Report of the Western Ghats Ecology Expert Panel - Part II : Actionable points for the WGEA : 3. Towards Multi-centred Governance in the Western Ghats : UNESCO’s World Heritage Convention
Opinion
23/12/2018
1618.
SUB : Report of the Western Ghats Ecology Expert Panel - Part II : Actionable points for the WGEA : 3. Towards Multi-centred Governance in the Western Ghats : UNESCO’s World Heritage Convention
REF : UNESCO’s World Heritage Convention :
Appendices
Appendix 1 : Kerala State Organic Farming Policy, Strategy and Action Plan, Govt of Kerala, 2010
1. Vision :
Make Kerala’s farming sustainable, rewarding, and competitive, ensuring poison-free water, soil and food to every citizen.
2. Background :
India has a glorious history of farming, starting probably from the 6th millennium BC in the Indus Valley, harnessing the annual floods and the subsequent alluvial deposits. The Indus Valley Civilization was founded on sustainable farming practices. Subsequently, our culture and ethos became reflections of the agricultural practices and it became mutually inseparable till recently. The harvest of the main crops is celebrated throughout the country.
In Kerala, it went to the extent of identifying the farmland with Mother God or a female. Just like the female has to take rest after delivery, the farm land has also to be given rest for three months after the harvest; tilling is strictly prohibited during this period. Although it may look superstitious, the ecological reason behind this ritual is that tilling during the monsoon leads to severe soil erosion and thus, is an unsustainable practice. Therefore, sustainability has been the hallmark of our farming system from time immemorial; growing the time tested, weather suited, traditional crops with or without additional organic inputs, but deeply interwoven with the ecological systems and climatic conditions.
The once flourished Pokkali cultivation in the coastal districts and the Kaipad farming system in Kannur district are testimonials to man’s ingenuity in harnessing the natural events for farming, that too integrated farming, without affecting the natural ecological processes and without even any external inputs.
However, the so-called modern agriculture – unmindful of the ecosystem principles so revered and practiced for centuries –l ed to seemingly irrevocable ecological and environmental catastrophes in the country. The Green Revolution essentially replaced the traditional varieties with high-yielding ones. These high-yielding varieties now recognized as ‘high input varieties’ needed tonnes of fertilizers, to achieve the target growth. The crops and varieties alien to the soil attracted new pests and diseases and also outbreaks of existing pests. To combat them, came in huge quantities of pesticides. Input of these "exotic" elements into the traditional farming led to a multitude of environmental issues.
The microorganisms declined; the soil lost its fertility and vitality; water demand increased and, the time tested traditional varieties disappeared. In short, the century-old practices came to a halt. The eternal relationship between the farmer and farmland was lost. More importantly, sustainability of the agriculture systems collapsed, cost of cultivation soared, income of farmers stagnated and, food security and food safety became a daunting challenge.
Biodiversity in the agricultural fields has now become a history of the past. The farmland became silent; devoid of the croak of frogs, chattering of warblers, whistling of Whistling Ducks. The long tubular straw striven nests of the Baya weaver bird hanging on the fronds of palms – a once spectacular sight – have disappeared from most localities. The insectivorous birds such as the drongo, bee-eater, even the house sparrow became rare or locally extinct, indicating the collapse of the entire food webs of the farmland.
In the forestry sector, fortunately, the use of pesticides has been much less. However, the aerial spraying of pesticides in India was first tried in Kerala in 1965 to control the teak defoliators in Konni forest division. It was noted that within 48 hours nearly 162 non-target species of arthropods were knocked down.
The mentally and physically retarded and handicapped children in Padri village in Kasergod tell the world in unequivocal terms the tragedies and disasters that aerial spraying of pesticides could inflict on human life.
As a result of all these "modern" techniques, the air, water and the soil were polluted; most food grains and farm products were contaminated by pesticides. The run off from the farm land contaminated the wetlands – rivers, tanks, ponds, reservoirs, lakes and all water bodies – and the life in them. Fishes carried high levels of pesticides and also heavy metals, the latter as a result of the many chemical industries that sprang up to provide chemical fertilizers.
Health hazards became unimaginably high. Incidence of fatal diseases rose. Hospitals with modern amenities came up in the cities as profit-making industries. Pharmaceuticals flourished.
Food crops became non-attractive, while cash crops became more remunerative. Rice fields have been filled up for non-agricultural activities. The area under cash crops expanded during the last 20 years (16% under rubber alone), while that under food crops plummeted (to just 9% of the total cultivated area). The monoculture of such economically valuable crops led to soil erosion and loss of soil fertility to a great extent. The advent of chemical intensive farming and its prevalence in Kerala for the past 50 years have resulted in the near stagnant levels of productivity of many of these economically important crops such as coconut, cashew, pepper, coffee, tea, cardamom and arecanut. Besides these, many regions in Kerala, like Wayanad started facing acute water scarcity. The State has taken note of it and given priority in the Eleventh Five Year Plan.
Over and above, the economic liberalization and WTO policies added to the woes of the farmers by bringing down the prices of agriculture commodities. They are caught in the debt trap owing to the loans taken to meet the high cost of farming, as it demanded more external inputs such as fertilizers, pesticides and water. These led to increasing instances of suicide by farmers. Investment in agriculture has essentially changed from the farmer to the industries supplying input to the farmer, and as a direct consequence, net income for farmers decreased while the industries supporting agriculture in the country flourished.
The national policies of opening the retail sector to national and multinational companies pose great threat to our food sovereignty and right to safe food. The enhanced ‘food miles’ led to increased carbon emission, further increasing the load of green house gases. The potent danger of introducing Genetically Modified crops, monopoly of seeds by national and multinational corporate bodies could very well be the last straw on the camel’s back for the farmers of Kerala.
Many farmers have realized that they are fighting a losing battle with the "high yield variety-fertilizer-pesticide pack" of the Green Revolution. They have also realized that the degradation and disruption of the fragile ecosystems of ‘God’s own country’ are the chief culprits for the water scarcity, nutritional insecurity, loss of primary productivity and agrarian crisis being faced by the State.
The farmers in Kerala are convinced that the only way is to return to the traditional sustainable ways of cultivation without harming the ecosystem. Thus organic farming, a system with the broad principle of ‘live and let live’, came up which was recognized nationally and internationally.
Organic agriculture is not limited to crop production alone, but encompasses animal husbandry, dairy, fisheries, poultry, piggery, forestry, bee keeping, and also uncultivated biodiversity around.
By and large, there is an increasing awareness among the consumers also on the deleterious effects of pesticides and hence, there has been a high demand for organically cultivated food produce. Therefore, it has become a solemn responsibility of the Government to encourage organic farming to ensure poison-free food at an affordable price to every citizen.
There have been demurs and doubts on the practicability of organic farming on the grounds that the production would plummet and the country would once again be forced to yet another food crisis. This is quite unfounded. Success stories on high productivity of organic farming are now abundant.
The Food and Agriculture Organization reports at the International Conference on Organic Agriculture and Food Security 2007 as follows :
"Conversion of global agriculture to organic management, without converting wild lands to agriculture and using N-fertilizers, would result in a global agricultural supply of 2640 to 4380 kcal/person/day. Sustainable intensification in developing countries through organic practices would increase production by 56 per cent. Organic yields on average are comparable to conventional yields; although yields do decline initially when converting from high-input systems and almost double when converting from low-input systems".
It also has found that organic farms use 33 to 56 percent less energy per ha than conventional farms.
Worldwide, as of now, more than 22.81 million hectares of land area are managed organically and the market of organic food is around $30 billion. It may be noted that Cuba, a country with 42,402 sq. miles of land and with 11.3 million people, is completely organic.
A brief history of organic farming :
Pesticides have been in use in agriculture since the Second World War and from the very beginning there have been concerns about the commercialization of chemical pesticides. Rachel Carson’s "Silent Spring" published in 1964 brought out the scientific certainties of the impacts of pesticides on environment. Although DDT was banned in the developed world in the 1970s, and its use in the agriculture fields of developing countries later, varieties of toxic pesticides found their way into the farms .The scientific predictions of Rachel Carson became true and the public, especially farmers and scientists, the world over realised the dangers of pesticides. This led to the beginning of non-chemical farming. Researches and trials of traditional methods and also new models of soil and crop management began to appear.
For the last 4–5 decades scientists have been trying to find out a sustainable agricultural system. One of the prominent personalities among them was Sir Albert Howard, the Advisor for Agriculture in India from 1905 to 1924. "An Agricultural Testament", written by him, is considered to be the first authentic book on organic farming in India. The "indoor method" in organic composting was also worked out first by him.
The permaculture (permanent agriculture) experiments of Bill Mollison and Holmen in the 1970s gave hope to many farmers the world over. The permaculture wave had its impact in Kerala too and since then many farmers have started experimenting with this methodology and they found that this is one of the best practices for Kerala with its topographical peculiarities and high rainfall so as to conserve soil and water and improve productivity of their farms.
In a report submitted in 1983 to the Department of Agriculture of the United States, Robert Papendick and James Parr, agriculture scientists of the same department, had emphasised the crucial need for focussing research on sustainable agriculture to replace the farming systems being followed using chemical pesticides and fertilizers.
The infamous Bhopal tragedy of 1984 was an eye opener to a larger section of people in India and abroad. Discussion on alternatives began seriously. Publication of the book "One Straw Revolution" in 1984 by Masanobu Fukuoka (a Japanese scientist turned farmer), on his success in natural farming for the last half a century and, translation of his book into Malayalam in 1985 were timely in channelising such discussions in Kerala. Biodynamic farming was another method of organic farming which attracted many farmers.
The very sustainability of agriculture assumed serious concern in the discussions among the farmers and organizations in Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Punjab and Kerala during the same period. The total external dependence of farmers for agriculture inputs had started affecting their economies leading to desperation among farming communities and ultimately to an agrarian crisis. As an alternative, to make farming sustainable, Low External Input Sustainable Agriculture (LEISA) thus gained momentum in many places, especially sustainable among small and marginal farmers. The agriculture crisis that began in the late 1990s further strengthened this movement. Many individuals and organizations started interacting with farmers to make them understand the problems of the modern agriculture.
Thus, from a simple beginning, organic farming later matured to such dimensions as women’s empowerment, seed conservation, development of seed banks, value addition and, more importantly, food and nutritional security. It took only 10–15 years for this transition and the results are encouraging.
Currently there are a number of certified organic farmers in the state, those cultivating cash crops such as spices, tea, and coffee, mainly targeting the export market and also non-certified organic farmers who focus on food crops and biodiversity. All of them, whether
certified or not, focus clearly on soil health improvement. Kerala also has an accredited organic certifying agency catering to the needs of the farmers.
Some of the farming systems such as Pokkali and Kaipad cultivation, cultivation of Jeerakasala and Gandhakasala varieties of paddy in Wayanad and, homestead farming systems all over the state are organic by default. Studies have established the economic viability and productivity of homestead farms in the State and elsewhere. Recently the Adat panchayath in Thrissur district has started organic cultivation of rice in an area of 2,500 acres, promoting integrated farming system, which is known as the Adat model. Similarly, Marappanmoola in Wayanad has another model organic farming system involving hundreds of farmers.
Marketing of organic produce is also being experimented upon in many places like Organic Bazaar in Thiruvananthapuram, Eco-shops in Thrissur and Kozhikode, and Jaiva Krishi Sevana Kendram in Kannur. Self-help groups of women are encouraged to undertake organic farming of vegetables in some panchayats.
There is a rich potential for promoting organic farming in Kerala in the light that intensity of inorganic agriculture here is not that severe compared to that in other States in the country. While the national average consumption of fertilizers and pesticides during 2002–2003 was 90kg/ha and 288g/ha respectively, it was only 60kg/ha and 224g/ha respectively in Kerala. This points to the positive side of agriculture in Kerala in terms of the already low levels of consumption of hazardous chemicals and, therefore, chances of redeeming farmers to organic agriculture are quite high.
Realising the ground realities, the State Department of Agriculture commenced organic farming promotional activities since 2002–03. In the following year, the Department set up a cell for Promotion of Sustainable Agriculture and Organic Farming. It has also launched two brands, namely ‘Kerala Organic’ and ‘Kerala Naturals’ to market organic farm produces. Currently, about 7,000 farmers practice organic farming in the State as per NPOP standards, covering a total area of 5750 ha. But non-certified organic cultivation areas, assessments of which have not been done, are expected to be much more than this.
Benefits of organic farming :
Makes agriculture more rewarding, sustainable and respectable.
Sustains soil fertility by preventing the loss of soil and leaching of minerals.
Protects and enriches biodiversity – micro organisms, soil flora and fauna, plants and animals.
Requires less water and promotes water conservation.
Improves and maintains the agro-ecosystem and natural landscapes for sustainable production.
Depends mostly on renewable on-farm resources.
Encourages consumption of renewable energy resources – mechanical and other alternate sources of fuel.
Includes domestic animals as an essential part of the organic system which helps maintaining soil fertility and also increases the income of farmers.
Ensures pollution free air, water, soil, food, and natural ecosystems.
Improves agro-biodiversity (both varieties and crops).
Protects and enhances traditional knowledge in farming, processing and seed improvement leading to its protection for the future generations.
Reduces the cost of production through locally suitable methods and inputs.
Produces adequate quantity of nutritious, wholesome and best quality food and develops a healthy food culture.
Reduces food mileage, and thereby, carbon emission.
The State Government is seized of the importance of organic farming, and realized the health hazards and un-sustainability of chemical farming as it clearly states in its Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan that the state has to have an organic farming policy to protect its rich biodiversity and thus sustain various livelihoods dependent on this precious resource.
Organic Farming Policy, Strategy and Action Plan Objectives :
1. Make farming sustainable, remunerative and respectable.
2. Enhance natural soil fertility and productivity.
3. Ensure soil and water conservation.
4. Ensure agricultural bio-security and food and nutritional security.
5. Create and ensure domestic market for organic products controlled by the farmers.
6. Avoid the use of agrochemicals and other hazardous material, and ensure chemical-free water, soil, air and food.
7. Ensure seed, food and sovereignty.
8. Promote biodiversity based ecological farming.
9. Ensure quality control in organic inputs and agricultural produce
10. Enable human health promotion by providing safe agricultural products and commodities
11. Conservation and extension of traditional knowledge related to agriculture.
NEXT : FAO put the objectives succinctly : Strategies and Action Plan :
JAI HIND
VANDE MATARAM
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