The return of the earthworm: Association for India's Development's (AID-JHU) practicing organic farming in the Sunderbans

Article and Video Courtesy : Association for India's Development - Johns Hopkins University

Author : Nishikant

Based on my interaction with about 150 farmers in their fields and discussions in smaller groups later on, this is what I have gathered qualitatively.

• Most farmers cultivating paddy have taken a mixed approach and used a little bit of chemicals (much less than usual). These farmers are making a gradual transition. The pressure from other fields using chemicals remains palpable. It was heartening to see that we have developed enough trust with the farmers that no one felt the need to present a rosy picture.
• There were several reasons why farmers have taken up organic farming. The reasons cited most frequently were  – 1) Human health (2) Loss of soil fertility due to chemical use (3) Cost is lower (upto Rs 1500 per one-third acre) (4) Small farmers don’t mind the extra labour because it is their own. And some farmers said they would even be satisfied with a slightly lower yield.
• The advantages as seen by the farmers are: healthier plants, healthier soil (earthworms returning), less insect attacks, vegetables bearing fruit over a longer period of time (6 to 7 months for Karela and chillies).
• Farmers growing vegetables both for sale and as nutritional gardens have adopted the organic techniques in their entirety because it requires lesser amount of organic fertilizers compared to paddy.
• The local infrastructure for organic manure is slowly rebuilding. The number of cows in the villages have reduced because hand-held power tillers have replaced traditional ploughs, hence the dearth of cowdung. Now people are treating cowdung as a precious material and are also collecting all household waste for making compost.
• The organic techniques are spreading through training as much through informal social network. Farmers are teaching their neighbours and relatives. Basudeb Haldar gives free Amrit Pani to all his students who come for tuition. Some senior farmers sit in their weekly markets and discuss about organic methods and people gather around them.
• Herbal tonic, Amrit Pani, Cow urine besides compost and cowdung seems to be the most popular bio-inputs. Those who are slightly better off have been using coconut tonic and Jeevamritham powder.
• In a very interesting 100% organic plot, there were patches where the paddy plants were significantly healthier. These patches coincided with where the farmer have dumped the compost before spreading it across the field. This clearly exemplified the lack of enough organic manure in the field and primarily in the villages.
• Women farmers participation has been key in sustaining the use of these methods through 4 paddy seasons. They talk about the health benefits of organic farming much more than the men farmers.
• In the remote island of K-plot about 100 farmers, predominantly women, have taken up organic agriculture on parts of their land. They have used only herbal tonic and Amrit Pani as bio-solutions.
• Organic methods seem to work better with indigenous seeds rather than hybrid ones. Organic produce is well accepted in the local village markets but tends to get a lower price in wholesale market due to irregular shapes and a lack of shine.

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