Organic farming in India

Organic farming

Organic farming is a form of agriculture that relies on techniques such as crop rotation, green manure, compost, and biological pest control.

Organic farming is a method of crop and livestock production that involves much more than choosing not to use pesticides, fertilizers, genetically modified organisms, antibiotics and growth hormones.

Organic production is a holistic system designed to optimize the productivity and fitness of diverse communities within the agro-ecosystem, including soil organisms, plants, livestock and people. The principal goal of organic production is to develop enterprises that are sustainable and harmonious with the environment.

Conventional agricultural practices with an undue emphasis on intensive use of water, chemical fertilisers and high investments has led many farmers into a debt trap.

Natural farming is presented as the solution to the burning problems of farmers in the context of the crisis facing Indian agriculture because of rising input costs, uncertain yields and output prices, spurious seeds/ fertilizers/ pesticides/ herbicides and damage to environment due to unsustainable farming practices.

The thrust of the manual is on discussing the inputs from natural materials and on how to heal the soil slashed by chemicals, herbicide and machines. It presents how an ecology that recovered the natural balance will drop in the pests and disease occurrence. The report highlights cases with yields similar to those of chemical agriculture. The techniques for preventing soil erosion, holding moisture, propagating micro-organisms, producing organic fertilizer, improving soil ventilation and suppressing the pests are discussed.

National Centre of Organic Farming (NCOF) under Ministry of Agriculture is responsible for implementation of National Project on Organic Farming (NPOF). Users can find information on organic farming, organic certification system, participatory guarantee system, organic farming statistics, etc. Details related to regional centres, policy and EFC are given. Users can access training manual and books on organic package of practices.