Organic Farming (1+1)

Ill effects of Green Revolution

Ill Effects of Green Revoluation

• Chemical companies that developed highly toxic life damaging chemicals for the purpose of warfare, decided to turn their attention on the chemical control of insects, diseases and unwanted plants.
• Reduction in natural fertility of soil.
• Destruction of soil structure, aeration and water holding capacity of soil.
• Susceptibility of soil to water and wind erosion: In US 15 t/ha topsoil is lost; in India it is even more.
• Silting of reservoir.
• Diminishing return on inputs.
• Indiscriminate killing of useful insects, microorganisms and predators that naturally check excess crop damage by insect pests.
• Breeding more virulent and resistant species of pests.
• Reducing genetic diversity of plant species.
• Pollution with toxic chemicals. (In Europe 25% of the people drinking water with nitrate above safe limit: 25 mg/lit).
• Endangering the health of the farmers and workers who produce them (workers handling pesticide for more than 20 years have increased the risk of developing certain type of cancers.

Poisoning the food with highly toxic pesticide residues. Cash crops replacing nutritious food crops. Chemical changing the natural taste of the food. High inputs increasing the agricultural expenses. Increasing the farmers work burden and tension. Depleting the fossil fuel resources. Increasing the irrigation needs of the land. Depleting the ground water reserves. Lowering the drought tolerance of crops. Appearance of problematic weeds. Heightening the socio-economic disparities and land holding concentration. High input subsidies leading to inflationary spirals. Increasing the political and bureaucratic corruption. Destroying the local culture. Thronging financial institution into disarray. Agricultural and economic problems sparking off social and political turmoil resulting in violence.

Effects of excess use of endosulfan on health in Kasaragod

Thus, the need arose for an alternative to conventional agriculture, to save the soil from degradation, to increase the fertility and productivity, to avoid synthetic pesticides, to prevent pollution and increase biodiversity, to reduce the dependence on costly external inputs and to reverse the trend of barrowing, to make the farmers to rely more on local natural resources to inculcate self reliance and self respect.