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Discovering the past and inventing the future of sustainable agriculture
 One of the important achievements of VK-NARDEP in the field of sustainable agriculture is the realization of inter-connectivity between the different sub-systems in agro-eco system through effective cost-effective eco-technology. Thus backyard Azolla cultivation in silpauline sheet is a technology that VK-NARDEP has disseminated among lakhs of marginal dairy farmers. Apart from being an effective bio-feed that reduces feed expenditure and increases quality and quantity of milk yield, Azolla is also used as nitrogen fixing bio-fetilizer in paddy fields. Azolla also functions as weed suppressant. VK-NARDEP conducts training on Azolla-backyard cultivation technology for marginal and small farmers every month at Kanyakumari. Azolla cultuivation is also linked with two tier vermicompost. In this method Azolla bed becomes protection for earthworms from sunshine and predatory birds. Farming communities have also fed Azolla to earthworm in vermicompost pits. VK-NARDEP has also revived and standardized many traditional liquid bio-fertililzers, bio-pesticides and organic growth promoters.
- This include
- Panchagauya
- Tri-leaf extract
- Fish-amino
- Living water and
- Vermi wash
VK-NARDEP has also produced extension literature for the promotion of these bio-products in the rural areas. These pamphlets are produced in Tamil with good illustrations.VK-NARDEP also promotes field bio-diversity by encouraging inter-cropping and mixed cropping.It also revives the cultivation of traditional local rice varities which are often lost due to germplasm erosion as a result of HYV
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Last Updated on Saturday, 03 January 2009 10:35 |
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An Independence day Feature 
The celestials, human beings and demons, went to their Source. They sought the means to happiness. The Source through thunder spoke to them the syllable DA. 'Did you understand?' 'We understood,' the celestials said. 'You told us, "Be self-controlled (damyata)" 'Aum,' the Source said. 'You understood.'
One of the important points of difference between sustainable agriculture and chemicalised agriculture is that while the former is biomass based the latter is yield based. The dominant thinking for almost the last five decades, has concentrated on the reductionist target of yield and this in turn has resulted in agriculture becoming more and more single crop oriented. Monoculture of the mind bred monoculture in agriculture. This in turn has made the agricultural fields highly vulnerable to external factors—from invigorated pest attacks to market forces violently unstable and unpredictable.
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Last Updated on Friday, 19 March 2010 19:36 |
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The same philosophy of holism guides the approach of VK-NARDEP to sustainable agriculture also. Its approach is not piece-meal approach but a united approach to the problems of the farm as a whole and is particularly specific to the small farmers who are today facing the brunt of increasingly cost-intensive and energy-intensive ‘modern’ agriculture.
In sustainable agriculture, VK-NARDEP uses a five fold approach in developing the suitable technologies for the farmers. This consists of:
• Effective harvesting of sunlight
• Efficient Water Utilization
• Integrated Nutrient management
• Integrated Pest management
• Promoting Biodiversity in and around the field
In tune with the above five principles, the following are the technologies VK-NARDEP has developed and propagated to the farming communities:
a) Vermi compost
b) Backyard Azolla cultivation as bio-feed and bio-fertilizer
c) Biogas slurry based manure
d) Multi-tier cropping system
e) Pheromone and Light trap systems for pest management
Each of these technologies have been taken up by farming communities and round the year training camps have ensured that always NGOs and farmers’ associations, Cooperatives of marginal dairy farmers have received the technology training.
Backyard Azolla cultivation in particular needs special mention. In 1999 VK-NARDEP discovered the potential of Azolla as bio-feed and soon it developed a backyard Azolla cultivation technology package specially designed for small and marginal farmers.
In 2000, VK-NARDEP conducted the first workshop on Azolla bio-feed for the officials of MILMA Kerala sponsored by NDDB. The same year nutrient content of Azolla was published after a detailed study. In 2001, we conducted Training programmes for NGO’s milk Co- operatives of Tamil Nadu and Kerala. In Kerala, we trained many NGOs. The government of Kerala with the help of VK-NARDEP provided block-level training in the technology. The table below provides the list of NGOs and extent of technology dissemination done by VK-NARDEP.
Backyard Azolla cultivation technology propagated by us has indeed stirred a white revolution for the marginal dairy farmers of Kerala and has reached more than 50,000 farmers. Now the technology has spread to other states as well.
Equally important is the work on Biogas Slurry based Manure (BgM). This technology package developed by VK-NARDEP is based on the philosophy of famous Gandhian economist J.C. Kumarappa, who was the first person to proclaim the importance of spent biogas slurry as nutrient rich organic manure. In order to disseminate biogas technology as a way of life of the farmer, VK-NARDEP has evolved a package that uses effectively the biogas slurry and develops many cost-effective backyard technologies for agricultural inputs.
In the village of Puliangudi, Tirunelveli district, where VK-NARDEP has installed biogas plants, the slurry usage for manure has made farmers give up chemical fertilizers and take up organic farming. Voluntarily biogas users of the farming community have formed the organic farmers club and are now providing the ‘do-how’ of organic farming techniques to neighbouring villages.
VK-NARDEP is also studying the use of bio-fuel from non-edible oil seeds. Already a 1 cu.m biogas plant is being trial run on Neem cake and a generator is being run on neem oil.
Low volume biogas plant innovation by VK-NARDEP has made it possible for even marginal dairy farmers to have biogas plant constructed.
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Last Updated on Monday, 05 January 2009 19:49 |
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