A lot of revolutionary changes have occurred in farming practices after the Green Revolution. As use of more inorganic and fertilizers weaken the soil quality, some farmers are gradually turning to organic farming and using more indigenous seeds. Keeping the advantages of the local or indigenous seeds in view, some farmers are encouraging others to continue natural and organic farming rather than using inorganic seeds and fertilisers. With people becoming more health conscious, farming methods are gradually changing. Organic farming helps people control expenses and strengthen the soil for more crop yield. The farmers following this organic methods are able to get benefits in two ways through their own marketing. Dande Yagna Narayana, a software engineer in Guntur district in Andhra Pradesh, has therefore taken up organic farming.
Narayana hails from Gokarna Matham of Nizampatnam Panchayati in Guntur district. A software engineer by profession, he has taken up natural and organic methods of farming after returning home to India from the US after the Covid pandemic. Currently, he is working from home for his job. However, not satisfied with the job, Narayana took to farming activities through natural and organic methods. Narayana enjoys the process and has procured some paddy seed varieties from Telangana and sown them in his land in Guntur district.
Possessing only an acre of land, he took up organic farming by sowing Kalabatti in half an acre and “Karpura Kamini” paddy type in the remaining half acre. For this he adopted the scientific approach of farming. He took up two stretches of land with 2 metre width and 40 metre length and left two feet space between each crop. Once in 15 days, he uses cow urine on the soil and sprays on paddy crops besides using an infusion to tackle pests in the crop field.
He adopted this natural method and spent only Rs 12,000 per acre against normal investment of Rs 30,000. The method he follows gives him more yield in just five months as each acre gets about 30 bags of paddy. Another advantage of this seed variety is that it will not get dampened in rains and the crop does not lean towards the soil base, he says.
Narayana has inspired others as some health conscious and enthusiastic farmers are truly turning to organic farming now. Organic farming is the only suitable method of cultivation, he said. He says he plans on quitting the software engineering job for organic farming. “As I am working from home now, I will not go back. I plan on settling here for organic farming," Narayana said. He also advises other farmers to follow only organic farming methods to get rid of the various disadvantages of chemical fertilizers and seeds.
Read all the Latest News, Breaking News and Coronavirus News here. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Telegram.