India and Organic Agriculture

chillibreeze writer — Atasi Das

Introduction

In an era where ‘food security’ and ‘sustainable development’ are the buzzwords, the age-old concept of organic farming has acquired an altogether different meaning. The world with its ever burgeoning population needs adequate food supply and that too by eco-friendly techniques of production, since rapid and mindless industrialization all over the globe has played havoc with our precious and fragile ecosystem.

What is organic farming?

In simple terms, organic farming is a way of farming which depends mostly on natural inputs and systems of agricultural production, while barring the usage of synthetic fertilizers, pesticides and genetically modified plant organisms. Crop rotations, biological pest control, usage of green manure are some of the cornerstones of organic agriculture.

Livestock is also an important part of the system of organic farming, because they take as fodder the residues left after cultivation and returns back manure for the enrichment of the soil. Apart from that, the dairy business supplements the meager income of the marginalized farmers.

Organic farming is a holistic system of food production. It follows the philosophy of ‘optimum production’ as opposed to the theory of ‘maximum production’ (of livestock and crop), under a given farming condition. It is economical (involves low input costs), helps maintain natural resources, and is healthy.

Organic agriculture in India: a brief overview

India, post Independence, needed a huge supply of food-grains for feeding its ever-increasing population. However, a wholly monsoon-dependent cultivation system failed to ensure the food security of the nation. Food import became more of a norm with the country.

It was when Sm. Indira Gandhi was the Prime Minister that ‘Green Revolution’ granted the country freedom from the ignominy of having to depend on other nations for food. The new agricultural technique was costly in comparison to the erstwhile traditional means of farming, but it boasted of high productivity.

Higher use of synthetic pesticides and fertilizers, adoption of HYV (high yielding varieties) of crops, greater usage of planned irrigation facilities, and mechanized farming were the cornerstones of this new technology.

However, in recent times research studies have shown that crop productivity has declined or failed to rise in areas using chemical input based on the Green Revolution technology. Indiscriminate use of chemical fertilizers countrywide has led to the problem of overuse, which leading to water, air and soil pollution. The ground water in many places has become unfit for consumption. Agricultural produces are contaminated with deadly chemicals. Heightened use of water (for crops grown with chemical inputs) has led to the lowering of the water table. Issues like environmental safety, health concerns and rising costs of agricultural production have finally prodded the authorities in India to seek alternative forms of production like organic farming.

Organic farming has been the mainstay of marginalized Indian farmers for generations, as they could not afford the costly chemical solution based farming techniques. India, with its huge diversity of soil, climatic conditions and people is home to several forms of organic farming. Organic farming is especially important for areas suffering from problems like soil erosion and / or scanty water supply. North-eastern India for instance is ideal for organic farming for its topography, demography and prevailing socio-economic conditions.

Since it mostly uses wholly natural inputs, organic agricultural harvests are deemed to be completely safe for the human body system. Hence, with the rise in the number of various life-style diseases, organic agricultural products are much in demand in the urban Indian markets. However, they are quite costly, keeping them out of the reach of the common man, who still picks up his chemical laced supply of daily vegetables from the local vegetable market.

The picture is also not rosy from the point of view of the marginalized organic farmers. They will have to shell out substantial money for securing certification (needed for their selling their products) from the concerned authorities.

Conclusion

Organic farming is nothing new to India, but the need of the hour is the chalking out of a definite nationwide strategy on this issue and the linking of the sources of production to the market for the same.

A concerted effort on part of the government in the policy level, active participation of the private sector (for effectively bringing out the commercial face of the concept ) and participation of the general public is needed for boosting the demand for the organic agricultural products.

Farmers need to be provided with requisite economic and structural backup for increasing the marketability of their products.

Technology should also be harnessed in a big way to provide this age-old format of agricultural production with the desired level of improvisation and adaptation. Some fear that a complete conversion to the organic methodology will lead to a decline in food supply. However, modeling studies in India have not yet supported this hypothesis.

Experts opine that considerable crop diversification and investment in R&D would bring out the best of this form of cultivation. While the adoption of the certification procedure (for the maintenance of the designated standard for organic agricultural products) is all very fine, the process itself may leave in the lurch poor farmers of developing nations, who in spite of producing organic products will completely lose their market, due to their inability to pay the desired fees for obtaining the official certifications.

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Atasi says, "I am an Economist with expertise in quantitative subjects like Statistics, Econometrics, Resources and Environment. Spirituality and motherhood are the cornerstones of my existence."

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