‘What’s your purpose in life?’ Couple Gnana Saravanan and Krishnasudha were pondering over this quintessential question as they sipped their morning tea. Both IT professionals worked in the bustling city of Chennai in private companies, far from their roots.
Saravanan is an eighth-generation farmer and the first in his family to graduate from college. When he moved to Chennai for higher education, he missed the lush greenery of his family farm in Palakkad, Kerala.
“Over time, I realised that my purpose wasn’t to work for corporations. As a farmer’s son, I felt a responsibility to give back to my roots and help sustain our generational farm. After all, it was the income from farming that provided for my education and that of my siblings,” Saravanan tells The Better India.
Krishnasudha too, who grew up on a farm, always wished to retain the lush greenery that a farm life offered. This was a pact that they drew when they first met each other for marriage, she laughs. “We both wanted to return to the farm after working for a few years in corporate,” she says.
With this thought in mind, the couple quit their jobs and returned to Palakkad in 2016.
What they’ve achieved and how they’ve transformed their farm since is an inspiring lesson for many. By leveraging technology for good, they mechanised the entire farming process, from creating natural fertilisers to setting up efficient irrigation systems.
Additionally, they developed value-added products like coconut oil and ghee, all produced at their farm, Deesan Farms.
Building a model organic farm
Saravanan’s family owns 36 acres of land where they primarily grew coconuts. Although they practised organic farming, the input costs were very high. Upon returning, the first thing the 39-year-old did was to implement integrated farming.
An integrated farming system is a holistic approach to crop-livestock farming that combines agricultural production, animal management, and resource management. Its goal is to reduce external inputs and achieve self-sufficiency by using technology to recycle all wastes into fertilisers. Key components of this system include intercropping, advanced irrigation systems, and efficient recycling processes.
The three major issues in farming:
- Soil management
- Waste management
- Water management
To build an integrated farm, Saravanan first added a dairy farm with 20 cows. It is based on the output (dung) given by the cows that he designed the entire farm. The cow dung and urine are converted into natural fertilisers, such as panchagavya, jeevamruth, amirtha karaisal, and vermicompost.
“All the answers we are looking for are present in traditional farming. I wanted to ensure that the efforts of my forefathers and father in building this farm shouldn’t go to waste. Farmers have been practising soil conservation and balancing the ecosystem for ages. I use their knowledge with a small twist of technology,” says Saravanan.
Since making the fertilisers manually is a time-consuming process, he installed a biodigester, which produces seven times the output that was being produced earlier. All the waste generated in the cow shed is sent to the fermentation chamber, generating almost 7,000 litres of fertilisers daily, as per the farmer.
These fertilisers are mixed and applied to the plantations every 15 days. The vermicompost unit generates almost 1.5 tonnes of vermicompost every month. A biogas unit utilises the rest of the cow dung.
After these machines, Saravanan focused on creating a microclimate while generating more income through intercropping. Earlier, the farm had monocropping with 1,650 coconut trees. Saravanan added banana, nutmeg, areca nut amidst the coconut trees. Besides this, he added guava and papaya on open land.
“This has created biodiversity, giving us financial and biological benefits,” he shares.
After creating a self-sustained farm, the next step was to create a market for the products. For this, Krishnasudha stepped in and suggested value-added products like coconut oil and ghee. They set up a production unit on their farm itself with a solar dryer.
“Every day has been a learning experience here. There is lesser stress as compared to a corporate job with the added benefit of serving good products to customers,” she says.
Today, Deesan Farms makes a tonne of coconut oil and 250 kg of ghee per week, claims Saravanan.
Getting youngsters interested in farming
While Saravanan had a lot of knowledge about farming thanks to his parents and grandparents, he attended a natural farming course. He says that this helped him with better ways of creating manure.
His farm, named after his father, Jagadeeshan is today a model farm, visited by thousands. He has also been recognised by the Kerala Government for his efforts in organic farming. He has been awarded the Kera Kesari Award in 2017, the Yuva Kesari Award in 2019, and the Akshayasree Award 2022-23 for Best Organic Farming in the state.
After his farm was set up and started running smoothly, he was filled with the desire to share his knowledge with the next generation. “Merely one person practising a sustainable model of farming is of no good if that information is not shared. I wanted to educate other farmers and students about healthy ways to grow food, consume food and practice farming that is beneficial to all,” he adds.
Saravanan conducts classes for the Kerala Government under the Bhartiya Prakritik Krishi Paddhti (BPKP) and the Paramparagath Krishi Vikas Yojana (PKVY) scheme. With at least three classes per week, he claims to have educated over 15,000 farmers and students so far.
Sreedhu P, agricultural officer, Perumatty, says that Saravanan’s farm is a perfect example of how an organic farm should be.
“He introduced comprehensive changes to the farm, including the installation of a biodigester and improvements to cow management, culminating in value addition. He also implemented a solar dryer for post-harvest management. Students and farmers from across South India visit his farm to attend his classes,” says Sreedhu, adding that more youngsters must consider this path instead of running to cities.
“We are facing a nutritional crisis today due to the food that is grown and consumed. The younger generation must get into farming and go back to the way things were done before — organic and adding technology where needed,” says Saravanan.
We need to consider that while we focus on increasing our bank balances and securing our children’s financial future, we are only providing them with financial security. What about ensuring their food security?
Edited by Pranita Bhat, Images Courtesy Gnana Saravanan
No comments:
Post a Comment