Organic Farming - People, Development and Environment Notes

An Overview of Organic Farming

• Lakshadweep became the first Union Territory to become 100% organic.
• Sikkim was the first state in India to become wholly organic.
• Organic farming is carried out without the use of pesticides and synthetic farming.

• It makes agriculture environment friendly and provides access to safer food choice.
• India ranked first in a number of organic farmers.
• India’s ranking under area coming under organic farming is 9^th.

Definition of Organic Farming

• According to FSSAI,' organic farming’ is a system of farm design and management to create an ecosystem of agriculture production without the use of synthetic external inputs such as chemical fertilisers, pesticides and synthetic hormones or genetically modified organisms.
• Organic farm produce means the produce obtained from organic agriculture, while organic food means food products that have been produced in accordance with specified standards for organic production.

Indian position Regarding Organic Farming

• In 2016 Sikkim became the 1st state to become wholly organic.
• Traditionally North-East India is organic and chemicals consumption is far less there than the rest of the country.
• Tribal areas and island territories also practice organic farming
• Major exports of organic products are sesame, flax seeds, tea, soybean, medicinal plants, pulses and rice.
• India saw an increase of 50 per cent of organic exports in 2018-19.
• Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) is the food regulator in the country and is also responsible for regulating organic food in the domestic market and imports.

Government Initiatives to Promote Organic Farming

• It is a central sector scheme.
• It is a sub-mission under National Mission for Sustainable Agriculture (NMSA)
• It was launched in 2015 by the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare.
• It is implemented in Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim, Tripura and Meghalaya.
• The aim of this scheme is to develop certified organic production in a value chain mode to link growers with consumers and to support the development of the entire value chain.

2. Paramparagat Krishi Vikas Yojana (PKVY)

• It was launched in 2015.
• "Paramparagat Krishi Vikas Yojna (PKVY)" a sub-component of Soil Health Management(SHM) scheme under National Mission of Sustainable Agriculture(NMSA)
• Under PKVY, Organic farming is promoted through the adoption of organic villages by cluster approach and Participatory Guarantee System (PGS) certification.
• It aims at the development of sustainable models of organic farming through a mix of traditional wisdom and modern science to ensure long term soil fertility buildup, resource conservation and helps in climate change adaptation and mitigation.

Certification Schemes

• It is a process of certifying organic products.
• The aim of this scheme is to ensure that production takes place in accordance with laid-down quality standards.
• It is given to products that are chemical-free.
• It is for domestic purpose.

2. National Program for Organic Production (NPOP):

• This is also a farming certificate.
• It is mainly for export purpose.
• The certificate is issued through a third party.

3. Soil Health Card

• This was launched in 2015 by the ministry of agriculture.
• It is printed report of 12 nutrients: pH, Electrical Conductivity (EC), Organic Carbon (OC), Nitrogen (N), Phosphorus (P), Potassium (K), Sulphur (S), Zinc (Zn), Boron (B), Iron (Fe), Manganese (Mn), Copper (Cu) of farm holdings.
• It is provided to al farmers at an interval of 3 years.
• Farmers apply recommended doses of nutrients through a soil test.
• This scheme is Scheme has led to a decline of 8-10% in the use of chemical fertilizers and also raised productivity by 5-6%.

4. Zero Budget Natural Farming

• Zero budget natural farming is a method of chemical-free agriculture drawing from traditional Indian practices