What separates Dr. Swaminathan from the rest of the pack is his ability to shine in the lab, at world conferences and connect with the people who count, the SME farmer. If ever there was a road map for cross cutting and integration and GIS and network mobilization, just follow in the good Doctor's shadow. A hundred more like him and we've won the Evergreen Revolution.
The advantage he may have -other than his experience and situational omnivision- has to do with the relatively short amount of time between Ag Revolutions. The metaphorical cement had yet to dry. In the U.S. for example, commercial/industrial scale mono-cropping and customs and practices of till and fertilise farming goes back generations and you'd be hard pressed to find an old timer who can remember a time when farming didn't involve eco-productivity destroying practices. In the case of U.S. the cement is hard and thick, and convincing -en mass- a change toward scaled commercial sustainable ag-business that involves companion cropping, stacking, eco-synthesis, is a hard sell. The scale of failure is much bigger and much more disastrous for the US farmer. Government safety nets need to usher in the new era of evergreen farming if U.S. food security is to be assured.
In India, the farmers are in numbers that are hard to comprehend...100's of millions...each with a small holding of a few bigha (acre or two) and have been only recently doing anything other than subsistence farming. Therefore, when word spreads that a small farm operation is producing double or triple output at half cost inputs, the bandwagon fills faster. With the support of coops and organizations such as BAIF-DRF can get fast traction, wide-spread acceptance and a full band-wagon of other farmer coops wanting in on the wind of change. In this case, the recent development of farming has not allowed the 'cement' of bad practices to set, and as such the develop-it-right-the-first-time can rapidly usher in change that will secure India's food security (which is in critical condition) and needs pulled back from the brink.
One critique (which is very much a bi-line re the news editor of the article herein below), is the failure to describe the project for what it is: a "permaculture". The politics of semantics (particularly in the research and institution fields) is a barrier to cross-cutting and necessary networking. I should hope this was the oversight of the writer and not another example of rebranding an internationally recognized format. If so it is at the expense of the proliferation of a critical global message and a much needed signature example of success. The risk of failing to use uniform and established terms (in favor or regionally invented terms for the same thing) is that is prevents the spread of information and the likelihood that cross border, cross culture networks can be formed. The global lexicon must be uniform because the challenges are global and common. This is not for sake of convenience, it is critical that all communicate and use the vast information networks effectively, and without ego, to advance humanity's evergreen development and retreat from the current race to tipping point. If one were to google permaculture news...this fine and necessary news -as well of those involved-would not produce a hit. That's dangerous. As such we tagging this installment in order to effect network awareness.
The other critique is the repeated failure to attach economic meaning to scientific programs. Science for the sake of science is fine if it isn't key to our survival. In order for a finding to gain traction is must prove in the commercial market. Farmers must feed their families and develop out of subsistence. Whether any of us like it or not, or it offends our 'green' virtue or scientific ethic, the hope of economic sustainability is an important a component of any plan. As important as equality and ecology. All three must balance. Period. Full stop. Media must adopt a 3BL approach and Social Impact awards such as one sponsored by (of all entities) JP Morgan should insist that Social work produce three pillar results...The market is the proving ground and is where we as humans live. We as humans trust in numbers, and again this is a common and persuasive tool of communication that must be included, lest the news becomes a 'feel good' piece. PGI, as a private business development consultancy has been viewed with a jaundice eye at times from those who question why it is not an NGO or charitable organization. The mental wall that separates the interests of commerce and environment and social welfare must be destroyed in favor of 3BL CSR approaches to the world's problems and solutions. Life with each other and with nature cannot be divided like a newspaper into sections 'Business' 'Life' 'Environment', they are all one and in time it will bedevil editors as to what story goes where. In the interim, journalists should include economics and performance metric information in their stories as an agent of change and public awareness of the evergreen paradigm that is upon us.
C O N T R I B U T I O N TO E N V I R O N M E N T
Preserving nature and helping farmers at one go
Vishwas Kothari & Vijay Pinjarkar
TNN
Akole (Ahmednagar district)/Etapalli (Gadchiroli district): Until a few years ago, farm yields in the tribal areas of Akole tehsil in Maharashtra’s Ahmednagar district were very low and people found it difficult to make ends meet. Since then, they have had their own little White Revolution, a success story in sustainable rural livelihood that has worked wonders for the environment.
This turnaround was the result of an initiative led by the Pune-based BAIF Development Research Foundation (BAIF-DRF).
Elsewhere, in the Naxalite-dominated Gadchiroli district, villagers say their income almost doubled after they took up sericulture, honey collection, chestnut farming and lac harvesting, all of which BAIF-DRF (formerly Bharatiya Agro Industries Foundation) facilitated. The projects were launched in Etapalli, Bhamragarh and Aheri tehsils. At Etapalli, over 22 self-help groups now work in seven villages in a 24km radius.
BAIF-DRF’s approach was to ensure sustainable livelihoods without increasing pressure on natural resources. It initiated a multi-pronged strategy to increase crop yields, water management, livestock development and supplemental income activities like silk and lac production. Instead of chopping trees for fuel, they are now used to produce lac. For
sericulture, plantations have further enhanced green cover.
BAIF-DRF interventions in two Ahmednagar district clusters are part of a programme under the National Agricultural Innovation Project (NAIP), promoted by the Indian Council of Agricultural Research. Called the Sustainable Rural Livelihood Security in Backward Districts of Maharashtra, it is being implemented at Yavatmal, Chandrapur, Gadchiroli and Nandurbar, covering 76 villages, including 12 from Akole tehsil.
“This NAIP component has been getting Rs 22.46 crore from World Bank for a five-year period (2007-2012),” B K Kakade, vice-president of BAIF-DRF, says. A 14-member board drives the body, currently headed by Mafatlal Group’s Arvind Mafatlal. Scientist M S Swaminathan, Rajashree Birla and Sudha Murty are the other notables on the board. Day-to-day affairs are run by a 25-member committee, led by Girish Sohani.
From livestock and crop management to marketing and water resource development, more than 1,000 tribal families from 12 villages of Akole are now doing things they never knew they were capable of.
Deothan and Samsherpur clusters have achieved an average 54% increase in the yield of paddy, wheat and gram over the past three years. Nurseries, sheds for horticulture and protective farming, fodder cultivation and artificial ponds for fish farming have come up across these clusters. “Last year, we got 3,000kg of fish from the fish pond I built with BAIF-DRF assistance. We earned an additional Rs 18,000,” Geeta Darade, a farmer in Deothan, says.
In the last three years, 627 families benefited from improved crop yields in the Ahmednagar clusters. Paddy yield, on an average, increased by 910kg/ha through traditional farming, better seeds and best agriculture practices, Preeti Karmarkar, BAIFDRF social development group head, says.
The most dramatic results came from the cattle-breeding programme. Karmakar says local breeds usually have far less milk yield per lactation. But with BAIF-DRF’s cattlebreeding services, starting with awareness camps to animal health check-ups, consultations for crossbreeding, artificial insemination, calving and preventive healthcare, milk yields hugely improved, she says.
It’s not just about higher milk yields but also ensuring good returns to the villagers. “Each village now has a mini collection centre from where all the milk goes to bulk milk coolers at Hivargaon in Deothan and Kalirumalwadi in Samsherpur. Each of these collects 2,000 litres every day. This goes to a bigger milk cooperatives in the region at Akole,” says social worker Ramchandra Patil.
At Etapalli in Gadchiroli district, 310km from Nagpur, BAIF-DRF focuses on forest and agriculture-based activities. Under NAIP, 950 families from 12 Gadchiroli villages have directly benefited.
BAIF-DRF
In 1989
BAIF shifts focus to sustainable rural livelihood, development and research. Name changed from BAIF to BAIF Development Research Foundation Foundation works
In 12 states, projects originate from its Pune headquarters
Key field of work
Ensuring sustainable livelihoods without increasing pressure on natural resources
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