Kerala forms Organic Farming Mission to boost agriculture

Context: The government of Kerala has established a dedicated initiative called the Organic Farming Mission with the objective of promoting the widespread adoption of sustainable organic farming techniques and climate-smart agricultural practices within the state. 

Details:

• The Kerala government has established an Organic Farming Mission to promote the use of sustainable and climate-smart farming techniques in the state.
• The primary goal of this mission is to significantly expand the area of land dedicated to organic farming, targeting an impressive 5,000 hectares over the course of the next five years. 
• To achieve this ambitious target, the mission has set an annual goal of converting 1,000 hectares of land to organic farming practices.

Organic farming:

• This farming method focuses on cultivating land and raising crops in a way that maintains the health of the soil. 
• It involves using organic waste and biological materials, as well as beneficial microbes, to provide nutrients to crops and increase sustainable production.
• The goal is to create an environmentally friendly and pollution-free farming environment.

Key Features:

• Preserving the ability of soils to remain fertile in the long term through methods such as maintaining organic matter, promoting soil biological activity, and mindful mechanical interventions.
• This involves supplying plants with nutrients through the use of nutrient sources that are not easily soluble, but can be made accessible to plants through the activity of soil microorganisms.
• This refers to the ability to meet nitrogen needs by using legumes and biological nitrogen fixation, as well as efficiently reusing organic materials such as crop residues and livestock manures.
• The management of weed, disease, and pests is achieved through crop rotations, natural predators, diversity, organic fertilisation, resistant plant varieties, and minimal thermal, biological, and chemical intervention.
• The comprehensive management of livestock that takes into account their natural adaptations, behaviour, and welfare concerns in terms of their nutrition, housing, health, breeding, and upbringing.
• Taking into consideration the effects of the farming system on the broader environment and the preservation of wildlife and natural habitats.

Government Initiative:

• The Government of India has implemented several initiatives to promote organic farming. 
  • These include the National Project on Organic Farming (NPOF), the National Horticulture Mission (NHM), the Horticulture Mission for North East and Himalayan States (HMNEH), the Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana (RKVY), and the Network Project on Organic Farming of Indian Council Agricultural Research (ICAR). 
• Additionally, the government has introduced a program called Paramparagat Krishi Vikas Yojana (PKVY), which encourages farmers to adopt organic farming practices through a cluster-based approach.

Source: TH

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