Tuesday, September 2, 2008
Monday, September 1, 2008
Convention on Third Freedom Struggle for Peoples’ Right over Natural Resources
Convention on Third Freedom Struggle for Peoples’ Right over Natural Resources
Sunday, 21st September, 2008; Khatkarh Kalan, District: Nawanshahar, Punjab
Say No to GM Crops, Say No to Pesticides, Say No to new legal frameworks responsible for legalizing corporate control over Biodiversity, Water and Seeds
Resist and revolt against this onslaught on our sovereign right over natural resources and our knowledge system
Dear Eco Warriors,
September 28 is Birth day of Shaheed Bhagat Singh. To remember him along
with his compatriots is to rededicate to the concerns that young group had
about humanity in general and Indian toiling masses in particular.
During post 1857 war for Independence his Uncle Sardar Ajit Singh has raised
a slogan of "Pagri Sambhal' which became symbol of peoples struggle against
British colonial and Imperial rulers. The “Pagri" symbolises the self honour of the working people and particularly of Peasantry. This was a call to peasantry to stand tall and fight for honourable life.
Khatkarh Kalan, the ancestral village was the birth place of Sardar Ajit Singh who won the peasants rights and honour in 1907 but had to live exile for forty years. He kept the flag of fight against British Imperialism through out the world. He returned to India in 1947 to see the triumph of his commitment of seeing British direct rule end on 15th August, 1947 and he breathed his last on the twilight of Free India i.e morning hours of 15th August, 1947 at Daulaosie . His last message that part of the aim of our struggle started in the beginning of this century is fulfilled but now the implementation of its benefits to the toiling masses is the responsibility of the youth.
Shaheeds Bhagat Singh, Rajguru and Sukhdev also had written in their last
letter to Governor Punjab that:
"*That we were sentenced to death on 7th October 1930 by a British Court, L.C.C Tribunal, constituted under the Sp. Lahore Conspiracy Case Ordinance, promulgated by the H.E. The Viceroy, the Head of the British Government of India, and that the main charge against us was that of having waged war against H.M. King George, the King of England.** *
* The above-mentioned finding of the Court pre-supposed two things: Firstly, that there exists a state of war between the British Nation and the Indian Nation and, secondly, that we had actually participated in that war and were therefore war prisoners.*
* The second pre-supposition seems to be a little bit flattering, but nevertheless it is too tempting to resist the desire of acquiescing in it. As regards the first, we are constrained to go into some detail. Apparently there seems to be no such war as the phrase indicates. Nevertheless, please allow us to accept the validity of the pre-supposition
taking it at its face value. But in order to be correctly understood we must explain it further. Let us declare that the state of war does exist and shall exist so long as the Indian toiling masses and the natural resources are being exploited by a handful of parasites. They may be purely British Capitalist or mixed British and Indian or even purely Indian. They may be carrying on their insidious exploitation through mixed or even on purely Indian bureaucratic apparatus. All these things make no difference."*
The exploitation of toiling masses and Natural resources has been the deeper concern. So the freedom struggle was concerned with the future of Indian masses.
But today we are faced with much more sophistication of the tools of exploitation of Indian masses. Where 80 crore people are living on less than meager Rs twenty per day. The GDP is increasing not due to our manufacturing or agricultural production but due to consumption of foreign goods and exploitation of natural resources by foreign companies who are mining natural resources.
The past agricultural practices have pushed the farmer into debt trap and have virtually pushed him to brink of living. The corporate oriented agriculture system has ruined the fundamental right of our farmers - the right to honorable living.
The current realities demand that we should put our heads together and recommit our selves to the cause for which freedom struggle was fought. Remember we will only be doing our Fundamental Duty as per constitution
* " To cherish and follow the noble ideals which inspired our
national struggle for freedom."*
* *The imperialist forces are at play in more sophisticated way. The Ecology is the sustainer of life. The way it is under attack is our deeper concern. The toilers are under threat of extinction. Our culture , our way of life which sustained Indian life for centuries is under attack. The trees which symbolises our cultural life, Shesham , Kikar , Shatoot are dying. Is not that warning that our cultural reference it self will be extinct and our whole heritage will be beyond comprehension for future generations.
The result is in front of us. Socio-economic conditions of the ordinary people remain miserable. Poverty, unemployment, illiteracy, ill health and squalor remain rampant in the society. Health and education for common man is in shackles. The reverse has happened. The already existing institutions of health, education and social welfare have been systematically and knowingly murdered. They are fast being replaced by corporate sector who is concerned about their profits in a callous and greedy way. The exploitation of man by man is at its climax.
The greed of the vested interests has crossed all limits of decency. Now the greed is not limited only to economic exploitation of people only. The nature is being exploited, ruined and damaged beyond an extent from where it can’t recover itself. The whole nature has been put to ransom just to increase their profits and multiply their wealth. The use of highly poisonous and non bio-degradable synthetic chemicals in agriculture and industry is playing havoc with nature and life. All the components of environment-air, water and soil have been poisoned beyond permissible limits. These poisons have already reached the food chain, all living beings and humans to an extent to cause serious damage. In Punjab the gross ill effects are already obviously visible on human, animal ant plant health.
Now, they have come up with even more dangerous technologies, like genetically modified crops. The experts and well informed people are saying that the genetically modified foods, other agricultural products and organisms are going to prove the worst environmental disaster in the whole history of mankind. The whole of life is slowly moving towards death. The combination of chemicals and genetically modified crops will enhance the speed of this disaster.
The neo-liberal policies being imposed on the people of the world under the garb of science and general human good are the latest tools of these exploiters. All the natural resources including land and water are being snatched to make them tools of economic exploitation. The plant and animal biodiversity which is a common heritage of nation and humanity at large are being destroyed to enslave us. Our seeds are being snatched very fast. The science and technology has become the slave to serve the narrow vested interests. It is very obvious that the vested interests are so blind to the truth that they are unable to see the damage they are causing to the whole of the life and the humanity including their own families. The multinational corporations (MNCs)-foreign as well as national along with politicians and bureaucrats are holding the whole humanity to ransom.
Unfortunately these are the people who are leading the whole world and are playing a decisive role in the lives of crores of people. We have to think seriously if we can go on accepting their leadership and risk the fate of our families-our mother and father, sister and brother, son and daughter, and wife and the husband. This is a new form of slavery, where in addition to the extreme economic exploitation, whole of the environment, nature, humanity, all living beings and natural resources are being endangered to the extent of risk of extinction. We can’t wait any more. We must act before it is too late.
The private control of natural resources is an invasion on our livelihoods and our sovereign right to live with dignity. The people at the helm of affairs, are more eager to serve corporate interests, and are pushing legal frameworks which will legalize robbery, which will make this act of aggression on our ecological heritage a legal act and opposition to this will be termed as illegal. We already have notifications like Environment Impact Assessment, and laws like Plant variety protection and Farmers' Right Act, Patent Act are directed towards interests of the industry. Legislations like the Biological Diversity Act are being turned over from their original intent to only regularize access to “resources” with the conservation objectives being deliberately ignored. And then there are new frameworks in the offing in the form of the proposed Seed Bill and are National Biotechnology Regulatory Authority Bill or the Coastal Management Zone notification. All these in their text and/or intent of implementation are anti-people, anti-farmer and anti-nature and making easier the takeover of nature, entire legislation and Judiciary is going the corporate way , thus paving the way for hijack our ecological heritage and its destruction.
It is now or never situation. It is do or die now.
Let us forget our political, religious and regional affiliations to work on these common issues untidily because these are issues not only of whole of the humanity but all living beings who inhabit the planet. The life of humans and other living beings is one united whole and we have to fight this struggle of life and death on behalf of all living beings.
Let us declare a full fledged war of liberation and take the third phase of independence movement to a logical culmination. We want independence where all natural resources, human resources and science and technology will be used for common good of all humans and other species and not to fulfill the greed of few highly rich—where all human activities and development will be in accordance with the laws of nature and nature as whole will be nurtured with love and compassion for all its creations. There will be no poverty, unemployment, illiteracy, squalor or misery of any kind. Every living being will get clean air, pure and sweet water, balanced food and all other necessities of graceful life. Every body will live a life full of happiness, love and oneness with nature and God.
The deaths of farmers and workers must call us to awake. This is just an initiator towards a greater debate and commitment to action to address the fundamental maladies.
Kheti Virasat Mission-KVM, Jaitu and Shaheed Bhagat Singh Centenary Foundation, Khatkar Kalan with support of farmers ‘organizations, peoples’ movements, environmental groups, Writers’ forum, Intellectuals are organizing a Convention on Freedom Struggle for Peoples’ Sovereign Right on Natural Resources at Khatkar Kalan, - ancestral Village of Shaheed Bhagat Singh on Sunday, 21st September, 2008 at 10.00 AM
It is convention of pro-nature and pro-people concerned citizens.
You are invited to join this new freedom movement
Your suggestions are welcome.
Yours truly,
Prof Jagmohan Singh Dr Inderjit Kaur Dr Surjit Patar Dr Daljit Singh
Dr Amar Singh Azad Balbir Singh Billing Umendra Dutt Dr Nirmal Singh
Sunday, 21st September, 2008; Khatkarh Kalan, District: Nawanshahar, Punjab
Say No to GM Crops, Say No to Pesticides, Say No to new legal frameworks responsible for legalizing corporate control over Biodiversity, Water and Seeds
Resist and revolt against this onslaught on our sovereign right over natural resources and our knowledge system
Dear Eco Warriors,
September 28 is Birth day of Shaheed Bhagat Singh. To remember him along
with his compatriots is to rededicate to the concerns that young group had
about humanity in general and Indian toiling masses in particular.
During post 1857 war for Independence his Uncle Sardar Ajit Singh has raised
a slogan of "Pagri Sambhal' which became symbol of peoples struggle against
British colonial and Imperial rulers. The “Pagri" symbolises the self honour of the working people and particularly of Peasantry. This was a call to peasantry to stand tall and fight for honourable life.
Khatkarh Kalan, the ancestral village was the birth place of Sardar Ajit Singh who won the peasants rights and honour in 1907 but had to live exile for forty years. He kept the flag of fight against British Imperialism through out the world. He returned to India in 1947 to see the triumph of his commitment of seeing British direct rule end on 15th August, 1947 and he breathed his last on the twilight of Free India i.e morning hours of 15th August, 1947 at Daulaosie . His last message that part of the aim of our struggle started in the beginning of this century is fulfilled but now the implementation of its benefits to the toiling masses is the responsibility of the youth.
Shaheeds Bhagat Singh, Rajguru and Sukhdev also had written in their last
letter to Governor Punjab that:
"*That we were sentenced to death on 7th October 1930 by a British Court, L.C.C Tribunal, constituted under the Sp. Lahore Conspiracy Case Ordinance, promulgated by the H.E. The Viceroy, the Head of the British Government of India, and that the main charge against us was that of having waged war against H.M. King George, the King of England.** *
* The above-mentioned finding of the Court pre-supposed two things: Firstly, that there exists a state of war between the British Nation and the Indian Nation and, secondly, that we had actually participated in that war and were therefore war prisoners.*
* The second pre-supposition seems to be a little bit flattering, but nevertheless it is too tempting to resist the desire of acquiescing in it. As regards the first, we are constrained to go into some detail. Apparently there seems to be no such war as the phrase indicates. Nevertheless, please allow us to accept the validity of the pre-supposition
taking it at its face value. But in order to be correctly understood we must explain it further. Let us declare that the state of war does exist and shall exist so long as the Indian toiling masses and the natural resources are being exploited by a handful of parasites. They may be purely British Capitalist or mixed British and Indian or even purely Indian. They may be carrying on their insidious exploitation through mixed or even on purely Indian bureaucratic apparatus. All these things make no difference."*
The exploitation of toiling masses and Natural resources has been the deeper concern. So the freedom struggle was concerned with the future of Indian masses.
But today we are faced with much more sophistication of the tools of exploitation of Indian masses. Where 80 crore people are living on less than meager Rs twenty per day. The GDP is increasing not due to our manufacturing or agricultural production but due to consumption of foreign goods and exploitation of natural resources by foreign companies who are mining natural resources.
The past agricultural practices have pushed the farmer into debt trap and have virtually pushed him to brink of living. The corporate oriented agriculture system has ruined the fundamental right of our farmers - the right to honorable living.
The current realities demand that we should put our heads together and recommit our selves to the cause for which freedom struggle was fought. Remember we will only be doing our Fundamental Duty as per constitution
* " To cherish and follow the noble ideals which inspired our
national struggle for freedom."*
* *The imperialist forces are at play in more sophisticated way. The Ecology is the sustainer of life. The way it is under attack is our deeper concern. The toilers are under threat of extinction. Our culture , our way of life which sustained Indian life for centuries is under attack. The trees which symbolises our cultural life, Shesham , Kikar , Shatoot are dying. Is not that warning that our cultural reference it self will be extinct and our whole heritage will be beyond comprehension for future generations.
The result is in front of us. Socio-economic conditions of the ordinary people remain miserable. Poverty, unemployment, illiteracy, ill health and squalor remain rampant in the society. Health and education for common man is in shackles. The reverse has happened. The already existing institutions of health, education and social welfare have been systematically and knowingly murdered. They are fast being replaced by corporate sector who is concerned about their profits in a callous and greedy way. The exploitation of man by man is at its climax.
The greed of the vested interests has crossed all limits of decency. Now the greed is not limited only to economic exploitation of people only. The nature is being exploited, ruined and damaged beyond an extent from where it can’t recover itself. The whole nature has been put to ransom just to increase their profits and multiply their wealth. The use of highly poisonous and non bio-degradable synthetic chemicals in agriculture and industry is playing havoc with nature and life. All the components of environment-air, water and soil have been poisoned beyond permissible limits. These poisons have already reached the food chain, all living beings and humans to an extent to cause serious damage. In Punjab the gross ill effects are already obviously visible on human, animal ant plant health.
Now, they have come up with even more dangerous technologies, like genetically modified crops. The experts and well informed people are saying that the genetically modified foods, other agricultural products and organisms are going to prove the worst environmental disaster in the whole history of mankind. The whole of life is slowly moving towards death. The combination of chemicals and genetically modified crops will enhance the speed of this disaster.
The neo-liberal policies being imposed on the people of the world under the garb of science and general human good are the latest tools of these exploiters. All the natural resources including land and water are being snatched to make them tools of economic exploitation. The plant and animal biodiversity which is a common heritage of nation and humanity at large are being destroyed to enslave us. Our seeds are being snatched very fast. The science and technology has become the slave to serve the narrow vested interests. It is very obvious that the vested interests are so blind to the truth that they are unable to see the damage they are causing to the whole of the life and the humanity including their own families. The multinational corporations (MNCs)-foreign as well as national along with politicians and bureaucrats are holding the whole humanity to ransom.
Unfortunately these are the people who are leading the whole world and are playing a decisive role in the lives of crores of people. We have to think seriously if we can go on accepting their leadership and risk the fate of our families-our mother and father, sister and brother, son and daughter, and wife and the husband. This is a new form of slavery, where in addition to the extreme economic exploitation, whole of the environment, nature, humanity, all living beings and natural resources are being endangered to the extent of risk of extinction. We can’t wait any more. We must act before it is too late.
The private control of natural resources is an invasion on our livelihoods and our sovereign right to live with dignity. The people at the helm of affairs, are more eager to serve corporate interests, and are pushing legal frameworks which will legalize robbery, which will make this act of aggression on our ecological heritage a legal act and opposition to this will be termed as illegal. We already have notifications like Environment Impact Assessment, and laws like Plant variety protection and Farmers' Right Act, Patent Act are directed towards interests of the industry. Legislations like the Biological Diversity Act are being turned over from their original intent to only regularize access to “resources” with the conservation objectives being deliberately ignored. And then there are new frameworks in the offing in the form of the proposed Seed Bill and are National Biotechnology Regulatory Authority Bill or the Coastal Management Zone notification. All these in their text and/or intent of implementation are anti-people, anti-farmer and anti-nature and making easier the takeover of nature, entire legislation and Judiciary is going the corporate way , thus paving the way for hijack our ecological heritage and its destruction.
It is now or never situation. It is do or die now.
Let us forget our political, religious and regional affiliations to work on these common issues untidily because these are issues not only of whole of the humanity but all living beings who inhabit the planet. The life of humans and other living beings is one united whole and we have to fight this struggle of life and death on behalf of all living beings.
Let us declare a full fledged war of liberation and take the third phase of independence movement to a logical culmination. We want independence where all natural resources, human resources and science and technology will be used for common good of all humans and other species and not to fulfill the greed of few highly rich—where all human activities and development will be in accordance with the laws of nature and nature as whole will be nurtured with love and compassion for all its creations. There will be no poverty, unemployment, illiteracy, squalor or misery of any kind. Every living being will get clean air, pure and sweet water, balanced food and all other necessities of graceful life. Every body will live a life full of happiness, love and oneness with nature and God.
The deaths of farmers and workers must call us to awake. This is just an initiator towards a greater debate and commitment to action to address the fundamental maladies.
Kheti Virasat Mission-KVM, Jaitu and Shaheed Bhagat Singh Centenary Foundation, Khatkar Kalan with support of farmers ‘organizations, peoples’ movements, environmental groups, Writers’ forum, Intellectuals are organizing a Convention on Freedom Struggle for Peoples’ Sovereign Right on Natural Resources at Khatkar Kalan, - ancestral Village of Shaheed Bhagat Singh on Sunday, 21st September, 2008 at 10.00 AM
It is convention of pro-nature and pro-people concerned citizens.
You are invited to join this new freedom movement
Your suggestions are welcome.
Yours truly,
Prof Jagmohan Singh Dr Inderjit Kaur Dr Surjit Patar Dr Daljit Singh
Dr Amar Singh Azad Balbir Singh Billing Umendra Dutt Dr Nirmal Singh
Saturday, August 30, 2008
Monday, May 19, 2008
Dialogue on GM Crops & Health Issues
Dialogue on
GM Crops & Health Issues
Organized by
ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH ACTION GROUP
KHETI VIRASAT
Environmental Health Action Group (EHAG) of Kheti Virasat Mission extends a warm invitation to you to join us in a One day conference titled Say No to GM Crops for Health on
Since the last three decades, thousands of farming community members suffered acute insecticide poisoning from deadly pesticides in
The list of poisonous substances in our environment is getting longer continuously - the latest addition to this list are the potentially harmful and toxic genetically modified crops. As in the case of other agrochemicals Transgenic crops are being pushed around as a solution for the agricultural distress. The interesting fact is that its it the same multinational agrochemical giants who are the also the promoters and benefactors of these novel product.
Genetic engineering (GE) or genetic Modification refers to a set of technologies that are used to change the genetic makeup of cells of plants and animals to bring about a desired function e.g. insect resistance, herbicide tolerance, etc. In the early 70s for the first time humans decided to alter the natural evolutionary process and create new plants and animals through techniques that involve complicated manipulations of genetic material and other biologically important chemicals. What has this interference cost us? Perhaps we will know when the last organism on earth has also lost its exclusivity.
In the 12000 year old history of agriculture there has been no technology that is as vehemently opposed by farmers, consumers and civil groups alike.
The major reasons for resistance against genetically modified crops can broadly be categorized in to three
- Impact on health.
- Impact on environment
- Socio-economic impact
The first two are inherent while the third grows out of the commercial interests that drive this technology.
A history of accidents
One of the greatest concerns about genetically engineering living organisms is the uncertainty of the outcome. Added to this is the risk of contamination. The history of Genetic Engineering is splashed with grave accidents that should be treated as learnings.
Such a doubt was first raised when Dr. Arpad Putzai at
The gravity of such research revelations is amplified by the uncontrollability of transgenic crops once released in to the fields. Once in the open air, transgenic crops spread uncontrollably by cross pollination or seed transfer. GM contamination register (www.gmcontaminationregister.org) which is an annual documentation of such contamination by Greenpeace and Genewatch reported 39 new instances of crop contamination in 23 countries over the past year. Most of the contamination involved staple crops as rice and corn, but also included soy, cotton, canola, papaya and fish. Over the last 10 years, the GM Contamination Register has recorded 216 incidents of contamination in 57 countries.
. This uncontrollability has led to increased concern over health and biodiversity across the world and has become the basis of a precautionary approach towards the environmental release of Genetically Modified organisms. The precautionary principle was advocated by the Cartegina Protocol on biosafety, under the UN Convention on Biological Diversity. The protocol came into force in September 2003 and has been ratified by 103 countries in the world, the notable exception being
The Indian scenario
The government, regulators, agricultural scientists and professional bodies are not taking due cognizance of the gravity of the situation to initiate an appropriate action plan for elimination of pesticides and other toxic chemicals in a phased manner and to mitigate the environmental health crisis being faced by Punjab.
The anti-GM battle in India has reached a crucial stage - soon, Mahyco, the Indian avataar of Monsanto, would be walking up to the regulators for permission for the second [and last] year of large scale trials this Kharif [starting June 2008] of Bt Brinjal, the first food crop in India and the first such GM vegetable crop with Bt gene anywhere in the world.
Elsewhere in the world, especially
Bt Brinjal biosafety is questionable - in fact, we should not forget that the results of genetic engineering itself are very unpredictable and the very process of GE results in different unintended hazardous consequences.
The regulators sitting in
It is in this context that we invite all right-thinking, pro-nature, concerned physicians, veterinarians, plant scientists and other sections of pro-people and right thinking persons to assemble on 1st June at Wheat Auditorium, PAU, Ludhiana for a one-day dialogue to discuss various aspects of GM crops. If you want the government to take our message seriously, you should be there to show that you are against GM crops too. Please block the date, plan your travel straightaway and bring as many people as you can to the conference site.
Hope to see you in
Several environmental action groups, civil society organisations and medical professional groups are likely to participate in the programme. Prominent among them are:
Dr Davinder Sharma, Dr G V Ramanjaneyulu, Kavitha Kuruganti and Rajesh Krishnan
Your participation is of immense value to this dialogue and we look forward to your participation and support in evolving a participatory civil society strategy to combat the current crisis.
With regards
Yours truly
Dr Amar Singh Azad Working President Kheti Virasat Mission | Dr Inderjit Kaur Chairperson, Pingalwara Society | Dr G P I Singh HoD, Dept of SPM, DMC&H and Convener, EHAG, |
(
Dr Manvir Gupta Dr Neelam Sodhi Dr Nirmal Singh Dr Harminder Sidhu
(Kotkapura) (
(Bathinda) (Jalandhar) (Phillaur) (
Dr Ashok Goyal Dr Balbir Singh Bhaura Dr A S Maan Dr G S Mauji
(
Dr Mohinderjit Singh Dr Navteej Singh Dr Shub Prem Brar Manmohan Sharma
(Jalandhar) (Banur- Patiala) (Ecologist, Bathinda) VHAP, Chandigarh
Saturday, May 17, 2008
Blazing Punjab: Flaming Fields
Blazing
Burning of Crop residue – Need of Civilizational Intervention
By Umendra Dutt
Every day I pass through villages and see fires in the just harvested fields. An absolutely avoidable ecological destruction and
environmental violence is going on at the hands of brainwashed farmers.
The trees, the earth friendly creatures, the micro organisms are getting destroyed for no rhyme or reason. Farmers are burning the wheat stalks just in order to save a few hundred rupees, time .This dangerous practice is bound to play havoc in a few years and these shortsighted misadventures are going to extract a huge price in terms of money, time, environmental health, ecosystem and natural resources.
Countless innocent, man and crop friendly living forms are being criminalised. These living forms actually rejuvenate and energise our soil, our mother earth.
These large-scale burning, releases trace gases, along with sub micron-sized aerosols, which are known to aggravate lung and respiratory diseases. And we address earth as Dharti Ma.
Burning of the crop residue not only adds to atmospheric pollution and emission of green house gases but also leads to loss of rich renewable soil rejuvenating organic resources. It gives me an uneasy feeling about our society, its contemporary character and it also indicates a kind of shallowness of my society. It is so disturbing that I questions my own self. We have to pose this question to ourselves and to the so called experts as to why this seasonal burning at all?
Who is to blame? Are our farmers responsible? What is the reason for this? Why our society is behaving like this? Are the changing life styles also contributing in this indifferent attitude of our society? Why our social scientists are indifferently quiet on this burning issue?
Is it simple that farmers are burning up crop straw to save few hundred rupees only? Despite knowing the adverse effects of this devastating practice? Why the farmers are intent to burn stubble?
Then some more questions also need to have answers. Where is the solution? Can technology provide solution? Is it due to lack of technology and its application or adoption only? I think it is the unmindfull application of technology that is responsible for this crisis. Because technology doesn’t come in isolation, it carries a cultural imprint with itself along with a carbon footprint. Then, there is physiological baggage also. Any new technology we adopt, it impacts our way of thinking, our analysis, our perceptions and our relations with surroundings – the nature and the mankind.
We had propagated various new technologies in course of modern development and Green revolution. Our experts are proud of these new technologies; they are very fond of talking about its adoption rate, success rate and other benefits. We had started evaluating every thing mechanically in narrow terms of profitability. The green revolution agricultural paradigm has also displaced our value systems from agriculture; it has destroyed the very basic civilizational element in our convoluted agriculture vision.
When there is no moral code, no values, no beliefs, no ethics then certainly there will be no compassion at all, no feeling on oneness with our surroundings. Then the whole earth is supposed to be for our self-indulgence only, and the farm is only a piece of land, a mere area, which is owned by me, I am the owner of that , so it depends on me only - What I do to that land. I want maximum profits out of it, because I have to address my lust of money.
I was told by the experts to put poisons in my land to kill pests, they told me it is the development. I was taught by the experts and highly civilized persons that I should use machines – Harvester Combine to minimize my expenditure on human labour, as labour is a problem. Then one agriculture economist teaches me lessons of profitability – economic viability – and I was told that now I am a progressive farmer. When I was made totally self-centered unconcerned of my surroundings, my ecology, sustainability of life. Then this agriculture establishment celebrated my progress. They told me it is the way of life now; this is the new path of development. There is euphoria all around and no body has time to talk about my interdependence on Nature. New machines, technologies and new definitions have taken place of the wisdom I got from my ancestors.
The burning of crop residue should not be seen in isolation, we have to take a holistic picture. It is not a problem in itself… it a symptom of deep-rooted civilizational crisis of our society and our age. We have to address the crisis on much wider canvass.
Mankind is behaving like this towards every natural thing – wether it is water, air, trees, forests, animals, the mechanized mind and self-seeking way of life has made our whole society insensitive to nature. The crisis mitigation does not lie in technological interventions only. The agriculture expert mind- set and solutions suggested by it has already ruined our ecology and our agricultural heritage. Now we cannot ask them to suggest solutions. Those who were worshiped for more then four decades for their expertise now should not be asked for solutions, because they can provide another technological answer and mere technology is not a complete solution at all.
There are still thousands of farmers who have no rotavator or Happy-seeder but they are not burning the stubble. Agriculture implements are only tools to be used; the real answer is in our mindset, the vision and feeling of a relationship with Earth, other forms of life and whole ecology.
While NFL at Bathinda produces 5 lakh tons of urea which gives near about 2.5 lakh tons of nitrogen with lots of energy consumption, water consumption and environmental pollution, so one fifth of the total production of nitrogen is burned due to inefficient management systems put forth by the government.
Farmers burn 196 lakh MTs of straw every year, worth crores of rupees, besides losing 38.5 lakh MTs of organic carbon, 59,000 MTs of nitrogen, 2,000 MTs of phosphorous and 34,000 MTs of potassium every year. If government feels that this should be saved, it should take up a large campaign, asking farmers to use the straw as mulch, spread with Jeevaamrita kind of solutions. If it involves additional costs for the farmers, government should pay for it.
Several farmers associated with Kheti Virasat Mission who are practicing natural farming, have already adopted Jeevaamrita to mulch stubble in their farms. They are not into burning madness, not because of technology but due to their conviction. Off course farmer needs some methods to mulch all crop straw. Jeevaamrita provides appropriate solution.
We should develop a strong campaign asking Govt to initiate a process of asking people to adopt straw mulching; this would automatically lead to promotion of natural farming once we get space in the campaign. The prerequisite of the solution is a civilizational intervention to re-establish mother–son relation of farmer with Earth. We have to redefine the meaning of development, progressive farmer, profitability and sustainability. We have to evolve a new idiom to evaluate our contemporary ecological crisis.
The whole society and particularly the elite and experts must take the responsibility of their transgression; farmers are expressing the same what the society has taught them. This burning of stubble is the natural outcome of the economic and agriculture model we are pursuing from last fifty years. It is the result of a paradigm we had chosen, propagated by the experts of those times.
Let whole Punjabi society accept its role in this misadventure. This is the only one dimension of whole ecological-civilizational crisis that our society is facing and which will certainly affect lives of our future generations. We have to change Collective Mindset of our society and this can be only being done through a process for new model of development.
Let us start this voyage to build our own developmental paradigm to come out this self inflicting devastation.
Sunday, April 27, 2008
Evaluating Draft Punjab State Water Policy
PUNJAB STATE
BY
KHETI VIRASAT
State Water Policy debate Paper - 1
National Water Policy, 2002 retains the control over water resources with the government and ignores the involvement of local communities. It remains inert and ineffectual because it fails to ensure community management despite being hit by water shortages due to unsustainable exploitation of rivers and centralized water resource management. National Water Policy was adopted in 1987. It claims that since then, a number of issues and challenges have emerged in the development and management of the water resources. Therefore, the National Water Policy (1987) has been reviewed and updated in 2002.
It was happened in Punjab .The first draft September 1996 of the state water policy has totally ignored the stake of ecology and wild life on water, as it is a gift of nature to earth for the survival of life, which includes flora and fauna apart from human beings. Hence must ensure traditional systems like ponds for the conservation of water, which have been totally given go- bye in
As per the spirit of constitution, a welfare state is supposed to formulate pro-people policies and implement these policies at every cost. State Water Policy has been formulated and developed by the state government without any consultation with civil society groups ignoring public opinion. Kheti Virasat Mission is of the firm belief that a wide debate with all inclusive participation by communities, civil society groups, PRIs, academia, scientists, economists, politicians, farmers’ groups, women groups and of course government departments must be started in order to build up an issue about the importance of this policy for the Punjab.
With this view KVM proposes first paper as a food for thought, written by eminent environmental economist Dr M S Rathore, from IDS Jaipur, who has done critical analysis of National Water Policy 2002.
KVM welcomes suggestions, inputs and critical comments on this paper.
With regards
Umendra Dutt
==============================================================================
Gaps in Punjab State
M.S.Rathore1
The State Water Policy document outlines the government’s framework for the long term sustainable development and management of water resources in the state. It emphasizes on: (a) introduction of legislation for regulating ground water; (b) improvement in the efficiency and productivity of water utilisation for irrigation, domestic and industry; (c) monitoring and regulatory measures to enhance water quality at the sources and minimise pollution at the outlet; (d) preparation of flood control, drainage and drought management plans; (e) progressive handing over of management to the users; and (f) to achieve these objectives the state is strategizing to formulate participatory approach whereby all users and polluters whether from the public or private sectors are involved to bring out the desired results.
The state policy will enable the Government of Punjab to carry out adequate measures to preserve its water resources. The major water problems in the state highlighted in the policy document are:
- declining ground water table, presence of salinity, fluoride and iron
- pollution of surface and ground water leading to high incidence of water borne diseases, particularly among young children
- water logging and salinity
- flood hazards
- use of excessive fertilizers and chemicals in water causing water pollution,
- Industrial pollution and inadequate sewerage system and treatment plants in urban areas.
In order to address the above listed problems, the policy document has outlined seventeen objectives and detailed strategies. Of them the major strategy is to create and to divide
- Regional Water Resources Technical Advisory Committee (RWRTAC).
These ideas of new organisational structures at local and state level is excellent and bold step provided there is a serious political will and administrative capacity to make reforms in the present departmental set up and given socio-political milieu. As it will require resolving inter-departmental conflicts and inter- personal conflicts between technical/non-technical personnel’s. The composition of these advisory committees seems to be good except that there is no place for social and technical experts/researchers and NGO and civil society representatives. Since this will be first of its kind in the country, the reform has to be carefully carried out so that its success is ensured.
The Action Plan is given on pages 8-23 b picking up items from the National Water Policy. The gaps and clarification on each is discussed below. The second part of the draft policy document provides comparison of the National Water Policy with the changed Punjab Water Policy. For each item in the National Water Policy there is either a changed item in the State Water Policy or endorsing the same as in the National Policy. This itself is a problem as the National Water Policy is framed, as per the constitution, to guide the respective State Government’s to formulate their own water policies, i.e. the national water policy should be treated as a guideline and not to be verbatim adopted by the State. Hence, the first part of the Punjab State Water Policy document, the listed water problems specific to the State should be addressed in the second half of the policy document. It is not necessary to even maintain the same sequence or address all the items in National Water Policy.
The State Water Policy document outlines the government's development framework for the long-term sustainable development and management of water resources in the State. It emphasizes on: (a) multi-disciplinary, multi-sectoral, water planning, allocation and management, (b) establishment of a regulatory framework for managing water resources, including the full range of sector environment issues, (c) reorientation of government water institutions, coupled with increased participation of the private sector through farmer managed WUAs and other private sector entities,. However, there are major gaps in the State Water Policy document if it is analysed in the context of the objectives and the existing water problems faced by the society. The gaps become all the more significant if the intent of the policy are not clear and are not understood in the same light and sprit down the line by implementing agencies. Some of the gaps are discussed below.
The state water policy contradicts the basic premise of the sectoral reform by not clearly mentioning the decentralization of water resources management while aiming at people’s participation. This shows the intentions and nature of state of centralized command and control. It also shows complete lack of will in case of groundwater regulations even after lots of debate and discussion on the Groundwater Bill at various level, no time bound intentions or action are suggested.
The State Water Policy lacks long-term water vision to address the serious emerging problems, both in the rural and urban areas. Given the nature and extent of water available the State should re-define and formulate different sectoral policies keeping water saving in agriculture and controlling water pollution in urban and rural areas as its focal point.
The other important issue is about the process of policy formulation. None of the stakeholders directly concern were involved in the process of formulation of water policy. It is surprising that even most of the people’s representatives along with NGOs are unaware of the water policy document. May be because it is not available to public at large. Also it was never published in newspaper, even though water is a basic good and all living being on this earth, of course people of
Gender Issues in Water Resource Management
The Punjab Water Policy text is gender neutral in terms of descriptions. It uses several generic terms, i.e. farmers, water users, human lives, settlement etc. The recognition that development actors are both women and men, that they are constrained in different and often unequal way and that they may have differing, and sometimes-conflicting needs, interests and priorities, seems to be missing. The state water policy is gender blind.
The role of women in water resource management at household level and farm level is well recognized. However, when it comes to policy document it is almost missing. Even the present policy of decentralizing management of irrigation systems by handing over systems to Water Users Associations (WUAs) does not mention women representatives on the associations. An analysis of gender division of labour within the household reveals that fetching water is the main responsibility of women. Sexual harassment at water point is quite common.
The State Water Policy document is analysed point by point and the gaps identified are reported below:
- In the policy document mentions (page 6) “As an initial step, Punjab State will be divided into six hydrological units of water resource regions” all are given equal weightage, as also the case in National Water Policy and all other state’s policies, no region specific strategy is mentioned. May be it is assumed that the proposed 4-tier institutions will take care of the location specificities. Generally the regional issues are not addressed unless specified. Unless eco-system approach is adopted it will be difficult to conserve, utilize efficiently and sustain the natural resources, particularly water resources. Infect, land, water and vegetation are all naturally linked to each other and, therefore, system approach to deal with the natural resources should be the first item in the NRM policy including water policy.
The objectives listed on pages 4 and 5 are not addressed in the subsiquent sections in the same sprit and weightage.
2. The NRM policies, till now, were more to establish and maintain the centralized control and management of the State over resources. The present policy document does intend to partially decentralize the management of water in the State. However, the issues of ownership and control over natural resources are unattended in the policy document. Unless this is addressed the management will lead to more conflicts among stakeholders.
3 Information System: State is planning to have a well-developed information system (item 6.3, page 17) but do not address few fundamental questions such as:
a. Data/Information for whom? (As the nature, frequency and coverage is directly related to the user)
· For policy makers, policy analysts
· For technical persons, i.e. engineers
· For farmers, NGO’s
As the needs, capacity and purpose of use varies according to the client.
b. Objectives of the data collection.
c. Access to data, or people have to exercise the ‘Right to Information Law’ to obtain the data.
d. Meteorological data is key to successful planning of water resources and there is strong need to improve it. Infact, given the high rainfall variability in the State it is advisable even to go for village level rainguage stations.
4. Project Planning: Institutional and procedural reforms are proposed in future project planning but no mention is made of the rehabilitation policy. Rehabilitation policy should be part of the project right from the beginning. Oustees should be rehabilitated in the command area only, before completion of the project.
5. Maintenance and Modernization: The future policy is to turn over of the system, i.e., the project be handed over to ‘Water User Association’. It is well established that top down approach has failed, and chances are more when recipients are not prepared for the transfer. HRD reforms will not work until they are linked to reward and punishment policy. Administrative reforms supporting HRD policy be carried out simultaneously.
6. Ground Water Development: The geophysical conditions, quantity and quality of groundwater vary across regions, therefore, differential strategy has to be adopted. Past experience shows that there is lack of political will to regulate groundwater. It is difficult to bring out meaningful Ground Water legislation and then implement it through governmental agencies. There has to be multiple strategy to deal with the grave situation, i.e. there is immediate need to put a check on withdrawal rate of groundwater. Irrigation is the main use of groundwater and farmers lobby is so strong that State failure is clearly visible.
There is a strong need to integrate economic policy, agricultural policy, industrial policy with the groundwater policy. Groundwater can not be independently dealt with. Also there are few terms, such as, social equity, require clear definition on the part of the State, so that there is similar understanding down the line in the executing agency.
8 Water Allocation Priorities: The major question is what is the basis or rationale of drawing these priorities? Is it economic, or social, political or adhoc? The given priorities apply only to bulk surface water storage tanks, and canals. Groundwater, which is mostly privately owned and controlled, is out of the preview of this priority. Even industrial demand is also met from groundwater. How this policy of prioritizing water allocation will work? If it doesn’t apply to groundwater than the major crisis, because most groundwater is used for irrigation, leading to fast depletion of water tables. The important issue is of source wise allocation priority.
9 Drinking Water: Policy is completely silent on the issue of urban-rural conflict over sharing of water resources. There should be clear policy on priority and preference in drinking water supply to rural and urban population. If water is transferred / supplied from rural to urban areas than how to compensate rural population be mentioned. Also there is no mention about how to ensure equal access to water particularly to poor and marginalized sections. There should be clear guidelines for each source of drinking water supply for its ownership and use.
There are bad experiences of privatization of urban water supply services in different parts of the world, before suggesting this policy a careful review should be undertaken. Some Public-Private partnership model be evolved and tested in
Clear guideline be given as how the quality of drinking water will be handled. There are successful efforts in dealing with fluoride and other pollutants problems, those be taken note off before finalizing any policy.
10 Irrigation Water: There is a basic problem in understanding the irrigation issues and that is the reason for not finding clarity in irrigation water policy. The major policy questions are:
i. Extensive v/s intensive irrigation
ii. Protective v/s productive irrigation
iii. Productivity, per unit of land or water
iv. Sources of irrigation; large v/s small dams, traditional v/s modern dams or structures
v. Objective of water saving through drip or sprinkler or change in cropping pattern
vi. How to regulate use of water on farm?
vii. On and off farm efficiency in water
viii. Equity in distribution of water. Warabandi ensures only limited equity in water distribution
ix. How it is in line with the agricultural policy or other sectoral policies of the state?
x. Demand side v/s supply side management issues.
All these need to be clearly addressed in this section.
11. Water Rates: It is a welcome step to include demand side management in the Water Policy. But certain things need clarity right from the beginning. These are:
i. What is the objective of increasing water rates? To increase efficiency in water use, change in production system (cropping pattern), improve economic viability of the canal or irrigation system?
ii. Think in the context of new economic policy, WTO and status of our farmers vis-à-vis rest of the world and decide about water rates.
iii. Maintain parity between agriculture and industry i.e. terms of trade, while fixing water rates, as it will directly affect agricultural output prices.
iv. If surface water (irrigation water) and drinking water is privatized how to ensure fair prices to marginal and small farmers or poor rural and urban consumers.
12 Participation of Water Users: It is restricted to irrigation sector only. As there is plan to have River Basin Approach to Water Resources Planning no mention is made of representation of people on Water Resource Authority, River Basin Authority, etc.. However, participation without decentralization of power i.e., ownership and control over resources has no meaning.
13 Water Zoning: Unless the proposed zones are linked to the overall strategy of water resources management it will create more confusion. The proposed zones are overlapping and crosscutting, so how to resolve this issue? River Basin Zones is not mentioned but will this be made the basis for all the planing and strategies? More elaboration is needed on what will be the strategy for each of these zones and who will implement it.
14 Water Conservation: What is given is the role of state in conservation of water but what the different stakeholders are supposed to do is not mentioned. PRIs, NGO and people can play important role in conservation of water resources need special mention.
In case of domestic water supply distribution losses particularly in the urban supply is substantial and can be checked with little efforts, need mention in the policy. Similarly, in agricultural sector on and off farm efficiency is of outmost importance. Some mention is needed of the traditional conservation practices and those should be encouraged. Conservation through public awareness is a very important component and their involvement is must. The policy document needs to be widely distributed and debated across the state.
15 Drought Management: Water is critical input in drought management. Invariably drought leads to drying up of surface water sources. Groundwater storage is the best to deal with drought conditions. Therefore, the policy should be to conserve groundwater storage and use as buffer stock for drought years. Present sectoral policies in fact encourage maximum use of groundwater resources. On the contrary, the policy should be to check the use of groundwater and in the next step recharge groundwater.
Traditional services are found to be serving even today during drought periods so those be protected and maintained. Local coping strategies to fight with drought need to be strengthened special policy measures. Finally, water security should be the first objective of the state in the drought prone area and this should be mentioned as the basic policy objective of the State.
There were large number of water bodies in most villages of
16 Training and Education: Training should be important component of the restructuring plan of the water sector reforms in the state. However, its success will largely depend on the attitude of the state employees working in water related departments, mostly in the Irrigation and PHED. Presently training is not linked to their promotion or posting so it is considered to be a punishment. Even the postings in the water related training institutions is considered to be a punishment posting. Therefore, the importance of training needs to be established first before any policy actions.
PHED Policy
The main objective of the drinking water supply departments policy is "Universal access to safe drinking water covering all villages and habitation". However it is nowhere explained what they mean by universal access, is it to villages and scattered settlements, marginalised section of population, equal access, etc.? Also what is the notion of safe water; is it the fluoride and brackish water people are drinking is considered to be safe, polluted water in urban areas, etc.? Also no mention is made of how to ensure access to water by all sections of population, particularly poor and marginalized section as even today there are large number of people not allowed to have water from wells, village pond, Bawri or different drinking water sources. Untouchability is widely practiced.
State has a differential norm providing safe drinking water to the rural and urban population based on the life style, available technology, and complexities in managing high-density urban population. Rural drinking water issues are classified under four broad categories, namely, coverage, level of supply, quality of water and sustainability of supply. In all these aspects the source of supply play important role. In the X Plan the major thrust will be to switch over from ground water to surface water wherever it is possible. It is because of depletion of groundwater and quality of groundwater.
For urban areas major emphasis will be on improving distribution system to minimize losses through rectification of leakage, prevention of pollution through old and defective pipelines, rejuvenation of WTP and pumpsets, reduction of unaccounted water etc. Also besides the conventional supply side management approach there will be greater emphasis on demand side management. Recognizing pricing of water as an important instrument of demand management will do this and tariffs will be designed accordingly. Water pollution is considered a threat and measures will be taken to check misuse and pollution of drinking water sources. Concern is also shown about water conservation and reuse. Economic incentives, laws and regulations, and public awareness are the measures proposed to deal with the problem. State failure in universal access to drinking water through centralised modern systems is evident. In the process traditional systems of drinking water have been severely eroded, thrown into disuse and even eliminated in most parts. Still there are areas and population not covered by the present system dependent on traditional sources. One of the reason for this neglect was government's emphasis and open bias in favour of large, complex and costly systems with low capital efficiency ensuring that the power and authority stays with the bureaucracy and the community remains bonded to it (PHED, p.6). On the other hand traditional systems use low cost, user-friendly techniques and were easily kept in good operational condition by local communities. The shift in the policy is that if drinking water supply in rural Rajasthan has to be sustainable, equitable and community based, then the traditional systems have to be rejuvenated and developed along with the modern systems.
Tuesday, March 11, 2008
Nanak Kheti Workshop
State Workshop on Natural Farming – The Nanak Kheti
Dates: 26 & 27 March 2008,
Venue: Chiranji Lal Dharmshala, Jaitu [Faridkot]
In continuation of its endeavour to conserve ecology and natural resources of Punjab and to make its agriculture free from chemicals, debts, exploitative technologies and anti-nature mind set, the KVM is organising a
State Level Workshop on Natural Farming-The Nanak Kheti
Nanak Kheti symbolizes farming with urge for wellbeing of all
The workshop shall be addressed by eminent ecological agriculture warrior
Dr G. V. Ramanjaneyulu
Executive Director
Centre for Sustainable Agriculture [CSA],
He commands a constructive revolution of librating agriculture from exploitative technological regime of agri-business corporations and agriculture establishment.
The CSA has brought more then 7 lakh acres from 1800 villages in to ecological agriculture fold across the Andhra Pradesh under their Non Pesticide Management program. KVM as CSA partner has created several successful models of Natural farming in
This workshop will also discuss the disastrous impacts of cultivating genetically modified crops.
Dr Sudhir Kaura
Eminent expert on genetic engineering, plant biotechnology from Hisar, Haryana who worked in a laboratory dealing in BT Cotton similar dangerous plants for about 11 years. Now After Deeply understanding Adverse effects of Genetically Modified Plants, He is effectively Opposing these transgenic plants for the last about 8 years in north India in association with farmers and pro-farmer organisations. He shall be discussing on different hazardous aspects associated with the BT cotton cultivation and will also speak on practical alternatives to BT cotton and chemical farming.
Cattle, especially the Indian humped cows are an important & indivisible component of our agriculture and civilization. KVM has invited Dr Ranjit Singh from Jaisalmer who is working for the conservation and propagation of
Umendra Dutt
Executive director
+919872682161
For more information:
Dr Gurbakhsh Singh China Dr Harminder Sidhu Dr Anupreet Tiwana Charanjit Singh Punni
Sunday, February 10, 2008
The Nanak Kheti: Natural Farming with passion for wellbeing of all
By Umendra Dutt
They are neither environmentalists, nor economists nor religious preachers nor trained agriculture experts nor a health professionals, but they still posses and practice the wisdom of all these. They practice Guru Nanak’s precept of Sarbat da Bhala meaning the wellbeing of all, in their farming. They are the natural farmers of Punjab.
Their farms are laboratories of happiness for all and encompass every living creature on earth, every life form. It is farming with passion for the wellbeing of all; one can call it spiritual farming, natural farming, non-violent agriculture or simply Nanak Kheti. These farmers are even taking care of a large verity of birds, earthworms, honey bees, butterflies and fireflies and many more magnificent life forms. For these farmers all living creatures are part of a family and - it is their family.
KVM preaches to adopt famous verses of Guru Granth Sahib in farming practices: “Pavnu Guru, Panni Pita Matta Dharat Mahat”, Air is Guru, Water is father and Earth is mother. This holy guiding principal should be part of the life, practice and mission of farmers who want to do natural farming.
There is a silent and constructive revolution happening in Punjab to save the environment, regenerate ecological resources to bring back soil productivity and re-establish ecological balance in the farms. This is the natural farming movement of Kheti Virasat Mission (KVM), a civil society action group headquartered in the Jaitu town of Faridkot district. The movement is led by experienced farmers who believe in principal of Sarbat da bhala," says Amarjeet Sharma, a farmer from Chaina village, district Faridkot who heads the village level Vatavaran Panchayat. Vatavaran Panchayats are local-level community institutions working as participatory civil society initiatives.
KVM is a farmers movement dedicated to natural farming, conservation of natural resources and traditional wisdom. Most of farmers associated with KVM work through its Vatavaran Panchayats. KVM farmers are farmers with a mission, vision and action. These farmers have taken pledges to start natural farming in one go or in a phased manner. KVM currently has around a 100 formal and 800 informal members.
The natural farmers of Punjab say that the land has witnessed the destruction of the environment as a consequence of chemical farming. In particular, the soil ecology has suffered a devastating blow in the last few decades as it has lost its nutrient pool. The burning of paddy straw has further destroyed the soil's health. But during the last four to five years, the soil in several parts of Punjab has been regenerated and rejuvenated by natural farming. These natural farmers are convinced, so much so that their feet feel happy and healthy coming in contact with the soil. “You can see earthworm castings, which had completely disappeared in the fields,” says a visibly happy and proud Hartej Singh of Mehta village in Bhatinda district. "Our farmers will offer you a handful of soil which you will find soft and with all the natural aromas that are associated with the infinite life of our earth. That is the kind of work we are doing," he adds.
KVM has evolved a distinct philosophy that defines soil as the 'source of infinite lives'. "Yes, it is true and we have experienced it," avers KVM chairman and a farmer from Rai Ke Kalan village of Bathinda, Harjant Singh. If the soil is rich in microorganisms, its texture is soft, full of natural essence and ample quantities of moisture are kept intact. Then the soil gives healthy crops, and there is a lesser need for irrigation.
Harjant Singh further elaborates on the scientific premises of natural farming. All living organisms require nutrition and minerals for their growth. Plants, being stationary, receive all their nutrition from their surroundings and from natural life processes. They get carbon dioxide and water from nature and by the process of photosynthesis, the required amount of sugars is produced. Similarly nitrogen in the air is captured by rhyzobia bacteria in soil for the plants. These microorganisms perform different functions for the plants. "By using the chemical inputs, especially the pesticides, we have destroyed the delicate microbial equilibrium of soil and tilted the game in favour of external chemical inputs thus making the situation even worse," says Singh.
KVM farmers use Jeevaamrita (a cow urine based microbial preparation) to revive microbial activity in soil. With the application of Jeevaamrita and Ghan Jeevaamrita (a solid form of Jeevaamrita), the soil is gradually becoming rich in the humus, yield has increased, and other life forms are coming back in the fields, says Charanjeet Singh Punni, another KVM farmer from Chaina village and a natural farming trainer. Punni highlights another aspect of natural farming. "Although the sunlight of some of its radiation is essential for the photosynthesis, it is a threat to the soil bacteria. Mulching is the best answer to this."
Mulching is an essential part of natural farming. Natural farmers aver that when the soil is covered with various forms of mulching, the results are unimaginable. Earlier the soil had lost all soil bacteria, microbes and earthworms. But after adoption of Jeevaamrita and mulching, the farms are again becoming wealthy in soil health. Krishnan Jakhar of village Dhaba (near Dabawali), Vinod Jyani of village Katehra, near Fazilka, Swarn Singh of Karamgarh Shattran, Madan Lal of Bullowal in Hoshiarpur, Jarnail Singh in Meharu, Nakodar and other natural farmers of the KVM network are using inter crops, plant residue, fallen leaves, bushes, weeds and sometimes even the wheat straw or the paddy straw cuttings spread in the fields to cover the naked soil. “Besides protecting the bacteria and retaining the moisture, this also keeps the temperature of the soil low and it never goes beyond the 40 degrees Celsius, which is the upper limit for the survival of microbes,” tells Ajay Tripathi, associate director of KVM.
KVM farmers have redefined, reestablished and regenerated their mother-son relation with the soil. They feel a spiritual bond, an oneness with the soil. That is why they are against all forms of agro-chemicals and burning of fields - to them it is a form of violence against the earth.
There is a common question usually asked to KVM activists. Does natural farming economics work? This spiritual soil science is also more financially beneficial to these farmers. After adopting natural farming they are spending far less from earlier chemical farming days. Natural farming is more cost effective and input efficient says Amarjeet Dhillon a small farmer from Dabrikhana village, who owns only two acres of land. For example, farmers having sugarcane and black gram in their farms have to spend virtually nothing on inputs asserts, Dhillon. He cities several examples where farmer had spend only Rs.100-200 on inputs for one acre as against Rs.3000 by a chemical farming farmer. "Some of us had stopped cash out flow to cities any more to purchase Urea, DAP and pesticides and thousands of others have reduced this out flow of cash in a big way", he adds.
On an average in Malwa's cotton belt farmers are spending Rs.7000 on chemical inputs per acre annually in normal conditions. If there are more pest attacks, then there may be no limit to this amount. There is a rough estimate that every village is spending a large sum of money -- from Rs.40 lakhs to Rs.6 crores -- purchasing agro-chemicals, depending upon area of cultivation and cropping pattern. Natural farmers want to stop the loss of village wealth by bringing down farmers' spending on agro-chemicals. This is Kissan version of Swadeshi movement says Chamkour Singh of Dhudhike village of Moga district. Dhudhike is famous for being the birthplace of eminent freedom fighter Lala Lajpat Rai and other martyrs of Gadar movement. “Our farmers are no more going to serve MNCs or big agro-chemical corporations. We are evolving a framework for an agricultural Swadeshi movement in Punjab. We are going to redefine Boycott and Swadeshi in the present context and scenario that is why KVM has given a slogan to its farmers – MNCs quit our farms,” he adds.
KVM feels that there is urgent need of Swadeshi agriculture movement to decolonize Indian agriculture and to liberate Indian farmer from clutches of westernized agriculture and developmental paradigm being convinced by ICAR and State Agriculture Universities. This prototype is philosophically alien to our cultural roots and stranger to ecological ethos and believes of our society.
The KVM’s natural farming movement has also brings another significant change in mindset of farmers. Now they are not looking towards Agriculture University or departmental experts for expert advice any more. “We feel that every farmer of ours is a expert in himself, he practice this science of natural farming, he lives natural farming every day, he is totally engulfed with the philosophy of natural farming,” said Dr. Harminder Sidhu a Homeopath practitioner and a practicing natural farmer from village Jalaldiwal of Raikot in Ludhiana district. “The modern agriculture paradigm has limited all expertise to Agriculture Universities only. The chemicalised agriculture model has made farmers scientifically illiterate – who presumed to be ignorant to every aspect of science and agri technology. This is a conspiracy which has made farmers dependent on Universities, department, companies and even pesticide retailers. It is a cruel joke that those who get a three or five year degree in agriculture with a alien kind of agriculture knowledge are known as experts, who are practicing a agriculture knowledge of only 40 years old, where as the farmers who inherent the agriculture wisdom of at least 5000 years were made commoners. We are not going to accept this nonsense any more. We are working to build self-confidence of our farmers on their own agriculture heritage and wisdom. We are the nation with abundance in farm produces, agro-biodiversity and prosperity,” adds confident Dr Sidhu.
The list of natural farmers includes names from all corners of the state. The Pingalwara Charitable Society, Amritsar, a prestigious social service institute in north India, founded by Bhagat Puran Singh has supported natural farming and the movement with its resources. Pingalwara has established the Bhagat Puran Singh Natural Farming Centre in 37 acres at village Dhirakot near Jandiala Guru. More significantly, well-known religious leader and spiritual environmentalist Sant Balbir Singh Seenchewal, Sultanpur Lodhi has successfully rejuvenated rivulet Kali Bain, and has joined the natural farming movement. Now he is promoting natural farming in his spiritual mass gatherings.
Similarly many professionals such as those from the medical field, college and university lecturers and professors, advocates, journalists, even government officials and civil servants have joined this movement for rejuvenation of the soil. They are in contact with the KVM and participate in its activities.
Now KVM is concentrating few villages for change the entire village in natural farming field. Two villages in Faridkot district -Chaina and Dabrikhana were chosen for this initiative.
In the just commenced wheat season -- from now to mid-April -- KVM activists are planning to reach out to at least 60 blocks of the state. These activists are committed farmers who work in the fields, not experts who come by when they can spare time by choice. These farmers the true sons of soil are trainers, scientists and leaders of this ecological initiative, in the service of Mother Nature.
They are neither environmentalists, nor economists nor religious preachers nor trained agriculture experts nor a health professionals, but they still posses and practice the wisdom of all these. They practice Guru Nanak’s precept of Sarbat da Bhala meaning the wellbeing of all, in their farming. They are the natural farmers of Punjab.
Their farms are laboratories of happiness for all and encompass every living creature on earth, every life form. It is farming with passion for the wellbeing of all; one can call it spiritual farming, natural farming, non-violent agriculture or simply Nanak Kheti. These farmers are even taking care of a large verity of birds, earthworms, honey bees, butterflies and fireflies and many more magnificent life forms. For these farmers all living creatures are part of a family and - it is their family.
KVM preaches to adopt famous verses of Guru Granth Sahib in farming practices: “Pavnu Guru, Panni Pita Matta Dharat Mahat”, Air is Guru, Water is father and Earth is mother. This holy guiding principal should be part of the life, practice and mission of farmers who want to do natural farming.
There is a silent and constructive revolution happening in Punjab to save the environment, regenerate ecological resources to bring back soil productivity and re-establish ecological balance in the farms. This is the natural farming movement of Kheti Virasat Mission (KVM), a civil society action group headquartered in the Jaitu town of Faridkot district. The movement is led by experienced farmers who believe in principal of Sarbat da bhala," says Amarjeet Sharma, a farmer from Chaina village, district Faridkot who heads the village level Vatavaran Panchayat. Vatavaran Panchayats are local-level community institutions working as participatory civil society initiatives.
KVM is a farmers movement dedicated to natural farming, conservation of natural resources and traditional wisdom. Most of farmers associated with KVM work through its Vatavaran Panchayats. KVM farmers are farmers with a mission, vision and action. These farmers have taken pledges to start natural farming in one go or in a phased manner. KVM currently has around a 100 formal and 800 informal members.
The natural farmers of Punjab say that the land has witnessed the destruction of the environment as a consequence of chemical farming. In particular, the soil ecology has suffered a devastating blow in the last few decades as it has lost its nutrient pool. The burning of paddy straw has further destroyed the soil's health. But during the last four to five years, the soil in several parts of Punjab has been regenerated and rejuvenated by natural farming. These natural farmers are convinced, so much so that their feet feel happy and healthy coming in contact with the soil. “You can see earthworm castings, which had completely disappeared in the fields,” says a visibly happy and proud Hartej Singh of Mehta village in Bhatinda district. "Our farmers will offer you a handful of soil which you will find soft and with all the natural aromas that are associated with the infinite life of our earth. That is the kind of work we are doing," he adds.
KVM has evolved a distinct philosophy that defines soil as the 'source of infinite lives'. "Yes, it is true and we have experienced it," avers KVM chairman and a farmer from Rai Ke Kalan village of Bathinda, Harjant Singh. If the soil is rich in microorganisms, its texture is soft, full of natural essence and ample quantities of moisture are kept intact. Then the soil gives healthy crops, and there is a lesser need for irrigation.
Harjant Singh further elaborates on the scientific premises of natural farming. All living organisms require nutrition and minerals for their growth. Plants, being stationary, receive all their nutrition from their surroundings and from natural life processes. They get carbon dioxide and water from nature and by the process of photosynthesis, the required amount of sugars is produced. Similarly nitrogen in the air is captured by rhyzobia bacteria in soil for the plants. These microorganisms perform different functions for the plants. "By using the chemical inputs, especially the pesticides, we have destroyed the delicate microbial equilibrium of soil and tilted the game in favour of external chemical inputs thus making the situation even worse," says Singh.
KVM farmers use Jeevaamrita (a cow urine based microbial preparation) to revive microbial activity in soil. With the application of Jeevaamrita and Ghan Jeevaamrita (a solid form of Jeevaamrita), the soil is gradually becoming rich in the humus, yield has increased, and other life forms are coming back in the fields, says Charanjeet Singh Punni, another KVM farmer from Chaina village and a natural farming trainer. Punni highlights another aspect of natural farming. "Although the sunlight of some of its radiation is essential for the photosynthesis, it is a threat to the soil bacteria. Mulching is the best answer to this."
Mulching is an essential part of natural farming. Natural farmers aver that when the soil is covered with various forms of mulching, the results are unimaginable. Earlier the soil had lost all soil bacteria, microbes and earthworms. But after adoption of Jeevaamrita and mulching, the farms are again becoming wealthy in soil health. Krishnan Jakhar of village Dhaba (near Dabawali), Vinod Jyani of village Katehra, near Fazilka, Swarn Singh of Karamgarh Shattran, Madan Lal of Bullowal in Hoshiarpur, Jarnail Singh in Meharu, Nakodar and other natural farmers of the KVM network are using inter crops, plant residue, fallen leaves, bushes, weeds and sometimes even the wheat straw or the paddy straw cuttings spread in the fields to cover the naked soil. “Besides protecting the bacteria and retaining the moisture, this also keeps the temperature of the soil low and it never goes beyond the 40 degrees Celsius, which is the upper limit for the survival of microbes,” tells Ajay Tripathi, associate director of KVM.
KVM farmers have redefined, reestablished and regenerated their mother-son relation with the soil. They feel a spiritual bond, an oneness with the soil. That is why they are against all forms of agro-chemicals and burning of fields - to them it is a form of violence against the earth.
There is a common question usually asked to KVM activists. Does natural farming economics work? This spiritual soil science is also more financially beneficial to these farmers. After adopting natural farming they are spending far less from earlier chemical farming days. Natural farming is more cost effective and input efficient says Amarjeet Dhillon a small farmer from Dabrikhana village, who owns only two acres of land. For example, farmers having sugarcane and black gram in their farms have to spend virtually nothing on inputs asserts, Dhillon. He cities several examples where farmer had spend only Rs.100-200 on inputs for one acre as against Rs.3000 by a chemical farming farmer. "Some of us had stopped cash out flow to cities any more to purchase Urea, DAP and pesticides and thousands of others have reduced this out flow of cash in a big way", he adds.
On an average in Malwa's cotton belt farmers are spending Rs.7000 on chemical inputs per acre annually in normal conditions. If there are more pest attacks, then there may be no limit to this amount. There is a rough estimate that every village is spending a large sum of money -- from Rs.40 lakhs to Rs.6 crores -- purchasing agro-chemicals, depending upon area of cultivation and cropping pattern. Natural farmers want to stop the loss of village wealth by bringing down farmers' spending on agro-chemicals. This is Kissan version of Swadeshi movement says Chamkour Singh of Dhudhike village of Moga district. Dhudhike is famous for being the birthplace of eminent freedom fighter Lala Lajpat Rai and other martyrs of Gadar movement. “Our farmers are no more going to serve MNCs or big agro-chemical corporations. We are evolving a framework for an agricultural Swadeshi movement in Punjab. We are going to redefine Boycott and Swadeshi in the present context and scenario that is why KVM has given a slogan to its farmers – MNCs quit our farms,” he adds.
KVM feels that there is urgent need of Swadeshi agriculture movement to decolonize Indian agriculture and to liberate Indian farmer from clutches of westernized agriculture and developmental paradigm being convinced by ICAR and State Agriculture Universities. This prototype is philosophically alien to our cultural roots and stranger to ecological ethos and believes of our society.
The KVM’s natural farming movement has also brings another significant change in mindset of farmers. Now they are not looking towards Agriculture University or departmental experts for expert advice any more. “We feel that every farmer of ours is a expert in himself, he practice this science of natural farming, he lives natural farming every day, he is totally engulfed with the philosophy of natural farming,” said Dr. Harminder Sidhu a Homeopath practitioner and a practicing natural farmer from village Jalaldiwal of Raikot in Ludhiana district. “The modern agriculture paradigm has limited all expertise to Agriculture Universities only. The chemicalised agriculture model has made farmers scientifically illiterate – who presumed to be ignorant to every aspect of science and agri technology. This is a conspiracy which has made farmers dependent on Universities, department, companies and even pesticide retailers. It is a cruel joke that those who get a three or five year degree in agriculture with a alien kind of agriculture knowledge are known as experts, who are practicing a agriculture knowledge of only 40 years old, where as the farmers who inherent the agriculture wisdom of at least 5000 years were made commoners. We are not going to accept this nonsense any more. We are working to build self-confidence of our farmers on their own agriculture heritage and wisdom. We are the nation with abundance in farm produces, agro-biodiversity and prosperity,” adds confident Dr Sidhu.
The list of natural farmers includes names from all corners of the state. The Pingalwara Charitable Society, Amritsar, a prestigious social service institute in north India, founded by Bhagat Puran Singh has supported natural farming and the movement with its resources. Pingalwara has established the Bhagat Puran Singh Natural Farming Centre in 37 acres at village Dhirakot near Jandiala Guru. More significantly, well-known religious leader and spiritual environmentalist Sant Balbir Singh Seenchewal, Sultanpur Lodhi has successfully rejuvenated rivulet Kali Bain, and has joined the natural farming movement. Now he is promoting natural farming in his spiritual mass gatherings.
Similarly many professionals such as those from the medical field, college and university lecturers and professors, advocates, journalists, even government officials and civil servants have joined this movement for rejuvenation of the soil. They are in contact with the KVM and participate in its activities.
Now KVM is concentrating few villages for change the entire village in natural farming field. Two villages in Faridkot district -Chaina and Dabrikhana were chosen for this initiative.
In the just commenced wheat season -- from now to mid-April -- KVM activists are planning to reach out to at least 60 blocks of the state. These activists are committed farmers who work in the fields, not experts who come by when they can spare time by choice. These farmers the true sons of soil are trainers, scientists and leaders of this ecological initiative, in the service of Mother Nature.
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