A tilting cart offers relief to animals and workers in the field

 

Amrutbhai Agrawat, Gujarat farmer, with his tilting bullock cart.

The basic design of the bullock cart (camel cart in some parts of North India) remains the same, with just some small variations in size, structure, and materials. A part of the cart load rests on the animals pulling the cart, leading to severe abrasions, and in some cases peel off of the skin. Another difficulty is negotiating sharp bends on narrow passages. Main use Mr. Mahesh Patel, Chief Innovation Manager, Gujarat Grassroots Innovations Augmentation Network (GIAN) says: “Farmers mainly use the cart to transport harvested produce, cow dung, manure and compost to the fields. The job of manually transferring the compost from the cart to the field is usually done by women under the scorching sun. Though there are several farmers in the region using the cart, it took one Mr. Amrutbhai Agrawat to think out of the hat, and reinvent a tilting cart model.” Hydraulic system The tilting cart with a hydraulic system for tilting the trolley behind makes the job easier both for the animals’ pulling it, and the people working in the field. According to this design, the cart is mounted on a metal frame and four wheels. A rotating device, a hydraulic jack, and an oil tank complete the design. The initial stages of experimenting with the new model ended in failure. The oil tank burst, because of the outlet being clogged, and the idea itself got temporarily shelved. “Many people in the village on seeing the unfinished cart gathering dust, started ridiculing my idea, labelling it unfeasible,” says Mr. Agrawat. A sudden flash in the mind one day while walking through the fields made the farmer think of using a horizontal gear as a lifting device. He decided to experiment and found it effective in lifting the cart but not in lowering it. Vertical gears Not losing heart, he decided to try out vertical gears. At first he mounted two gears and found them successful. He then increased the number of gears to eight, and found them working successfully and named the new cart Aaruni. According to the farmer, Aaruni saves about Rs. 90 for working on 0.16 hectares, and is three times more efficient compared to conventional models. “Existing models with two wheels pull a load of only 400kg, but after the introduction of four wheels the same cart can now pull a load of 500 kg,” explains Mr. Agrawat. Cost factor The farmer spent about Rs. 32,000 manufacturing the cart, but later scaled it down to Rs. 27,500. The average cart made from local wood costs Rs. 15,000 to Rs. 20,000. The cart was displayed at a farmers’ fair and about 400 farmers expressed a desire to purchase it. However, Mr. Agrawat doesn’t seem to be in a hurry to increase production. “I want farmers to fully get convinced, try it and then decide on purchasing it,” he says. Long felt need “Agrawat’s innovation is in response to a long-felt need among farmers. Inhereant advantage seems to be the forte of grassroots innovators since they live and work among their community and not in far away closed research labs. “They are fully aware of their problems, limitations and needs and their community better than anyone else,” says Mr. Mahesh. For more information readers can contact Mr. Amrutbhai Agrawat, Junagadh, Gujarat, mobile: 9925932307 and Mr. Mahesh Patel, Chief Innovation Manager, mahesh@gian.org and gian@gian.org, website:www.gian.org, phones : 079-26760398 and 26769686.

Fight against yield loss leads to wilt-resistant pepper variety

Ravishankar with the cement bee hives in his pepper plantation.

When the yield improves, so does the farmer’s income. But a drop in the yield affects a farmer’s livelihood. “To rise from a loss like a phoenix requires fortitude, sagacity, scientific temperament and an innovative mind,” says Dr. T.N. Prakash Kammardi, Co-ordinator, Honey Bee network and Editor, Hittala Gida (Kannada version of Honey Bee). Economic loss Mr. Ravishankar, from Dakshina Kannada district, suffered severe economic loss in pepper due to infestation a decade back. But today, a new pepper variety resistant to wilt infestation owes its success to the same farmer who lost his entire yield. The farmer had cultivated some local pepper varieties such as Panniyur, Karimunda, and Vayanadu and suffered severe loss due to wilt infestation. New variety “Initially I thought that pests caused the damage but later learnt that it was a wilt disease, a common infestation in pepper, which affected my vines. Continuous search for a superior wilt resistant variety did not fetch a satisfactory result. I decided to develop a new variety by grafting a local spice plant called Hippali (endowed with a smell similar to pepper) and Panniyur variety,” he explains. Mr. Ravishankar selected both plants of the same age and grafted them. He planted 6 -7 grafted plants in the field. All the plants grew well and exhibited resistance to wilt infestation. Commercial yield “The new grafted pepper variety is wilt resistant and has high phenolic content. The number of spikes in a vine ranges from 30-40 and the berries, 100-165. The dry yield is 1.5 kg/year/vine. The variety takes eight months to fruit after flowering and yields economically after two years,” explains the farmer. The leaves are dark green in colour compared to Panniyur variety bearing moderately green coloured leaves. Require shade He also observed that after grafting, the plants required to be kept under shade to ensure a healthier growth. Flowering in all the plants started during month of June and harvesting done once a year. For better root growth, he encourages the careful use of V-notch method during grafting. Scientists from the University of Agricultural Sciences, Bangalore, and Agriculture Research Station, Thirthahalli, visited Ravishankar’s farm and found the phenolic content was higher – the reason for its wilt tolerance. Cement beehives In addition to pepper, the farmer also makes beehives from cement. In India hive boxes are usually made of teak wood. During monsoon the wooden hives get damaged quickly. To overcome this problem and to save trees from being cut the farmer says he developed cement hive boxes. “Cement hives solve the problem of hornets attacking bee hives. The heavy weight of the cement hive makes it less prone to theft and is better adapted to vagaries of weather such as rain and sun. Several benefits “Unlike wood, cement provides protection from termites, bush fires, worms, and pests,” explains Mr. Ravi. Regarding the cost of the hives he says: “These cement boxes cost less than wooden boxes and are long lasting. Bees readily occupy the hives.” They are easy to handle and cost Rs.250 per box. For more information contact Mr. Ravishankar, Amadula house, Madyanthyaru post, Belthangady Taluka, Dakshin Kannada, Karnataka, mobile: 9972715411, phone: 08256-279390 and Dr. Dr. T.N. Prakash Kammardi, email: prakashtnk@yahoo.com, mobile: 9448772202.

Successful transplantation technique goes unrecognised

Sunda Ram of Rajasthan is still waiting for his long due recognition.

“From an outside perspective every village appears the same. Only when you spend time in villages, you realise and see a farmer’s brilliance,” says Dr. Nitin Maurya, National Innovation Foundation, Ahmedabad. There is so much of local latent talent that remains unknown. Today farmers complain of government negligence, but in terms of local inventions they are equal to any scientist’s discovery. New method Mr. Sunda Ram, a farmer of the dry Sikar region in Rajasthan developed a new method of dryland farming. Mr. Ram’s unique method was based on his ancestors’ practices recorded over 30 years, and developed over years of trial-and-error on dryland farming, according to him. The hard fact for him is seedlings grow well if they survive a fortnight after planting in the soil. The farmer attended a training course on dryland technology at the Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI), New Delhi. Main factors During the training, he identified two main factors responsible for moisture loss in crops and decided to conduct a systematic experiment to check the validity of his ideas. Accordingly he divided his fields into three types: (i) ploughed (ii) unploughed (iii) without ploughing and weed control. “Evaporation is the main cause for moisture loss from upper soil layers (upto one foot) in both the types of soil (loamy and clay). Soil layers below one foot; retain high moisture content (sandy soil 60 per cent and loamy soil, 100 per cent). Regular weed removal saves 40 per cent moisture loss in sandy and 25 per cent in the loamy soils. Up to a depth of one foot in the soil, sufficient moisture availability for plant growth should be ensured through proper weed control,” explains the farmer. His advice to farmers: “Fifteen days after the first spell of rains, plough the field deeply to allow rainwater to percolate into the soil and remove weeds. Repeat ploughing “If ploughing cannot be done, use a spade to dig the soil. Repeat ploughing or digging again 10 to 15 days before the last spell of rain. “Dig pits of 15x15x45cm size at regular intervals in the fields, remove the polythene bag and plant the saplings into the pit. Water the plant immediately. Do not water after planting.” Compared to the conventional methods followed by the forest department, “transplanting expenses are reduced by 50 to 70 per cent by my method,” claims Mr. Ram. He regrets that his findings remain unrecognised by the Government. “Not even a single institution, including the State forest department or NGOs, makes use of my method as yet,” he laments. Mr. Ram wants to test this technique on mountain slopes, abandoned mining quarries, river banks, and clayey soils, so that he can modify it where needed. No response Though the farmer invited several scientific institutions and scientists to come forward and evaluate his findings, till date nobody has even visited him. “Several letters to Government describing my findings and requesting their feedback and visits till date remain unacknowledged, unanswered,” he says sadly. Mr. Sunda Ram’s success in planting more than 50,000 trees creating a green cover in the dry lands spread all over Rajasthan. “Several local innovators such as Mr. Ram are often denied recognition due to the mindset and bureuacracy in government and scientific communities. Many of these local talents are the real field scientists who seldom get recognition for their efforts,” says Dr. Maurya. For more information readers can contact Mr. Sunda Ram, Sikar district, Rajasthan, mobile: 9414901764 and Dr. Nitin Maurya at email: nitinnif@gmail.com and info@nifindia.org, phone: 079-26732456 and 26732095.

Ancient medical practices on livestock still prove effective

Sheep being fed with the herbal mixture.

Diseases affecting farm animals such as sheep are seasonal, endemic, and lead to severe economic loss, especially when say 10 to 40 animals die in a herd.

 “Often poor management practices lead to such casualties. In many cases immediate veterinary attention may not be possible, as some villages are quite remote and contacting a local doctor from a nearby town takes time,” says Mr. P. Vivekanandan, Executive Director, Sustainable Agriculture and Environmental Voluntary Action (SEVA), Madurai.

 Pilot study

 Seva undertook a pilot study at Nallampalayam village, Erode district (1,028 sheep from 40 farmers), and the other at Vembur, Tuticorin district (1,357 sheep from 32 farmers), to test the effectiveness of ancient traditional management practices being practiced by sheep farmers in olden times.

 These two places are famous for sheep husbandry and well known breeding tracts of two prominent sheep breeds — Meicherry and Vembur.

 Every month farmers from the two areas under supervision from seva staff administered a mixture of several herbs (called masala bolus) and a herbal dewormer alternatively (first month masala bolus and next month herbal dewormer) for nearly six months to their animals.

 At the end of the project more than 90 per cent of sheep farmers expressed satisfaction on their animals’ health, compared to previous years’ causalities, due to diseases such as Blue tongue and Foot and mouth disease.

 Explaining the procedure for making the bolus Mr. Vivekanandan says:

 The masala bolus, the size of big amla fruit, weighs about 20 gm and is made from (all Tamil names and Botanical names are italicized): Kandankathri (Solanum surattense), Thumbai (Leucas aspera), Kuppaimeni (Acalypha indica), Veeli leaves (Cadaba farinosa), Peruthumbai (Leucas martinicensis), Usilai (Albizia amara), Thulasi (Ocimum tenuiflorum), Avarampoo (Cassia auriculata), Moongil (Bambusa arundinacia), Puliampirandai (Vitis setosa), Thuthi (Abutilon indicum), Musumusukkai (Mukia maderaspatana), Kolunchi (Tephrosia purpurea), Manjanathi (Marinda tinctoria), Veliparuthi (Pergularia daemia), Nilavembu (Andrographis paniculata), Virali (Dodonaea viscosa)and Mavilangam (Crateva adansonii). (50 grams each of the above materials are taken, shade dried, pounded well and stored).

 Addition

 In addition, Thippili (Piper longum), Seeragam (Cuminum cyminum), Sombu (Foeniculum vulgare), Perungayam (Ferula asafoetida), Valmilagu (Piper cubeba), Sukku (Zingiber officinale – dried), Pepper (Piper nigrum), Chillis (capsicum annuum), Kasakasa (Papaver somniferum), Lavangam (Cinnamomum zeylanicum), Fenugreek ( Trigonella foenumgraecum), Omam (Trachyspermum ammi), Seeds of coriander ( Coriandrum sativum) (10 grams each and pounded well).

 Banana ( Musa paradisica) one infloresence, unripe Kaleathi fruits (Ficus tinctoria), Guava bark ( Psidium guajava), Sotru katralai (Aloe vera), Garlic ( Allium sativum) and Kollankovaikilangu (Corollacarpus epigaeus) 100 grams each, Pirandai (Cissus quadrangularis) 500 grams, Onion ( Allium cepa) 250 grams, Coconut ( Cocos nucifera) one, are also used.

 Shelf life

 All the above mentioned materials are ground, mixed well, and made into boluses (weighing 100 grams) and dusted with turmeric powder. It is ideal to administer the bolus twice daily for three days in the morning and evening. (The shelf life is for three days).

 “Before administering the bolus, a venous puncture is made with the help of sterile needle in the dark green vein visible on the ventral side of the tongue. Later using common salt and tamarind fruit ( Tamarindus indica), rub the upper surface of the tongue. [This can be practised with the help of expert healer],” explains Mr. Vivekanandan.

 “We recorded positive results in cows and an increase in milk yield (upto 3 litres a day) in Umbalachery cattle in Madurai, Thoothukkudi, and Nagapattinam districts,” he says.

 Numbers treated

 So far, more than 12,000 animals (both sheep and cattle) have been administered the masala bolus. “This traditional practice existed many centuries ago, is cheaper than chemical treatment and many livestock keepers developed the skill of preparing and administering it,” says Mr. Vivekanandan.

For more information contact Mr. P.Vivekanandan, at e-mail: vivekseva@gmail.com Phone: 0452 – 238 09 43 and 238 00 82 (off) and 0452- 238 36 19 (r).