The Hindu : Creating villages free from chemical fertilizers

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Monday, Mar 22, 2004

Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu - Tiruchi

Creating villages free from chemical fertilizers

By L. Renganathan

TIRUCHI, MARCH 21 . While there has been a worldwide cry against the ill-effects of chemical fertilizers on humans and environment, it has taken time to percolate to the fields. This was primarily because of certain inhibitions, including fear of suffering huge loss, of the farmers. Continuous education, especially for the cotton farmers, who apply more chemical fertilizers than others, by governmental agencies and non-governmental organisations, has slowly weaned the farmers away from harmful chemical fertilizers.

Sustained fieldwork on educating the farmers on the advantages of using biofertilizers over chemical mixtures has started yielding results. Having realised the benefits of the Integrated Pest Management (IPM) techniques, farmers, for example, in Maniyankurichi village in Tiruchi district are now more inclined to desist from applying chemical fertilizers for their cotton and other crops being cultivated in the area.

The endeavour got a thrust in Tiruchi district when an NGO, Voice Trust, started conducting the Farmers Field School (FFS) under the Food And Agriculture Organisation - European Union IPM Programme for Cotton in Asia. The impact of the FFS on the farmers is noteworthy and amazing. After getting educated in IPM, many farmers came forward to start the IPM Farmers Club in their villages. One such IPM Club was inaugurated at Maniyankurichi by the former Senior Country Officer, Regional IPM Programme in Asia, Doris V. Werner, and the FAO Country Officer, Palanisamy Pachagounder, recently.

``We have understood that by following the IPM techniques in cotton, we can save up to Rs. 5,000 per acre. Apart from economics, we gain more by way of health care aspects. We plan to propagate the benefits of adopting IPM techniques to others in the village'' says the secretary of the IPM Farmers' Club, Maniyankurichi.

The success of the programme is reflected in the fact that the president of the club, T. Muthuselvan, who had a fertilizer shop, has switched loyalty to IPM methods and has started propagating the values of IPM. Among the Club's 25 members, there are five women as well. The Club's aim is to prepare and market all organic agricultural inputs. More than that, we want to change the profile of the village, where chemical fertilizers are being extensively used, to that of a biovillage, says Mr. Muthuselvan.

We also want to start micro level agro-based enterprises such as `eri silkworm' rearing, poultry birds rearing and biofertilizer production to generate more income through our combined efforts, says the club secretary, S. Duraisamy.

Initially the farmers were hesitant, but now after six months of field training, club farmers are teaching inquisitive others IPM techniques and advantages. ``We taught them various aspects of integrated crop management including emphasis on organic manures such as vermi compost and coir pith compost, role of nutrients, prudent water management, weed management, seed treatment, yield analysis and cost benefit ratio'', the Project Director of the Voice Trust, A. Gregory, said.

``Our results have paid rich dividends in that IPM Farmers Clubs have been established successfully in 19 villages in Tiruchi district'', he adds. These clubs would no doubt form bedrock for creating more bio-villages free from chemical fertilizers.

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Tamil Nadu

News Update

Stories in this Section

Creating villages free from chemical fertilizers

`Install electronic digital meters in autorickshaws'