The clock seems to have turned a full circle in Adilabad district with its Adivasi citizens vowing to take recourse to practices associated with nature, especially in the field of agriculture. The Gond Rai Sabhas or Rai centres, the advisory councils at grassroots level, have decided to impose a ban on sale of dung manure from tribal villages to ‘outsiders’ and made its use in agriculture fields mandatory, as the aboriginal farmers have been doing for centuries.
The decision is set to reverse the trend in agriculture in the agency areas starting this kharif season and is likely to ensure that the dependence on costly chemicals would simultaneously be cut down. Gond elders constituting the Rai Sabhas have even worked out the method to implement the decision on ban of dung manure sale so that all villagers get benefitted out of the effort.
“Instead of availing loans at high rates of interest at the beginning of kharif season, the poor Adivasi farmers used to sell cattle dung for as cheap as Rs. 5,000 for a lorry load of the bio manure. Later they would purchase chemical fertilizer at exorbitant rates thereby self inflicting financial losses,” explained Zilla Medi or the district head of the Rai Sabha, Mesram Durgu Patel.
“Harvest brought no cheer to our people as the money earned used to go towards debt repayment,” stated Thodsam Dev Rao, secretary of the District Rai Sabha. “The only way to cut down on debts is to decrease investment which was possible only if we use the manure which we produce at zero cost,” he adds of the rationale behind the revolutionary decision.
“Though as many as four tractors of dung manure needs to be used in one acre of field, it turns out cost effective as one application is good for three single crop seasons. Moreover, it helps preserve soil from losing its naturally available nutrients,” Durgu Patel added of the benefits of the use of bio manure.
There are over 70,000 Adivasi farmer families living in over 2,000 habitations under 120 traditional Rai Sabhas, which were given recognition by the State government in 1981 and which function under the district unit and each oversees 30 to 45 village level committees comprising the Patla, Devari, Mahajan, Gattyal and Havildar. The Rai Sabhas are headed by respective Sarmedi and have as members 2 upa sarmedis, an accountant, a writer and two women from thrift groups.
“We are promoting savings at village level so that farmers needing money to purchase seeds and manure from others can be helped out,” disclosed Arka Manik Rao, of Gunjala village in Narnoor mandal. “Excess manure with a farmer should be sold to locals in the village itself,” he added of the finer points of the decision.
