Scaling up Natural Farming in Rajasthan,
Policy Study on Sustainable Agriculture by Sijo Abraham, Shanal Pradhan, Apoorve Khandelwal March 2023 |
https://www.ceew.in/publications/policy-study-on-sustainable-agriculture-natural-farming-india A eight-month-long study that the Sustainable Food Systems <https://www.ceew.in/research/sustainable-food-systems> team from CEEW carried out with the Chief Minister's Rajasthan Economic Transformation Advisory Council (CMRETAC). Explored the suitability of natural farming in Rajasthan and proposed a strategic roadmap for a successful but cautious scale-up.
Variability of natural farming in Rajasthan: Ground visits revealed that the local understanding of natural farming is highly diverse and often influenced by the organisation promoting it. In Rajasthan, natural farming covers the six key principles and four practices of natural farming, including nearly 12 sustainable agriculture practices.
Benefits for farmers: Through focus group discussions with 22 local Civil Society Organisations, the study found that natural farming reduces the cultivation cost by up to 60 per cent for moong (green gram). The farmers also reported an average reduction of 25 per cent in water consumption and a 50 per cent average reduction in fertiliser consumption. However, these reductions are highly dependent on the crop and the region.
Benefits for the government: The reduction in the use of chemical inputs and irrigation water can reduce the subsidy bill for the Centre and state governments. Based on our estimation, even if 20 per cent of farmers across Rajasthan switch to natural farming, it would reduce their average water consumption by 30 per cent, and save approximately INR 781 crore in power subsidy annually.
Video https://youtu.be/yuxgkb3mt7M
CEEW's journey to map and analyse natural farming practices in four agro-climatic zones of Rajasthan. We convened stakeholders such as practising natural farmers, farmers producer organisations, multiple district-level departments, academicians, and civil society organisations to understand the current state of natural farming and address key challenges associated with adopting such practices. These voices from the field enriched our policy recommendations to the Chief Minister's Rajasthan Economic Transformation Advisory Council (CMRETAC), further informing the 'Rajasthan Organic Mission' with a total budget outlay of INR 600 crores.