Organic Cultivation Practices

Previously, our ancestors used to farm with cow dung, and now urea and DAP have become common. The crops are growing well, but it's having a big impact on the body.

— Kamleah Kumar · Sonbhadra, Uttar Pradesh

My ancestors used to emphasize farming using organic methods.

— Madan Hantal · Pujariguda, Malkangiri, Odisha

Our ancestors used to farm with plows.

— Batakrushna Sahoo

We farm using traditional methods.

— Sunil oraon · Bero, Ranchi, Jharkhand

In our village, earlier, people used to cultivate fields with ploughs and oxen and worked very hard. At that time, they would sow Kodo, Sawa, Medo, and Mizri, and grow them without fertilizer. They used to sustain themselves with that, from which individuals...

— Ram Kumari · Sonbhadra, Uttar Pradesh

Earlier, you all used to farm, and you cultivated using fertilizer.

— Niranjan Lauria · Boudh, Odisha

Old people used to do mixed farming, they used cow dung manure.

— Kachala Choudhary

Farming and agriculture

— Sunita Kumari · Ghorawal, Sonbhadra, Uttar Pradesh

Traditional agriculture and heritage

— KRUSHNA KHILLO · Semiliguda, Koraput, Odisha

Earlier, farming was done using cow dung and goat droppings; that was the fertilizer for the crops, and Kodo millet grew better with it.

— Kamleah Kumar · Kota, Sonbhadra, Uttar Pradesh

Our ancestors used to follow cow dung manure and clay soil farming methods and found them profitable.

— Premsila Naik · Kalahandi, Odisha

I am a farmer. Our father, grandfather, and uncles used to cultivate using traditional methods. They used to farm without fertilizer and without chemicals. And that farming was good for crops like horse gram and ragi.

— Parikshit Majhi

Agriculture farming

— Sunita Kumari · Ghorawal, Sonbhadra, Uttar Pradesh

In earlier times, what method did people use for farming? The answer is, they used to farm by applying fertilizer with a plough.

— Niranjan Lauria · Boudh, Odisha

Sawa, Medo, Mijhri are our traditional crops, which our ancestors used to cultivate by plowing with bullocks and a plough. They consumed these crops throughout the year and saved seeds in their homes for the next year's sowing. We still practice farming today.

— Ram Kumari · Sonbhadra, Uttar Pradesh

Before, all of us tribals used to plow the fields with a plow and bullocks. We would sow medo mujri and also kurthi, which was very nutritious food. It was sown without fertilizer and would grow readily.

— Babulal Ayam · Sonbhadra, Uttar Pradesh

People of earlier times used to do this kind of farming for subsistence, and without water, without chemical fertilizers, and by eating that grain, there was also strength in the body. But nowadays, this urea and DAP fertilizer is causing a lot of harm.

— Kamleah Kumar · Kota, Sonbhadra, Uttar Pradesh

Our ancestors used soil cultivation methods, farming with cow dung manure. They also used goat droppings as manure for cultivation.

— gobardhan pangi

Before, we all used to farm with plows and oxen, and we also threshed paddy with them. Even for irrigation, we used oxen via a Persian wheel.

— Ram Kumari · Sonbhadra, Uttar Pradesh

Grain used to grow without fertilizer. Use cow dung for farming in the fields; that's where paddy, maize, and all crops grow. Eating all that grain keeps the body strong and vital. Nowadays, even though there is more crop yield, the body becomes weak.

— Kamleah Kumar · Ammatola, Sonbhadra, Uttar Pradesh

They were cultivating paddy using organic methods or traditional soil methods.

— Gourang Adhikari · Udulibeda, Malkangiri, Odisha

Even today, we farm with a plough and oxen and earn our livelihood. Since ancient times, our ancestors have ploughed fields with a plough and oxen, and sow only the seeds preserved at home, such as kurthi, sawa, medo, and mijhri.

— Ram Kumari

Previously, crops would grow without fertilizer. Cow dung was spread in the fields, and then grains were sown, resulting in excellent crops. But now, it seems to grow better with urea.

— Kamleah Kumar · Ammatola, Sonbhadra, Uttar Pradesh

We used to do farming through the creeper/vine.

— Amar Lal Dhurwey · Mandla, Madhya Pradesh

From the time of our ancestors, they used to cultivate with a plow. Immediately after paddy cultivation, they would grow mustard, groundnuts, horse gram, black gram, and green gram. Our subsequent generations have forgotten this practice.

— RINA BEHERA · Sundargarh, Odisha

Our ancestors used to cultivate millet without mixing any chemical pesticides; they used cow dung as fertilizer. And those foods were very good.

— Sastensh khura

From the very beginning, we cultivate a second crop without irrigation using old methods and traditional seeds. The method of storing these seeds is also traditional, and our fields are ploughed using bullocks.

— Rupesh Maravi · Balaghat, Madhya Pradesh

Our ancestors used to farm with plows and bullocks. But nowadays, all those things are disappearing.

— NAGRIK VIKASH SANGATHAN · Kalahandi, Odisha

We cleared and tilled land in the forest to create our farms, and today we continue to cultivate that same land. Previously, we used to plough with bullocks and a plough, but now we also use tractors for tilling. Furthermore, pigeon pea (arhar) cultivation can be done without water.

— Ram Kumari · Sonbhadra, Uttar Pradesh

Mona, your priest, and we will bring back the past related to farming. People used to do organic farming earlier, using manure or cow dung. Now, we are using chemical fertilizers.

— KRUSHNA KHILLO

Traditional farming, meaning Yudung, Pandala, Janana, maize, finger millet, and so on.

— James

We are a tribal community, we farm using ploughs and bullocks, and we sustain our lives. We clear forests and bushes to make fields, and we cultivate sawa, medo, mijhri, and maize, which were grown by our ancestors, and we also preserve their seeds.

— Ram Kumari · Sonbhadra, Uttar Pradesh

Our ancestors used to farm with cow dung. And now this urea and DAP fertilizer has become common. This improves crop yield, but it's having a significant impact on health.

— Kamleah Kumar