Policy Advocacy: Campaigning on Sustainable Agriculture Policies
Mandal level Sustainable Agriculture campaign conducted:
8 mandal level campaigns have been organized on Sustainable Agriculture, in
all the 8 mandals of AF’s program area. Totally about 3,000 farmers (About 1,400
men and 1,600 women) have participated in these campaigns. In these campaigns
the advantages of Sustainable Agriculture, the ill-effects of Green Revolution
model of agriculture and issues in practicing of Sustainable Agriculture were
discussed extensively. The emerging issues from these campaigns were discussed
in the district level Farmers Conference, organized by AF during March 2009, in
collaboration with a group of likeminded NGOs, involved in promoting Sustainable
Agriculture, like CSA (Hyderabad), APPS, TIMBAKTU Collective and FES. The
purpose of the Conference was to formulate favorable policy recommendations on
Sustainable Agriculture in a participatory process with farmers. The Conference
was well attended by about 1400 farmers having inclination to Sustainable
Agriculture across the District. Special efforts were made to involve more women
farmers. Consequently 60% of the participants were women. Besides a no. of
Activists, Scientists, and officials from agriculture department, and
agriculture research bodies also participated. During the last 2 years, AF conducted policy campaigns on two major themes,
i.e. Sustainable Agriculture & NREGP.
Recommendations from the campaigns:
- Appointing a “Commission on Sustainable Agriculture and Farmers Welfare”
to recommend appropriate policies for Sustainable Agriculture in Anantapur
District, with due emphasis on rain fed agriculture and rain fed farmers.
- Implementing integrated, bio-mass intensive, micro-watershed development
in the District with emphasis on Sustainable Agriculture and natural
resources.
- Providing incentives to farmers for practicing SA practices like
preparation & application of bio-manures and bio-pest control practices @
Rs.3000 per acre.
- Providing long-term and mid-term based additional incentives,
particularly for perennial tree crops like Mango, Tamarind, Sweet Lime,
Pomegranate etc.
- Ensuring remunerative prices and marketing facilities for all crops
grown using Sustainable Agriculture practices.
- Providing critical (protective) irrigation for all rain fed crops in
case of long dry spells. Provide 100% coverage of micro irrigation
facilities for efficient water use.
- Replacing crop insurance with income insurance for all crops and
farmers. The sum assured must cover crop investment plus an additional
50%,to compensate the value of the yield lost and thus provide income
insurance to the farmer.
- Organizing seed production in every panchayat and facilitate seed banks,
managed by farmers, with local, non-hybrid and non-genetically modified
seed.
- Introducing the locally grown millets and pulses like Jowar, Ragi, Red
gram etc., in the subsidized Public Distribution System (PDS).
- Organizing Sustainable Agriculture Farmers’ Groups on the lines of women
SHGs and federate them at Mandal, District and State level, to play a vital
role in transforming the conventional agriculture into Sustainable
Integrated Farming.
- Establishing a region-specific and farmer-centric extension service system including farmer’s extension institutions for propagating Sustainable Agriculture.
