Wednesday, December 22, 2010

Farmers are aware of issues with pesticides/herbicides !!!!

Had a chat with the driver of the tractor who had come for ploughing my field. He may be around 25 years old and has completed his ITI degree in Mehcanical branch. He is also a farmer and has around 4 acres of paddy field. He mentioned to me if I am going to plant without puddling, then weeds may be more and herbicides may have to be used. Just out of curiosity I asked him if they uses herbicides. He uses herbicides but there is one portion they keep it for their own use and there they don't apply herbicides and apply only cow dung as manure. I was shocked to hear this and had heard about such stories but didn't know it happens in palakkad,kerala.

I just told him so you are taking care of your health and your families health and not worried about others health, he was just smiling and didn't answer my question. Once the peak season is over, he does not have job for the rest of the year. His house is to be rennovated and need money for his sister's marriage. So it looks like when there is pressure for them, they don't think about the society.

Or what could be the reason why people are not bothered about other's health and how this attitude can be changed?

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

The consumers are themselves not bothered. They will spend on expensive gadgets,branded clothes, etc., but are not willing to pay 10 or 15 per cent more for organically grown produce.

Nandakumar said...

True, consumers and govt. are not in favor of farmers. To get a decent income from farming, farmers should organise. Now a days, all are organised and they demand premium prices. For e.g barbers,photographers all have associations and they fix the prices.



Regards,
Nandan

george ninan said...

keeping aside some land to grow for family and friends is standard practice in upper india too. if a cultivator were to grow organically on her entire holding then his costs will be much more than the revenue he hopes to collect for the produce. the market sets prices, cultivators optimise constraints and maximise revenue, control costs and hope for a profit that will also have to cover his other costs such as rents, paying back the loan plus interest for the agricultural loan from either cooperative or commercial banks. some cultivators do grow organically on their entire holding, but then they are servicing a niche market of well heeled consumers who are willing to pay the higher price. as in all complex issues there is an inflexion point. too much fertiliser [potash] and there will be excessive leaf growth, attracting a swarm of pests, then pesticides have to be applied. too much pesticide and the excess will drip onto the soil, kill the micro organism, worms, insects. the soil will lose its porosity, it will compact, lose moisture, dry out. irrigation, rains will merely run off. the top soil will die off. so the cultivator will apply more fertiliser, more pesticide, more irrigation. politicians will subsidise the chemical fertiliser, pesticide, provide free electricity for pump sets, subsidised diesel. the rich farmers lobby and the fertiliser, pesticide companies are all on the same page, along with banks extending credit. all cultivators need credit, nobody uses her own capital for the next crop. without credit there is no crop insurance, and no compensation in case of natural calamities. it is all a vicious cycle. and with free electricity, subsidised diesel cultivators leave on their pump sets unnecessarily, grow paddy, sugar cane, cotton in arid districts. water is pumped out copiously, the sun evaporates the water, leaving behind a layer of minerals, salts. after a few seasons the soil becomes saline. now the cultivator plows in gypsum to break the soil, increase calcium and reduce salinity. myopic in the extreme. there is little we can do. add to this the fact that most activists, NGOs, corporate social responsibility [CSR] scammers [it is an income tax reducing trick allowed by the government] those making a good living from attending seminars, writing articles, lobbying for farmers are generally from upper socio-economic strata and have no skin in the game. like developmental economists who make a good living from third world poverty.

Nandakumar said...

Thanks George Ninan for the detailed and useful comments and analysis of the situation.

Regards,
Nandan