Revitalization of Rivers in India Draft Policy - Isha Guru Jaggi Vasudev

Revitalization of Rivers In India
Draft Policy Recommendation
livestock. These medicines can be prepared using herbal plants that
are grown in the farm, and other ingredients available locally. This
significantly reduces the general expenditure a farmer in livestock
health maintenance.
PROMOTE INSECT DIVERSITY
Insect diversity is promoted to ensure that a natural and balanced
population of insects is present. Unlike in mono-culture, in poly-culture
plantations (as proposed in this model), rapid multiplication of pest
population, or dissemination of disease causing pathogens is avoided.
It is lack of knowledge of the agro-ecosystems that forces the
farmer to use pesticides. The pesticides that have been used in the farm
are now found in the food as residue. There are studies that highlight
the ill-effects of long-term consumption of food laden with pesticide
residues. Repeated, prolonged use of one pesticide make pests resistant
it. Consequently, the pesticide is replaced by another, more lethal and
stronger pesticide. Understanding of agro-ecology and different roles
of different types of pests will help farmers appreciate Integrated Pest
Management (IPM) as an approach to pests, and value insect diversity in
this farm. Insect and pest attack is a typical problem in high-input monocrop
agriculture practice. The issue of pests becomes insignificant when
following the farming system suggested here, especially when farmers
come to realize that insects are the farmers’ best friends.
Thus, in summary, by adopting the suggested model, the fixed asset
value of the land in terms of soil fertility and productivity is ultimately
improved, and shifts towards a future of sustainable agriculture.
PACKAGE OF PRACTICES THAT CAN BE FOLLOWED
A scientific package of practices suggested by the ICAR’s Research
Institutes and State Agricultural Universities (SAU) are available for
sustainable farming systems in a way that the farmers will get a good
yield, while the soil fertility is also protected for sustaining the land
for future generations. The use of drip irrigation systems are also made
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