For Clean, Smart and Profitable Farming.
Agricultural News
Agri News : Pesticide-free farming in Kerala
The group of farmers in Kuruvai village in Palakkad district’s Vadakkencherry panchayat in cultivating paddy
without chemical pesticides has come in for praise from United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). It finds a
prominent place in a book on replacing highly hazardous pesticides with agroecology brought out by Pesticide
Action Network International.
"Farmers were pleasantly surprised by the results", said N. Chenthamarakshan, secretary of the 18-hectare Kuruvai
Padasekharam. The paddy collective in great distress was adopted by State Agricultural Technology Management Agency
in the second crop season (Mundakan) in October 2015 to change over to agroecological methods using the concept of
farmer field schools.
Using friendly pests to fight enemy pests and with zero chemical pesticide, the result was resounding success, said
a government official. The average yield during the season went up by 30 per cent, bringing the farmers a profit of
over Rs. 74,000 per hectare plus the government subsidy of Rs. 11,500.