Organic Farming
The intensive cultivation practices with the use of chemical fertilizers, pesticides and hybrid varieties have not only polluted the soil water and the environment but also affected the soil and human health. The productivity in many crops has shown declining trends. There is development of resistance among the pests against many pesticides. Heavy irrigation in command area combined with indiscriminate use of chemical fertilizers has resulted in deposition of salts in soil leading to salinity-alkalinity problems eventually leading to unprofitable agriculture. In view of these issues and problems, KVK has made an intervention to provide low cost eco-friendly production technology for sustaining the livelihood security of the farming community. Various eco-friendly crop production techniques like crop rotation, green manuring, trash mulching, use of compost, animal and plant waste, vermicompost, bio-fertilizers, bio-pesticides and botanical extracts are being used in integration to conserve the natural resources. It is equally important to minimize the cost of production as well as to protect human health and environment through intensive application of eco-friendly methods of organic farming. Similarly employment generation to rural youths need to be achieved through production and supply of various biological inputs like bio-pesticides and bio-fertilizers. There is wide scope for promoting the export of agricultural commodities through group certification of organic farms. These objectives were thought out by KVK while implementing organic farming programme in the villages.
Activities
The state level seminar on organic farming was organized in the year 1998 for three days in which farmers from different parts of the state participated. The seminar was first of its kind in the state where the organic cultivators and the scientists had an open brainstorming and from this many organic farming promoters were developed in the state. These experts are working in their area.
A book on organic farming was written by the Programme Coordinator Dr.Bhaskar Gaikwad in 1995 and received the best book as well as maximum circulation awards. From the inception of the KVK, major focus was given on promotion of organic farming concept and for which different projects and inputs-services were started at KVK. Eco-friendly inputs like pheromone traps, neem oil, bio-pesticides and bio-fertilizers were provided to the farmers in the village level. At the same time production units of bio-pesticides, bio-fertilizers and vermicompost have been established for the continuous and quality supply of the inputs to the farmers. For generating the awareness and convincing the farmers regarding environment friendly agriculture practices various projects on biological control of crop pests and diseases, production and use of botanical pesticides, bio-village concepts have been implemented with the financial support of DBT and CAPART. Similarly some package of practices and technical conclusions were drawn with regard to standardization of botanical pesticides, proper methods for application of bio-pesticides and bio-fertilizers as well as low cost method of vermicompost production. For demonstration of the organic methods of crop production for 10 cultivated crops of economic importance, the project on organic farming was implemented in 20 villages. Through this project necessary demonstrations of organic farming were organized with 200 farmers and farmwomen on 80 ha area continuously for three years. Trainings on all aspects of the organic cultivation were organized for the farmers in the villages for wider adoption of this concept. A model organic farm of mango is developed on KVK demonstration farm.
KVK has also used this technical intervention among farmers through group approach employing a strong network of 145 Farmers Clubs. The efforts were disseminated on large scale with the help of mass media, articles in news papers, AIR programmes, TV programmes to percolate the concept among the farmers. The exposure visits of farmers were also organized in neighboring districts to visit certified organic farming plots. Two Video CDs on organic farming for agricultural and horticultural crops were developed for circulation among the farming community. Two exhibitions were organized in the KVK campus particularly for promotion on this concept by exhibiting various inputs as well as products.
v Vermicompost production units were started by 353 farmers and farmwomen in the surrounding villages.
v Use of organic mulching in sugarcane and horticultural crops has become a routine practice.
v Adoption of bio-pesticides and bio-fertilizers among the contact farmershas increased.
v Developed 20 resource persons on organic farming concept.
v Increased awareness about the ill effects of chemicals on health and environment resulting in change in the attitude to adopt the organic methodologies of
agriculture in the vicinity of the target population.
v Increased interest among the farmers for certification of organic farming
v Concept of organic milk production has started by one farmer and producing daily 200-300 lit milk.
v KVK has become a resource center for state agriculture department and NGOs in the state.
v One farmer has been started exporting the vermicompost and earning the foreign exchange.
v Organic product marketing has been started by one group by formation of company in Pune.
Contributed to conservation of bio-diversity and natural resources