Mumbai: In light of the severe global climate crisis, the agricultural universities in Maharashtra should focus on refining and upgrading traditional indigenous seeds. These seeds should be developed to ensure that farmers can sustain their income even under adverse conditions. Furthermore, universities should play a key role in promoting a revolution in natural farming within the state, as urged by Maharashtra Governor and Chancellor of state universities, Acharya Devvrat.
The Governor made these remarks on January 1st during an audio-visual interaction from Lok Bhavan, Mumbai, with senior officials from the Agriculture Department and the vice chancellors of the State Agriculture and Animal Sciences Universities.
Key attendees included additional chief secretary of the Agriculture Department, Vikas Chandra Rastogi; project director of the ‘Pokra’ project, Parimal Singh; vice chancellors of Agriculture and Animal Science Universities from the state; the Governor’s secretary Dr Prashant Narnavre; the ‘ATMA’ director Sunil Borkar; and other senior officials from the Agriculture Department.
The Governor noted that hybrid seeds have become problematic for farmers due to their high cost and the increased reliance on chemical fertilisers associated with their use. Additionally, grains produced from these seeds tend to be flavourless and lack nutritional value. Therefore, he emphasised the need for universities to research and enhance traditional seed varieties.
He also called for all Krishi Vigyan Kendras to develop model farms aimed at promoting natural farming and providing training for farmers. He believes that natural farming should evolve into a mass movement.
The Governor stated, “Natural farming is a sacred and divine endeavour. If we aim to enhance soil fertility and quality to ensure food security for future generations, there is no alternative to natural farming.”
The Governor further pointed out that many farmers purchase urea, DAP, and pesticides directly from shopkeepers based on their recommendations, leading to significant losses in farming. In this context, he urged universities to educate farmers.
He expressed satisfaction with the positive initiatives already undertaken by the Agriculture Department and universities following two symposia on natural farming held in Maharashtra.
Notably, four agricultural universities in Gujarat have been conducting research on natural farming for the past three years. Rather than initiating new research on this topic, the Governor suggested that state universities should build on the existing research from Gujarat. He assured that research journals and books developed in Gujarat would be made available to state universities.
Recently, the Governor has been visiting villages to raise awareness about natural farming. During one of these visits, he discovered that the water in 25 villages in Anand district was unsuitable for drinking due to nitrate contamination in groundwater. This contamination is causing severe health issues, highlighting the need for increased awareness regarding chemical usage.
The Governor emphasised that natural farming is achievable even for farmers with just one cow. He also stated that the conservation of indigenous cow breeds, such as Sahiwal, Tharparkar, Kankrej, and Gir, would benefit agriculture and enhance farmers’ incomes.
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