1950s. Humans have becomedominating drivers of change, and food production is thelargest source of environmental degradation and has thegreatest effect on the earth system,” the report, publishedin the Lancet Journal on Thursday, found.

Food production needs to be more eco-friendly

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Food production changes land-use, causes climate change,biodiversity loss, freshwater depletion and involves theuse of chemical fertilizers.

The commission, which focused on two endpoints of theglobal food system — final consumption (healthy diets)and sustainable food production — also offered solutionsto stave off negative impact. “Sustainable food productionfor about 10 billion people should use no additional land,safeguard existing biodiversity, reduce consumptive wateruse and manage water responsibly, substantially reducenitrogen and phosphorus pollution, produce zero carbondioxide emissions, and cause no further increase inmethane and nitrous oxide emissions,” the report said.

The commission attempted to estimate a maximumallowable carbon budget from food production. Forinstance, greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions of methaneand nitrous oxide will have to remain between 4.7 to 5.4gigatonne in 2050. In 2010, these emissions were alreadyestimated to be about 5.2 gigatonnes. Phosphorus usemust be reduced from current usage of 17.9 teragram tobetween 6-16 teragram. Biodiversity loss must bedecelerated from 100 to between 1 to 80 extinctions permillion species annually, no further conversion of landfor agriculture should be allowed. Although totalemissions from food production have been stable since1990, the total estimate of all GHG emissions from foodproduction is 8·5–13·7 gigatones of carbon dioxideequivalent per year.

The report terms these targets “planetary boundaries”(global biophysical limits that humanity should operatewithin to ensure a stable environment) within whichagricultural production must remain to prevent harmfulimpact of climate change like global warming.

Apart from halving the current rate of food losses andwastage, the commission also recommended efficiencyin agricultural land use with a focus on closing yield gapsby at least 75% (yield gap is defined as the differencebetween potential yield and actual farm yield under thesame environment); balancing nitrogen and phosphorusfertilizer application between regions; improved watermanagement; and saving biodiversity in agricultural plots.

“Agriculture is in fact an opportunity to mitigate as wellas adapt to climate change. Policy makers have to realisethat making these changes in the farming system is not

optional any more. I hope the Lancet Commission reachesout to policy makers,” said Kavitha Kuruganti, researcherand activist, Alliance for Sustainable & HolisticAgriculture.

Examples set

In India, two states have taken the lead on demonstratinghow natural farming can be water efficient, help conservebiodiversity and eliminate phosphorus and nitrogenousfertilisers.

In 2003, Sikkim stopped imports of chemical fertilizers,and since then, the cultivatable land there is used fororganic or natural farming. Sikkim won the Future PolicyAward 2018 of the Food and Agricultural Organisation,beating 51 nominated policies from 25 countries, for itssustainable farming practices.

Andhra Pradesh government last year launched a policyto transition 6 million farms and farmers cultivating 8million hectares of land from conventional syntheticchemical agriculture to Zero-Budget Natural Farming by2024.

https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/food-production-needs-to-be-more-eco-friendly/story-FZNXVDAgo6wmN1O6vGa78I.html


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Suresh Kanna K

There is a renewed attention to food production and livelihoodenhancement through home gardens. The Learning Exchange on AgroEcology has provided new ideas and practical learning on effectiverecycling and management of farm wastes while designing homegardens.

Converting waste intovaluable resourcesExperiences from organichome gardens

There is nothing like waste. Waste is only amisplaced resource which can become a valuablematerial for another product. The first goal of any

waste management system is to maximize the economicbenefit from the waste resource and maintain acceptableenvironmental standards. To be practical, the system mustalso be affordable and suitable for the operation. If wastesare not properly handled they can pollute surface water,groundwater and contribute to air pollution. Looking atwaste as a resource is one of the guiding principles ofecological agriculture.

Globally, there is an urgent need to find sustainable usageof the organic wastes produced in the agriculture field.Effective approaches for recycling of organic wasteswithin agriculture can reduce the need for mineralfertilizer and restore organic carbon deficiency in the soil.Every waste material from crop and animal can becarefully collected, conserved and reused on the land.This eventually helps to maintain soil productivity in asystem of intensive cultivation and acts as a ‘buffer’

against shortages of mineral fertilizer. Recycling ofresources also contributes in promoting agro-ecology andenhancing agro-biodiversity.

Understanding the concepts and approaches, a learningexposure program for Youth in Agro-ecology wasorganized in Sri Lanka by PAN AP (Pesticide ActionNetwork Asia and the Pacific), based in Malaysia for itspartners in South Asia. Networking with PAN AP createslearning exchange and capacity building opportunityamong its partners on Bio-diversity based Ecological 29


Every home garden in Srilanka meets 80% of thehousehold nutritional needs


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Agriculture, Food Sovereignty and Agro-Ecology.During March 2018, PAN AP partners involved in thecampaign on “Agro-ecology in action” in Jakarta,Indonesia. There it was decided that conducting a learningexchange programme is one important strategy inadvancing the advocacy in the region. Kudumbam, oneof the key partners of PAN AP for more than two decades,also participated in the learning exchange.

Learning exchange on agro-ecologyBased on the decision, a 4-day Learning Exchangeprogram for youth in agro-ecology was organized in SriLanka during February 2019. The objective of theprogram was to facilitate exchanges on agro-ecologicalpractices among partners from Bangladesh, Cambodia,India, Malaysia, Pakistan, Philippines and Sri Lanka. Itwas also aimed at further sharpening analysis on trendsand issues on agro-ecology and food sovereignty, throughdiscussions. Vikalpani National Women’s Federation, alocal NGO in Sri Lanka organized the learning exchangeprogramme and facilitated the on field and institution-based learning activities.

Participants visited the field area of Vikalpani NationalWomen’s Federation, at Monarawagala, about 350 Kmswest of Colombo. Vikalpani Foundation has beenworking with women farmers in Sri Lanka for more than2 decades by organizing them as groups and promotingorganic home gardens. The participants visited severalhome gardens established by women farmers with thetechnical support from Vikalpani Foundation. Theproduction of all the home gardens is for homeconsumption using the labour sourced from familymembers. Each and every garden is unique and specialin its design and space utilization, both horizontal andvertical, fulfilling the family needs.

The home gardens are very impressive with great amountof species density and diversity of vegetables cropscultivated in the backyard of their homes by organicmethods. In the home gardens, the women farmerscultivated with a combination of vegetables, herbs, greensand trees. These included tomatoes, brinjal, okra, chillies,onion, greens, cluster beans, pepper, bitter gourd, snakegourd, mint, radish, vallaarai, aloevera, coriander,turmeric, garlic, banana, and trees like teak, glyricidia,mango, guava etc. The decisions related to crop selection,procurement of inputs, harvesting, management etc., are

driven by the consumption and income generation needsof the household. The gardens were designed in such away to fulfil almost 80 per cent of their home needs withenhanced nutritional security of farm family members.

Converting waste into manureThe success primarily is owed to the understanding andinvolvement of whole family in recycling resources –converting waste materials into useful resources. It wasvery good learning for the participants to know how thewomen farmers making compost use kitchen waste andcrop residues. Also recycling of waste water from kitchenwas being done by using it for the garden. Theirinnovative techniques on waste recycling using localmaterial are some of the important learnings for theparticipants. Glyricidia sticks were used for creepers,creating a congenial micro climate by preserving soilmoisture. Bio charcoal was being made and used asvaluable manure for the garden.

The participants also witnessed the governmentinitiatives, especially department of agriculture in SriLanka. The department of agriculture has established acentre of excellence for organic agriculture which iscommitted to expand organic agriculture in Sri Lanka.In the centre, they do lot of research on different kinds ofbio inputs before recommending to farmers. Theparticipants also had a chance to visit an amazing homegarden in the urban side developed by an agricultureextension officer herself

ConclusionIn the wake of a global food crisis and the soaring foodprices, there has been increased emphasis on enhancingand building local food systems. In this context, there isrenewed attention to food production and livelihoodenhancement through home gardens. The LearningExchange on Agro Ecology has provided new ideas andpractical learning on effective recycling and managementof farm waste while designing home gardens.

Suresh Kanna K Kudumbam, No. 113/118, Sundaraj Nagar, Subramaniyapuram, Trichy - 620 020, Tamil Nadu, India E-mail: [email protected]


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NEW BOOKSTransforming Gender and Food Security in the Global SouthJemimah Njuki, John R. Parkins, Amy Kaler (Eds.), April 2019, Routledge, 312 pages, £36.99,ISBN: 9780367227678Drawing on studies from Africa, Asia and South America, this book provides empiricalevidence and conceptual explorations of the gendered dimensions of food security. Itinvestigates how food security and gender inequity are conceptualized within interventions,assesses the impacts and outcomes of gender-responsive programs on food security andgender equity and addresses diverse approaches to gender research and practice that rangefrom descriptive and analytical to strategic and transformative.A unique feature of this book is the integration of both analytic and transformative approachesto understanding gender and food security. The analytic material shows how food securityinterventions enable women and men to meet the long-term nutritional needs of theirhouseholds, and to enhance their economic position. The transformative chapters alsodocument efforts to build durable and equitable relationships between men and women,addressing underlying social, cultural and economic causes of gender inequality. Takentogether, these combined approaches enable women and men to reflect on gendered divisionsof labor and resources related to food, and to reshape these divisions in ways which benefitfamilies and communities.

Eating Traditional FoodPolitics, identity and practicesBrigitte Sebastia (Ed.), January 2018, Routledge, 226 pages, £36.99, ISBN: 9780367029838Due to its centrality in human activities, food is a meaningful object that necessarilyparticipates in any cultural, social and ideological construction and its qualification as‘traditional’ is a politically laden value. Through a series of case studies from a global rangeof cultural and geographical areas, the book explores a variety of contexts to reveal thecomplexity behind the attribution of the term ‘traditional’ to food. In particular, the volumedemonstrates that the definitions put forward by programmes such as TRUEFOOD andEuroFIR (and subsequently adopted by organisations including FAO), which have analysedthe perception of traditional foods by individuals, do not adequately reflect this complexity.Overall the book offers fresh perspectives on topics including definition and regulation,nationalism and identity, and health and nutrition, and will be of interest to students andresearchers of many disciplines including anthropology, sociology, politics and culturalstudies.

Peasants Negotiating a Global Policy SpaceLa Vía Campesina in the Committee on World Food Security, 1st EditionIngeborg Gaarde, April 2019, Routledge, 212 pages, £36.99, ISBN: 9780367335090Being the public voice of over 180 member organisations across nearly 90 countries, La VíaCampesina, the global peasant movement, has planted itself firmly on the international scene.This book explores the internationalisation of the movement, with a specific focus on theengagement of peasants in the processes of the Committee on World Food Security (CFS).Since the reform of the CFS in 2009, civil society actors engage in the policy processes ofthis UN Committee from a self-designed and autonomous global Civil Society Mechanism.The author sheds light on the strategies, tensions, debates, and reconfigurations arising fromrural actors moving between every day struggles in the fields and those of the UN arena.The book presents empirical evidence that La Vía Campesina is building a much moresophisticated model. The direct participation of representatives of peasant organisations inthe CFS is highlighted as a pioneering example of building a more complex, inclusive anddemocratic foundation for global policy-making.

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SOURCESFrom Waste to ValueValorisation Pathways for Organic Waste Streams in Circular Bioeconomies, 1st EditionAntje Klitkou, Arne Martin Fevolden, Marco Capasso (Eds.), 2019, Routledge, 306 p., £115.00ISBN: 9781138624979From Waste to Value investigates how streams of organic waste and residues can be transformedinto valuable products, to foster a transition towards a sustainable and circular bioeconomy.The studies are carried out within a cross-disciplinary framework, drawing on a diverse setof theoretical approaches and defining different valorisation pathways.Organic waste streams from households and industry are becoming a valuable resource intoday’s economies. Substances that have long represented a cost to companies and a burdenfor society are now becoming an asset. Waste products, such as leftover food, forest residuesand animal carcasses, can be turned into valuable products such as biomaterials, biochemicalsand biopharmaceuticals. Exploiting these waste resources is challenging, however. It requiresthat companies develop new technologies and that public authorities introduce new regulationand governance models.This book helps policy-makers govern and regulate bio-based industries, and helps industryactors to identify and exploit new opportunities in the circular bioeconomy. Moreover, itprovides important insights for all students and scholars concerned with renewable energy,sustainable development and climate change.

Ecological LivingJohn Gusdorf, 2019, Routledge , 286 pages, £36.99, ISBN: 9780367001865This book emphasizes how we already have the technologies available, including renewableenergy and the ability to recycle most materials, to make ecological living possible and thatperceived barriers to energy transitions can be overcome.Ecological Living presents an optimistic vision of our future by showing how decoupling theproductive system from resource extraction is possible, and how this is a key means ofachieving an equitable world within environmental limits. For long-term sustainability, thebook argues that we must become more efficient in the use of our resources so that resourceextraction, and the accompanying environmental costs, can be reduced.Demonstrating the essential steps towards a just and sustainable world, Ecological Livingwill be of great interest to all students, academics, and policymakers working in the field ofenvironment and sustainability.

Resource Recovery from WasteBusiness Models for Energy, Nutrient and Water Reuse in Low- and Middle-incomeCountries, 1st EditionMiriam Otoo, Pay Drechsel (Eds.), 2018, Routledge, 816 pages, £155.00, ISBN:9781138016552Humans generate millions of tons of waste every day. This waste is rich in water, nutrients,energy and organic compounds. Yet waste is not being managed in a way that permits us toderive value from its reuse, whilst millions of farmers struggle with depleted soils and lackof water. This book shows how Resource Recovery and Reuse (RRR) could create livelihoods,enhance food security, support green economies, reduce waste and contribute to cost recoveryin the sanitation chain.The book provides a compendium of business options for energy, nutrients and water recoveryvia 24 innovative business models based on an in-depth analysis of over 60 empirical cases,of which 47 from around the world are described and evaluated in a systematic way. Thefocus is on organic municipal, agro-industrial and food waste, including fecal sludge,supporting a diverse range of business models with potential for large-scale out-and up-scaling.


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Anithakumari P and Induja S

Systematic recycling and value addition of organic farm residues couldmake the farm more productive and self reliant. Contributing in severalways, recycling resources will also enable farmers to provide ecologicalservice. Resource recycling attains greater importance in ensuringclimate resilience, especially for the small and marginal farmers.

Recycling for resourceefficiencyA practical model for up scaling

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Biogas production and recycling cowdung slurry


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Traditionally farmers have been recycling andreusing resources. Women farmers in smallhomesteads are especially good and innovative

at recycling of farm resources. They utilize the farmresidues as fuel wood, cow dung for making fuel or fornutrition garden, the edible kitchen wastes for dogs andcattle, other kitchen wastes to compost pits or will beapplied in coconut palm basins. When the householdmostly depends on their own farm for food and otherneeds, it is a zero waste and fully recycled system. Suchfarms are simply handed over by generations as a way oflife.

Small family farms are designed for utilizing the resourcesto the maximum and appropriately, by integrating variouscomponents on the farm, to meet the family needs andincome. Such recycled farms transform into eco friendlyfarms, multiplying the beneficial effects. Recycling offarm resources reduces input costs, enables low relianceon external inputs, improves quality of produce andultimately ensures farm sustainability under climatechange conditions.

The initiativeSmall and marginal land holdings invariably adoptlivestock/ poultry components also if depending onfarming for livelihood sources. ICAR-CPCRI isimplementing the farmer FIRST (Farm, Innovation,Resources, Science and Technology) program of ICARat Pathiyor panchayath, Alappuzha district, Kerala statesince 2016, among 1000 farm families. The average landholding size of the farmers was 0.32 ha and livestockunits ranged from one to 30 based on the capacity to investand manage.

Participatory Rural Appraisal (PRA) was conducted forparticipatory analysis of social assets, time utilization,problems and causes, timeline of farming practices,

wealth ranking etc. The major problem and concern oflivestock farmers found, was the disposal of animal wastesfrom their small farms. Sri.Gopalakrishna Pillai,Kottinattu Bunglavu opined that “the semisolid cow dungof 30 cows, urine and shed washing face hurdles inmaintaining hygienic condition both for animals as wellas the family in home surroundings. Moreover since morethan 200 liters of milk is being directly marketed frommy home unruly odour emanating from the animal wastesreflects on the quality of milk production and theacceptability by the consumers”. Also, neighbours werecomplaining and the local self governments imposedcertification for pollution control for these units.

It is to solve these concerns, ICAR-CPCRI under thefarmer FIRST Program (FFP) of Indian Council ofAgriculture (ICAR) evolved a practical model. Therecycling of animal residues was addressed inmultipronged manner.

1. An analysis of the nature of the cow dung (semisolidto loose texture) and quantity to manage per dayincluding cow urine and shed washing done.

2. Farmer participatory experiments planned andconducted with cow dung slurry and cow urine to beused in vermicomposting units, utilizing coconutorganic residues and farm wastes.

3. Shade drying of cow dung as a marketable organicproduct.

4. Recycling of urine and shed washing for fodder grassand vegetable cultivation.

5. Biogas units for cooking gas production.

Ways of RecyclingMr. Gopalakrishna Pillai owns one acre of homesteadfarm. The farm consists of 30 cows and calves, vegetablesgrown organically in 200 grow bags and fodder grassunits. The farm is lush with organic manure/urine andhas two vermicomposting units of 5-6 tons capacityannually, one homestead pond for fish farming, biogasunit, hydroponics fodder unit and coconut trees withintercrops like tubers, spices etc.

Coconut based farming system offers 80-100 kg oforganic residues from one fully grown coconut palm andfrom inter/mixed crops depending upon the crops/ farmcomponents. ICAR-CPCRI technology of

Rice gruel water is reusedfor spraying in banana forfruit growth and tovegetables for pestmanagement.L E I S A I N D I A J U N E 2 0 1 9

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vermicomposting of coconut organic residues wasadopted. Along with coconut organic matter like choppedcoconut fronds, other organic parts of coconut, residuesof inter crops like fodder, tubers/spices, banana,vegetables are also added.

Mrs. Usha his wife manages the application of cow dungslurry in vermicompost units, collection of farm residueslike cow shed feed wastes/dry fallen leaves of thehomestead trees like mango, jack etc and assists inpreparation of cow dung urine mixture for vegetablecultivation. She says, “vermicomposting unit helped usto reduce the organic bulk by 60-70 percent. Besidesmaintaining hygiene in the homestead, recycling isnecessary in homesteads where the farm family & thefarming components co-exist”.

The ash obtained from the kitchen and the fish wastesare also incorporated in the coconut palm basins directly.On an average, 10-12 kg of ash is obtained weekly.Sprinkling of ash on coconut seedlings every weekend isdone which serves as a prophylactic measure for pest anddisease for management in the initial stages.

Also, rice gruel water is reused for spraying in bananafor fruit growth and to vegetables for pest management.The women are the major recyclers of weeds. Fresh orripened leaves of banana/jack tree are fed to the goats,cows and poultry on a dailybasis. Backyard poultry servesas recycler unit of food wastes,fish wastes and the paddywastes in homesteads. Therecycled farm residues are inturn providing fresh vegetablesor eggs in the homestead.

Mr. Gopalakrishna Pillai,reiterated that “transportationand use of bulk fresh cow dungfaces low demand, incurs highlabour charges for handlingand faces disposal problem dueto accumulation, especiallyduring the monsoon/ rainyperiods. Throughvermicomposting, I could addvalue to cowdung. By

recycling, I am producing vermicompost for farm use aswell as selling the surplus”. The shade dried cow dung isin much demand among marginal land holders and parttime farmers of cities/ towns, fetching Rs.12 per kilogramto the farmer. Mr. Gopalakrishna Pillai also earns byselling vermicompost to the tune of 5-6 tons per year.

Gopalakrishna Pillai supplies 200-300 liters of milk everyday directly from his homestead. Also, this farm familyvouches for the tasty, nutritious and farm fresh vegetablesaround their house through recycling of cow urine, cowdung and biogas slurry.

Sri. Gopalakrishna Pillai, a banker turned model farmer,has more than 100 visitors every day. The model ofintegrated farming system and the recycling of farmwastes as valuable compost, green fodder, pond fishes,vegetables and fruits are the learning models they imbibefrom here. The women folks are happy that the vegetablesobtained can be freshly picked and the storage period ofcucurbits is enhanced in this type of cultivation. Anyhousehold could convert the organic wastes of theirhousehold, to tasty leafy vegetables / vegetables easilyby the members of the home, through recycling as liquidmanure, solid manure, vermicompost etc.

Mr. Gopalakrishna Pillai was awarded the best farmer ofthe panchayath for following organic cultivation practices.

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Fig.1. Farm family model of resource recycling in coconutbased homestead system


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reliant by providing essential nutrients to the soil.Vermicomposting enables bio suppression of microbialpathogens along with enriching soil of beneficialmicrobes. Composting also makes free form of nutrientsavailable to crops refining itself as an odour free sweetsmelling natural product. The biogas production inanaerobic condition utilized as bio fuel helps to reducethe direct release of green house gases in farms.Contributing in several ways, recycling resources willalso enable farmers to provide an ecological serviceearning green money. Overall, resource recycling attainsgreater importance in ensuring climate resilience,especially for the small and marginal farmers.

Anithakumari PPrincipal Scientist (Agrl. Extension*)E-mail: [email protected]

Induja SScientist (Microbiology)ICAR Central Plantation Crops Research InstituteKrishnapuram P.O., Kayamkulam, Kerala

His farm is a dynamic example for efficient resourcerecycling and self reliant farming.

Up scaling as a social modelThe resource recycling model has been adopted by 15homesteads in the panchayath. Farm residue recyclingcum value addition units will be set up and thefarmers will adopt integrated farming systems.Mr. V. Prabhakaran, Pathiyoor grama panchayathPresident is very confident that the fifteen young farmersincluding seven women, will be successful in recyclingresources and also be able to get some income from theinitiative. He says, “efficient and scientific recycling offarm residues in decentralized manner in a panchayathcould enhance the motivation levels for production of safe,tasty and nutritious food in the rural areas. Womenfarmers could play a greater role in this for recycling thelocal resources. We are now advising them to recycleweeds and other farm residues obtained in MGNREGSactivities, back to the soil by directly incorporating,instead of burning them”.

Systematic recycling and value addition of organic farmresidues could make the farm more productive and self

Women recycling farm residues for tuber planting

june 2019 volume 21 no.2 leis india...leisa india june 2019 2 a june 2019 volume 21 no. 2 indi leis...

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