‘Creating jobs in agriculture is crucial as AI is going to disrupt service sector’

You have labored rather a lot on One Health and Net Zero. Can you briefly clarify these ideas?

One well being is in regards to the well being of all the things round us. We usually suppose that well being solely refers to human well being. Without defending the well being of the environment, human well being can’t be protected. One well being means the well being of the soil, water, crops, meals, animals and all the things round us, together with the microbes in the soil. It is a brand new idea that got here out very nicely in the G20 summit. It implies that human beings can’t survive with out the help of all these items round them. It is a holistic strategy in direction of defending the well being.

Net Zero refers to the human efforts to scale back the adversarial environmental impression at each stage. Except for human beings, each species on earth contributes one thing good to the earth and its surroundings. They strive to defend their habitats in their very own method. The human being is the one species that wishes all the things for him. Earthworm lives with out harming the surroundings. Net Zero idea makes an attempt to see whether or not human being also can dwell like that.

Is it potential virtually?

Of course, it is. We want to return to our conventional techniques. Just evaluate. To produce one kilogram of rice, you want 200 to 5,000 litres of water. You will then harvest the crop, course of, clear, transport, and prepare dinner it. There are seven layers concerned earlier than you devour the rice. Each layer adversely impacts the surroundings in its personal method. You will get about 300 to 400 energy by consuming about 250 grams of rice. If you eat 250 grams of guava, you’re going to get the identical quantity of energy with none unfavorable impression on the surroundings. The fruit has complicated carbohydrates, complicated minerals and different diet. Cultivation of guava is a lot simpler as in contrast to that of rice. We can go for guava as an alternative of rice. This is simply an instance. We can consider such options in all issues to transfer in direction of Net Zero.

People from rural areas in Kalyana Karnataka area migrate to cities in search of higher a livelihood, as their dryland agriculture is not worthwhile. How do you information them to make even dryland agriculture worthwhile?

Our land has change into unproductive as a result of we’ve shifted from sustainable practices. Before the Green Revolution, our soil was fertile. To have good soil, we’d like three staple items: leaf litter, manure from animals and water-holding capability. If these items are there, all the things else may very well be taken care of. We used to have compost produced by cattle dung and depart litter. There was no further value for fertilises. We have eliminated bushes from agricultural lands. With no bushes on the panorama, the rainwater merely flows out as the soil doesn’t have water-holding capability. We adopted the fashionable farming system discarding the normal one. The self-sufficient agriculture turned input-oriented agriculture. Shifting to trendy agriculture elevated the price of cultivation by 70%, together with 21% for fertilisers, 14% for seeds and 15% for pesticides. Shifting from polyculture to monoculture has additionally adversely impacted the agricultural financial system. Polyculture may meet 70% of your meals necessities such as quite a lot of pulses, cereals, greens and fruits. Monoculture pressured farmers to purchase them in the market.

The solely method to deal with the migration situation is to develop the fashions for sustainable dryland farming primarily based on our conventional farming techniques. If the agriculture is sustainable and worthwhile, the individuals will keep again in their villages.  

Is reverse migration potential?

The share of agriculture in the GDP is drastically falling. Presently, it contributes round 17% of the GDP as in contrast to 54% by the service sector and 27% by the commercial sector. With the expansion of Artificial Intelligence, the service sector is going to collapse with an enormous lack of jobs. Unemployment will rise. We want to create job alternatives in villages.

Do you suppose that the federal government has a job to play in this?

Yes, the federal government has a larger function to play. It is providing subsidies for a lot of trendy farming actions. It wants to lengthen subsidies and different types of encouragement to the farmers who need to return to conventional farming. If all farmers scale back the usage of urea simply by one bag, it makes a whole lot of constructive impression on the surroundings. In the current system of agricultural produces advertising and marketing, main revenue is appropriated by middlemen. Both farmers on the one finish and the shoppers on the opposite finish are at a loss. We want intermediating constructions. However, the federal government ought to undertake applied sciences to management their inordinate share in revenue.

Don’t you suppose that convincing the individuals is a difficult activity?  

Yes, it is. But, seeing leads to believing. I had introduced out round 400 publications and anyone hardly learn them. That is why I’m specializing in growing virtually achievable fashions. When I applied my mannequin in my village, many individuals have been impressed and began following it. If you might have one acre of land, you possibly can simply earn ₹1 lakh a 12 months.

What do you might have to say to the farming neighborhood?

The well being of the nation is measured by the well being of the individuals and the well being of the soil. Both are interconnected. I usually advise farmers to rear cattle, preserve soil, plant bushes and produce seeds on their very own. These issues make their farming extra sustainable by drastically chopping down the prices incurred on pesticides, fertiliser and seeds.

Published – March 19, 2025 11:35 am IST