An expert committee of ICAR has said in its report that India’s food security will be affected if farmers turn to ZBNF on a large scale. 80 crore people in the country are still dependent on food subsidy.
The Government of India is promoting Zero Budget Natural Farming (ZBNF).
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Prime Minister Narendra Modi (PM Narendra Modi) Zero budget natural farming from farmers (Zero Budget Natural Farming) are appealing to. Last year, he participated in a big program related to ZBNF and appealed to the farmers to abandon traditional farming and adopt it. But recently the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICARAn expert committee has submitted its report, which states that India’s food security will be affected if large-scale farmers turn to ZBNF. 80 crore people in the country are still dependent on food subsidy.
In 2019, ICAR constituted a 16-member expert committee to study ZBNF. This committee has recently submitted its report. Committee head Praveen Rao Velchala told Hindustan Times that ZBNF should be tried in rain-fed or non-irrigated lands instead of the first irrigated areas. He said a large-scale shift to ZBNF could affect yields and food security.
ZBNF will impact food security and farm income
The Modi government has said that adopting ZBNF will provide healthier food items, improve the environment and increase agricultural income significantly. In the Union Budget 2022-23, it is proposed to promote chemical-free natural farming across the country, starting with 5 km wide corridors along the banks of the Ganges. The budget also asked agricultural universities to upgrade the syllabus to include courses on ZBNF.
The National Academy of Agricultural Sciences (NAAS) had written to PM Modi in 2019 expressing concern over possible negative impacts of ZBNF on farm income and food security. In August 2019, NAAS organized a one-day session of top scientists to examine the scientific evidence for ZBNF. Trilochan Mohapatra, Director General of ICAR and Ramesh Chand, a member of the government’s think tank NITI Aayog, also participated in this.
Soil quality has been affected by the use of chemical fertilizers
India increased food production in the 1970s through the Green Revolution, which promoted heavy subsidies for high-yielding seeds and fertilizers. But the overuse of chemicals has now deteriorated the health of the soil to a great extent. A recent study by think-tank Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations has found that declining soil fertility can cut agricultural income by two-thirds.
A member of the ICAR committee, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the report recommended an integrated and sustainable farming system adopting fertilizing, intercropping and crop diversification to improve the quality of soil health and increase farm income. At the same time, a scientist gave the example of Sri Lanka and said that the government there has imposed a complete ban on import of fertilizers, due to which there has been a huge decline in the yield. After this decision, the food prices in the country are skyrocketing.
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