MFOI 2023 Day 1: Gujarat Governor Acharya Devvrat Asks Farmers To Practise Natural Farming, Taking Cue From Forests

Gujarat Governor Acharya Devvrat was invited as the chief guest at the Millionaire Farmer of India Awards (MFOI) on Wednesday, December 6, 2023. The mega agriculture event will continue uptil Friday, December 8, 2023. The Founder and editor-in-chief, MC Dominic, welcomed him saying, "We have organised this event for him." He and Shiny Dominic, Managing Director, have organised the mega agriculture event. 

Mr Devvrat addressed the farmers calling them the "king of kings" and invited them to sit next to him on the dais. "I congratulate Mr MC Dominic and Shiny Dominic for giving so much respect to the farmers across the country," he said. Appreciating the efforts taken by Mr. and Mrs Dominic, he said, "I just learnt that Krishi Jagran is helping farmers with journals being published in 22 languages"

Challenges Faced by Farmers

Throwing light on one of the main challenges faced by the farmers, he said, "Global warming is going to affect the farmer most. A farmer loses millions if the 1-degree temperature of the earth increases and if the temperature of water rises above 27 degrees Celsius, it can bring storms, etc. "

"While the world has 60 per cent of carbon dioxide and repercussions are evident across the globe, Methane is 20 per cent more dangerous, and Urea Dap is 312 more dangerous because it comes in contact with nitrogen and produces nitric oxide," he said. 

He said he stopped using Urea Dap after one of his labour fainted during its application. "It is a sin to feed this poison to the children of India," he informed the farmers. 

Solution for Farmers Given by Gujarat Governor

He narrated how he couldn't reap profitable results with organic farming in three consecutive years. He consulted with agriculture scientist Hari Om, who asked him to use cow dung in the fields to create good yield. "While 1 acre land requires 60 kg nitrogen, 1 ton cow dung produces 2 kg nitrogen, therefore, 1-acre land requires 30 quintal cow dung," he said. 

"Cow dung not only produces nitrogen but also a lot of methane in the field which is responsible for increasing global warming," he said.

"Farming fields do not require organic pesticides or fertilizers, but a good amount of earthworms," he added. But how to create it? 

He gave a quick recipe to the farmers sitting to create a homemade solution for their field. He asked farmers to take a drum of at least 200 litres capacity and fill 180 litres of water in it. He asked the farmers to bring Indian cows and use their cow dung, at least 10 kg would be achieved in a day. "Add the cow dung in the drum and add 1.5 kg jaggery, 1.5 gram flour, and stir it twice a day morning and evening," he informed. He further asked the farmers to use the same portion created on the sixth day in their land. 

"10 kg of cow dung can produce 30 lakh crore worms," he mentioned. He also said that this will revive the land as the organic carbon is present below 0.5 percent at the moment and a lot of people have revived it 2-2.5 per cent," he said. 

Before the introduction of green revolution the organic carbon content of the soil in India was 2-2.5 per cent

He concluded his speech by saying, "Earthworms can create holes in the land which helps the soil in seeping the water. So, if there is excessive rainfall, it can be dealt with smoothly by earthworms." He also said that the other basic nutrients are already present in the soil like zinc, potassium, and phosphorus. This is called natural farming, which is practiced in the forests, where trees never fall or require fertilizers or pesticides.