Zero Budget Farming – Bharatiya Prakritik Krishi Paddhati (BPKP)

Life of farmers in developing countries like India is a matter of concern especially for the country’s economy where the majority of the population is dependent on agriculture as well as farmers. The Green revolution has a major impact on the farming culture in India. It has been around 40 years since the green revolution started and it has dominated agriculture since then. The Green Revolution was a major transformative period of technological advancements in agriculture, primarily in the 1960s and 1970s, that led to a substantial increase in food production, primarily in developing countries. 

But recently   during the address of the United Nations conference on desertification (COP-14), Our PM told the community all over the world that our country is focusing on Zero-Budget Natural Farming (ZBNF).  It was originally promoted by agriculturist Subhash Palekar, who basically promoted  it in the mid-1990s as an alternative to the Green Revolution’s methods that relied on chemical fertilizers and pesticides and intensive irrigation. Even though the green revolution plays in boosting the economy, the role of economic farming can be ignored for a populous country like India. 

The main highlight even in budget 2019 specifically due to its significance in  doubling  farmer’s income by 2022 was zero budget farming. However, scientists from all across the country, mainly from National Academy of Agricultural Sciences suggested that there is no need for the government to promote ZBNF unless there is proper  validation of its scientific evidence.

 Zero Budget Natural Farming (ZBNF)also known as Bhartiya Prakritik Krishi Padhati (BPKP) is    farming which is  resilient to climate and it also encourages  farmers to use minimal cost, bare-input and easily available inputs, eliminating the use of artificial/chemical fertilizers and industrial pesticides considering the kind of adulterated food ( containing pesticides) we are consuming these days which has a deteriorative effect on our health.

It is a technique of no chemical  agriculture which has its origin basically  from traditional Indian practices. In natural farming, the total cost of growing and harvesting is nil therefore known as zero budget.  One of the esteemed Indian agriculturist Subhash Palekar practiced Zero Budget Natural Farming in India and  was awarded as  ‘Padma Shri’ in 2016, which is popularly known   as ‘Krishika Rishi’.

Picture 1: Highlighting the components of natural farming

This model is very unique and it completely relies on sustainable agriculture . It basically states  that there is no need for expensive inputs such as fertilisers, pesticides and intensive irrigation. Rather than using  commercially produced chemical inputs, the ZBNF promotes traditional practices  of farming like: 

• Jeevamrutha:  It is a traditional method where  a mixture of aged cow urine and  fresh cow dung (both from India’s indigenous cow breed), jaggery, all the organic constituents , pulse flour, water and soil which is to be applied on farmland. This is a  microbial culture  which is fermented and that adds nutrients to the soil and one third of it acts as a catalytic agent to promote the activity of microorganisms and earthworms in the soil.
• Bijamrita:  Instead of using the harmful insecticides,  a mixture which basically contains the concoction of neem leaves & pulp, tobacco and green chillies prepared for insect and pest management, that can be used to treat seeds.
• It also  promotes  aeration in the soil , low use of  watering, intercropping, bunds and topsoil mulching and reduces dependence on intensive irrigation and  ploughing deep into soil.

Principles of Zero Budget Natural Farming 

1. No external inputs are required in the farming
2. Minimal disturbance of soil considering the purity of soil
3. Biostimulants as necessary catalysts are used 
4. Use indigenous seed which has original genetic constitution
5. Mixed cropping is carried through this farming
6. Integration of trees into the farm also known as social forestry
7. Water and moisture conservation in the farms
8. Integrate animals in to farming to provide necessary organic contents
9. Increase organic residues on the soil 
10. Pest-management through botanical extracts 
11. No synthetic fertilizers, pesticides, herbicides

  Picture 2: Principles of zero budget natural farming

Why we should run towards  zero budget farming

1. Rising environmental concerns caused by modern farming
2. Change in consumers preference towards safety food 
3. Combat climate change specially global warming
4. Huge cases of farmers suicide due to burden of huge loans
5. High labour wages 
6. Volatile market price which has negative impacts on farmers
7. Fragile ecosystem – Unpredicted monsoon extremes 
8. Rising cost of Inputs with commercialization and urbanisation

Picture 3: Pillars of farming and methods of pest and insect management 

Methods of farming:

1) Jeevamrut: 

Jeevamrut is an organic manure. This is fermented microbial culture which is prepared by natural resources which increases the microbial activity in the soil . It can be applied directly or indirectly  through irrigation water or foliar spray. Once we transform from conventional input-intensive agriculture, the utilization of Jeevamrut to the soils and plants is done  only for the first three years as afterwards it becomes self-sustaining. The 48 hrs. fermentation process enhances  aerobic and anaerobic bacteria present in the cow dung and urine, as they eat organic ingredients and a handful of undistributed soil acts as inoculate of native species of microbes and organisms

2) Beejamrut: 

For the treatment specifically seeds, seedlings or any planting material,  an organic manure which is prepared from locally available natural resources. Out of all the ingredients, the dung and urine from the indigenous breed cow act as a powerful insecticide both as fungicide and antibacterial in nature. They are powerful ingredients for killing all the harmful insects and fungus. It decreases the possibility of seed infestation by insects and pests and protects young roots from fungus, soil-borne diseases, and seed-borne diseases that generally affect the plants mainly  after monsoon.

3) Acchadana: 

There are three types of mulching. 

• Soil mulching:. It facilitates aeration, and promotes water retention and also protects the topsoil 

• Straw/Biomass mulching: The decomposition and humus formation will improve soil fertility and aeration alongwith  the application of dry organic matter (dead material of any living being) 

• Live mulching: Live mulching involves inter-cropping or mixed-cropping by combining monocots (such as wheat and rice ) with dicots (those seedlings with two seed leaves like legumes) in the same piece  of land. A symbiotic relationship is created, because monocots will supply elements like potash, phosphate, and sulphur while dicots will work towards nitrogen-fixation with the usage of soil bacteria. 

4) Whapasa/Moisture: 

It is the condition where there are involvement of both  air molecules and water molecules present in the soil.  It has the inclusiveness of one half of air and one half of water vapours in the cavities between two soil particles.

Benefits of zero budget natural farming:

 The biggest advantage of ZBNF is that it  requires very less water and less electricity (than those with crops which utilize pesticides and insecticides ) i.e around 60 percent less  for all the selected crops. 

Through multiple aeration, natural farming reduces methane emissions significantly

 It also has the power to avoid residue burning by practicing mulching.  Cost of cultivation is reduced in Zero budget natural farming.

• Effective  Yield: All the factors like labour, soil, equipment and by avoiding use of non-natural inputs like fertilizers, herbicides and pesticides, production will be increased.
• Increased  income: Encouraging local resources like Jivamrit and Beejamrit reduces reliance on costly fertilizers and chemicals, boosting farmers’ incomes and making farming sustainable and future goals can be met
• Maintenance of  better health: As this type of farming avoids synthetic chemicals, it eliminates health risks and hazards while offering higher nutrient density and better health benefits. Also it can have a major impact on the health of children and old people with weaker immunity.
• Generation of Employment : By increasing job opportunities across the agricultural value chain, from production and distribution to market linkages for natural produce as it runs in chains. It involves the usage of labour which is available in the country and can be utilized properly.
•  Conservation of Environment : It maintains  better soil biology, improved agro-biodiversity and a more proper usage of water with much smaller carbon and nitrogen footprints.
•  Soil Health Rejuvenation: Natural farming revitalizes  microbiota of the soil, improves the soil health by using bio-inoculums and natural pesticides, which enhance nutrient content in plants and increase bioavailability for human

 Zero Budget Natural Farming (ZBNF) is a set of methods used in farming, and also a grassroots  movement done by peasants, which has spread to various states in India. It has achieved huge boom in southern parts of the country

Different Astras for pest management: 

1) Agniastra- This is the true mixture of  various herbs like chilli, garlic, neem and cow urine (all available in house or locally) and used to control the insects (all kinds of borer, leaf, stem borer) 

2) Brahmastra-  It involves the utilization of a mixture of  sow urine with several locally available plants like custard apple, neem, guava, pomegranate etc. and it is done to spray over the leaves of the plants. It is used to control all of the sucking pests, pod borer, fruit borer and various other infectants . Thus all the organic contents are only utilized.

3) Neemastra- Neemastra includes a mixture of cow dung, urine, neem etc. and is used against leaf sucking insects, mealybugs and various other parasites.  It is great alternative to pesticides.

Drawbacks of Zero Budget Natural Farming: 

•  One of the major drawbacks of ZBNF is that it is impossible  to suggest to customers that their natural farming production is nutritious and pesticide free in order to command a premium  price.

• This farming type is still under question on many terms  and not much scientific research is done to understand its long term impact and is still under evaluation 

Issues in ZBNF 

1. Labour intensive form of agriculture, which requires significant work in the farmland and livestock maintenance. It requires a lot of labour which is difficult to get on a large scale.
2. Debatable concept of Zero cost input as it is impossible to produce crops without cost inputs as freely available inputs like rainwater and family labour also adds to the opportunity cost. 
3. Yield variations will become a common phenomenon as the natural factors during a particular season would completely decide the actual output.
4. Indigenous cow breeds are an integral requirement for the farming practice and they incur high maintenance cost with low milk yield to the farmer.

Conclusion

•  There is a need for the Government to take the initiative to build the bridge of knowledge between the farmers and his system of farming. It should be tested on an expansive  scale and on various types of  soil. Hence, implementing this at larger scale and in a better way will help the nation to progress towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goal
•  As like any other type of farming , this traditional method of farming known as Zero Budget Natural Farming has its pros and cons, although if properly taken care of it will become a solid  part of Indian agriculture.  First of all, the government should address the crisis like rising labour cost in this, and by providing better produce prices to the farmers. Only then it could be promoted at a larger scale.
• There are certain dedicated schemes of Paramparagat Krishi Vikas Yojana (PKVY) and through Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana (RKVY) which our government is continuously promoting for many years.
• In one of the survey of NITI AYOG, it was found out that the Zero Budget technique has resulted in an increase in the yields of crops like paddy by 12 per cent, cotton by 11 per cent, groundnut 23 per cent, and chilli 34 per cent at less than half the cost of cultivation in the year 2016-17.  
• While addressing the United Nations conference on desertification (COP-14), our honorable Prime minister told the global community that India is majorly focused  on Zero Budget Natural Farming (ZBNF). 
• In the recent budget speech by our Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has  mentioned how ZBNF will double farmers’ income by going “back to basics”. It is a very positive sign for farmers who don’t have much money to invest in farming.
• To conclude it can be said that when chemical-intensive farming leads to soil and environmental degradation, a zero-cost environmentally-friendly farming method is definitely a right initiative. It suits all kinds of crops in all agro-climatic zones. Andhra Pradesh came out as an ambitious plan to become India’s first State to practise 100% natural farming.

References: 

1. https://pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=1592265 
2. https://www.unep.org/news-and-stories/press-release/andhra-pradesh-become-indias-first-zero-budget natural-farming-state 
3. https://pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=1739600 .
4.  Swaminathan, M. S. (10 August 2009). “From Green to Ever-Green Revolution”. The Financial Express. 
5.   Rajagopal, Gopi (13 October 2016). “The Stories of Ehrlich, Borlaug and the Green Revolution”. The Wire (India). 
6.  ”  Rust-resistant Wheat Varieties. Work at Pusa Institute”. The Indian Express. 7 February 1950. 

By:  Dr Geetika Singh, Assistant Professor ( Botany)

 Department of basic and applied sciences,  Madhav University, Sirohi