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The Hindu Polluted fields: Punjab stands as an example of what has gone wrong with the Green Revolution. Photo: Akhilesh Kumar
It is time we changed our perspective on agricultural practices, say
experts at a symposium on the aftermath of the Green Revolution
Some decades ago, Punjab was feted as the food bowl of the country,
where wheat, sugarcane and paddy grew in lush, fertilizer-rich farms.
Today, the State stands as an example of what has gone wrong with the
Green Revolution. “From a State of five rivers, activists say it has
become be-aab (without any rivers). The groundwater levels have reached
an alarming stage,” says Kavitha Kuruganti, convenor, Alliance for
Sustainable and Holistic Agriculture (ASHA).
“When a house is in flames, you will use any water, even sewage, to
douse the flames. That’s how fertilisers came in when we faced food
shortage. But, now we have enough stock of grains. Why do we continue to
poison our fields?” asks organic farmer Madhu Ramakrishnan.
“You eat cornflakes thinking you’re doing your body a lot of good. Have
you paused to wonder if the corn has been imported from the U.S. or
Argentina? Most of that corn is genetically modified,” said R. Selvam,
coordinator of the Tamil Nadu Organic Farmers Federation speaking about
Genetically-Modified (GM) crops.
All three speakers, along with organic pioneer G. Nammalvar, president
Vanagam, were present at a recent symposium organised by the Department
of Geography, Nirmala College for Women, to commemorate the golden
jubilee of Rachel Carson’s, Silent Spring. The book raised concerns about pesticides and environmental pollution.
The Green Revolution, initiated by Dr. Norman Borlaug, introduced
high-yielding seeds and promoted fertiliser use to increase production.
This resulted in farmers moving away from multi-cropping where they
raised millets, cereals, pulses and vegetables to single-crop
agriculture. Today, statistics show that the land suffered, pesticides
triggered health issues and many debt-ridden farmers committed suicide.
Enjoy Nature
Madhu, who has been an organic farmer for 15 years, said the time is
ripe to look at farming from a different perspective. Besides focussing
only on harvest and growth, we should also learn to enjoy what Nature
gives us voluntarily, he said. “Sadly, many farmers today don’t know
farming.”
R. Selvam spoke about farmer suicides, failing crops, dependence on MNCs
and the destruction of native seeds. Giving examples from the country
and abroad, he said farmers must unite and stay firm on their decision
to reject GM seeds.
“Did you know genes can jump crops?” he asked. The GM seeds of one
company are tweaked to resist a group of weeds. But, if the genes from
the crop jump to the weed, the weed becomes resistant to the recommended
herbicide. In such cases, farmers have to use herbicide manufactured by
a second company to tackle the problem. Ironically, the first company
gives them a subsidy for the same. We’re back where we began,” he said.
Kavitha presented statistics to narrate the ill effects of the Green
Revolution. She also spoke of suicides (250,000 farmers have committed
suicide since 1995), the growing incidence of cancer among farmers and
the average monthly income for farmers in Punjab that is just Rs. 4,960.
She said how tested blood samples revealed the presence of six to 13
different pesticides.
She added, “By viewing the farm as a factory with inputs and outputs, we
have done away with agriculture that was integrated with Nature.” She
explained how gynaecologists found that in many villages of Punjab, an
increasing number of women have had spontaneous abortions in the past 10
years.
Sustainable farming
Kavitha said it is time we shifted to a more sustainable agriculture —
where millets are cultivated, stored and distributed locally. It is
vital to speak to the youth, she said, because even if five per cent of
them developed interest in this kind of farming, it would make a world
of difference, at least in the next generation.
“We have produced more and perished,” she said. In Punjab, in the Malwa
belt, kids have turned grey and girls reach menarche at the age of
eight,” she pointed out.
What is agriculture?
Agriculture, she said, should serve many purposes, including issues such
as farmers’ income, protection of resources and diversity, quality and
safety of food. “It should be farming, where the focus is not
productivity. And, agriculture that gives farmers a sense of confidence
and social status.”
Book of Change
Silent Spring Written by Rachel Louise Carson, an American marine
biologist and conservationist, this book triggered concerns about
pesticides and environmental pollution. The book is said to have
facilitated the ban on the pesticide DDT in the U.S.
It is said that she was prompted to write the book following a letter
written by her friend Olga Owens Huckins describing the death of birds
around her property after DDT was sprayed aerially. The title is meant
to make you think of a spring season without birdsong.
(Source: The Internet)
హైదరాబాద్‌లో వచ్చే వారం ప్రారంభం కానున్న జీవ వైవిధ్య సదస్సుపై సర్వత్రా
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ఫోన్‌లో ఇచ్చిన ఇంటర్వ్యూలోని ప్రధానాంశాలు మీకోసం..
