The upcoming three-day event organized by the Union government will provide specialized training on ancient farming practices and animal Ayurveda to over 200 farmers nationwide.
Participants will learn techniques such as using starch and animal urine for pest control, applying cow dung ash on vegetables, safeguarding cabbages from insects with ash and cow urine mixture, protecting tomatoes with cynodon grass leaf extract, and utilizing babool and jamun bark extract to treat foot-and-mouth disease in livestock.
According to an English daily, the Bharatiya Paramparik Krishi Mela event will take place from June 4 to 6 at Tezpur University in Assam. The event is organized by the Union education ministry's Indian Knowledge System (IKS) division in collaboration with the Union culture ministry as part of their joint Dhara series, aligning with the celebration of India's 75 years of Independence.
During the event, a day-long workshop on krishi parashar, an ancient Sanskrit agricultural text, will be conducted, along with a two-day conference focusing on various aspects of Indian agricultural traditions. The event's primary objective, as stated by Ganti S Murthy, the national coordinator of the IKS division, is to familiarize farmers with traditional Indian alternatives to chemical pesticides and fertilizers.
Ganti S Murthy explained that traditional agriculture entails more than just substituting fertilizers with cow dung. It represents a distinct approach to farming that has been followed for centuries and is documented in ancient texts like Krishi Prashar and others, dating back 2,500 years. The event's purpose is to explore India's agricultural traditions and identify environmentally safe and economically beneficial methods, aiming to provide farmers with alternatives that prioritize their well-being and the environment.
He also shared that the Indian Council of Agricultural Research has conducted a scientific study on over 100 traditional Indian agricultural practices, revealing that more than 85% of these practices remain effective. The training provided to farmers aims to equip them with alternatives to pesticides and chemical fertilizers, focusing on enhancing soil fertility and productivity. Murthy exemplified the use of formulations containing asafoetida and white mustard seeds as an eco-friendly approach to pest control in vegetables. However, certain agricultural experts have criticized these measures, claiming a lack of scientific grounding despite their environmental benefits.
According to Sudhir Panwar, an agriculture expert from Lucknow and former member of the Uttar Pradesh Planning Commission, the issue of chemical residues resulting from the use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides is a global concern. It is crucial to explore alternative methods to address this problem. However, Panwar points out that there are currently no traditional methods or practices in India that can match the level of production achieved with chemical fertilizers. He emphasizes that farmers naturally opt for approaches that yield higher production as it directly impacts their livelihood. Therefore, it is important to suggest result-oriented practices and validate their effectiveness in the fields, rather than relying solely on training camps for learning.
The farmers will also attend a Pashu (animal) Ayurveda workshop conducted by the Indian Veterinary Association. Since agriculture is so closely related to animal husbandry in our country, farmers will also be trained in how to treat animals using locally available resources, essentially the Pashu Ayurveda, said Murthy.
Additionally, the event's schedule includes several sessions covering topics such as sustainable resource management based on Indian knowledge, traditional methods for land and water management, pest management using traditional practices, and the application of Indian knowledge in the management of livestock, fishery, and related areas.
