NEW GLOBAL INDIAN
Gujarat: Where fields are greener
Written by VN Balakrishna Monday, 21 June 2010 00:00
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VN Balakrishna recites the tale of agricultural transformation in Gujarat, which gave a new lease of life to the farmers of the state.
Gujarat's phenomenal agricultural growth at 9.6% per year between 2000-01 and 2007-08 has set a benchmark for many states. There were several factors which played pivotal role in transforming the barren fields of the state into the green ones. Gujarat is not endowed with the overabundance of water resources, like its eastern counterparts. Nor, the soil of Gujarat is as fertile as of other states. But, still the state has turned out be the winner, as far as the agriculture sector is concerned. Let's trace the key instruments in the government's policy which drove a sort of agricultural revolution in the state.
Water management
Two large parts of Gujarat viz., Saurashtra and Kutch had been lacking water for agriculture and even for drinking since decades. This scarcity resulted in huge migration to urban areas. The migration comprising largely of young workforce began considering agriculture as a ritual or secondary activity. The cattle too were affected with migration towards greener parts of south Gujarat. Added to the woes, sea water ingressed up to 50-80 km inland of Saurashtra making the agriculture land saline and barren. The overall situation was indeed gloomy.
But then people elected the BJP government in Gujarat a decade ago and then a paradigm shift took place in the agricultural scene of the state. The incumbent Chief Minister Narendra Modi decided to pick up the gauntlet and took the challenge of water crisis quite seriously. He realized intuitively that the primary requirement was not the electricity to pump water out of the bore wells, but keeping large quantities of water stored round the year. This idea encouraged the farmers to build the check dams. Gujarat saw a real transformation with over a lakh small, medium and big ones being built through a social movement popularly called Check Dam Abhiyan. Water harvesting through check dam proved beneficial, given the topography of Saurashtra that has low water table due to its inverted saucer shape topography.
The struggle had been intense and the people took up rain water harvesting passionately through well-recharging, building farm ponds, check dams and creating new ponds or deepening the existing ones.
Schemes
In the wake of two continuous two drought-like situations, the Modi government implemented “Sardar Patel Sahbhagi Jal Sanchaya Yojana” popularly known as Public Bhagidari Scheme, or the 40:60 check dam scheme. It provided 60% government share and 40% by farmers or beneficiaries through participatory labour or donations. It was one of the best public welfare schemes that instead of making people dependent on a government made the people the major stakeholders of water resource. This was the most successful movement of the decade that saw an all round growth of the state with the industrial growth reaching to 11.2%.
Augmentation in crop variety
The geographical area of the state furnishes a mosaic of geologic, physiographic, soil and climatic variation which further gets accentuated due to the 1,650 km long coastline. These diversities coupled with the innovative nature of the farmers provided opportunities for growing variety of crops particularly cash crop such as vegetables, cotton or tobacco. This has brought vibrancy to the state's agriculture that has not been witnessed anywhere in India so far.
Organic farming
Organic agriculture is welcome given the high-level of chemical pollution in the soil. Organic farming can be done even without fertilizers in a natural way viz. using vermin compost or with the help of earthworms. Cow dung, cow urine, cow ghee is used for farming instead of pesticides, fertilizers etc. It is now established that whatever method is used, organic farming yields more than what is achieved by using the current fertilizer/chemical based method.
Insulation from climate factors
The situation that once was alarming due to irregular seasonal rainfall and withering monsoon crops had now changed. There was sufficient water available at any given time to be accessed from nearby check dams or wells. Now, farmers could even go for a third crop such as vegetables, fruits or flowers. Increased milk flow and livestock production also came about thanks to the rising groundwater level to eight meters from water harvesting. Repeated percolation after each phase of rainfall during monsoon had raised the water table which in turn prevented seawater ingress in Saurashtra.
"As we adopt the philosophy of Carbon Credit to nullify the adverse effects of climate change, Green-Belts must be developed to protect the environment, which will inspire the future industrial infrastructure. Gujarat has made a new beginning in this direction. It is bound to avert the wrath of nature," Modi believes.
The rich tradition and wisdom of ancient Indian agriculturists could help in achieving the New Millennium goals as it supplements the central theme of an humane economy without clashing with nature. The development preaches the idea of agro-economy with socio-economic values.
Impact
Indeed, in the last decade agriculture growth touched 9.6% more than double of the country's growth and much faster than Punjab's. This unprecedented agricultural boom is among the fastest growth recorded anywhere in the world. Agriculture production in the state had risen from Rs 9000 crore to over Rs 34,000 crore. The agricultural strategy had paid dividends, thanks to cut in input cost for the farmer facing adverse climatic situations. The magnitude of this achievement has largely come following good governance practices and the government's determination to evolve a permanent solution to the vexed water crisis.
It is said Gujarat has a history of seven years of drought at a stretch out of every 10 years. Thanks to the vision of Gujarat chief minister if water wars break out in the country it seems unlikely that Gujarat would be one of its victims as Saurashtra has shown the way.
