Makangiri: Tribal farmers living in some parts of Malkangiri district have resumed organic farming, which is turning out to be profitable for them. Given the growing awareness and demand for organic crops, more and more farmers are keen to adopt organic farming, a report said.
For the last several years, they had been raising cereals and vegetables by using chemical fertilizers. They had given up the traditional system of nurturing plants – use of cow dung, alluvial soil of rivers and sedimentary silt of ponds.
Crops raised this way were tasty and free from harmful elements. Reports said as people are keen on buying organic food, many tribal farmers have realised the demand for the crops and started farming in traditional ways at Matapaka.
They also sow indigenous seeds instead of high yielding varieties. Muka Jartami, a young farmer of Matapaka, has led this farming in the area. In his farmland, he has grown over 500 chilli plants with use of cow dung, alluvial soil and stream water.
His efforts have paid dividends. “Within a month since planting the saplings, each chilli plant bore over a half a kg chilli. The plants have grown luxuriantly with natural manure,” Muka asserted. The farming was done on experimental basis.
Now, he plans vegetable and paddy farming in the organic way. He noted that use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides in crops lead to deadly diseases in people. “Traditional system of farming is safe for healthy life,” the farmer observed.
PNN