Bengaluru: Sri Ramachandrapura Matha’s research wing in association with various organisations is organising a national level symposium on Dec 5th at GouSwarga near Siddapura in Uttar Kannada District. The symposium is being organised as part of World Soil Day with the motto ‘Soil Conservation is Conservation of Mankind’.
More than 1,000 delegates from different parts of the country will participate in a one-day symposium to be held under the auspices of the University of Horticultural Sciences, Bagalkot and College of Horticulture, Sirsi. During a press meet, Sri Sri Raghaveshwara Bharati Swamiji of Sri Ramachandrapura Matha said that scientists and agronomists of international repute will come together at the symposium to discuss about the importance of traditional and organic farming and the potentials of cattle based agriculture.
Global warming, climate change, usage of chemical fertilizers, overuse of pesticides, contaminated groundwater, and such other factors have led the food which is consumed by us to become poisonous. If this situation continues similarly, then it will pose a great danger to mankind. It is in this context that the conservation of mankind must begin with the preservation of soil health. Sri Swamiji explained that the aim of this symposium was to raise awareness among policymakers and the general public.
The symposium will be a platform for agriculturists, organic experts, agricultural scientists, agriculture graduates, postgraduates, research students, and elites who have already established their mark in this field, to share their experiences. There will also be an exhibition introducing technological possibilities on soil conservation. He explained that farmers will be benefited by soil testing of their farm lands and guidance from experts.
World Soil Day has been celebrated worldwide for the past six years on the instructions of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization. This is the first time that a private organization in India has organized a soil day for public awareness. Sri Swamiji said that the seminar would be held in four parts of the state in the next few days as the awareness campaign was to be continued and the first in this series would be held at GouSwarga.
Dr. S.S. Prakash, Head of Soil Science and Agricultural Chemistry, Mandya Agricultural College, Dr C A Srinivasamoorthy, Former Director of Research Division of Imphal Central Agricultural Univerity, Imphal, Special Secretary to the Deputy Chief Minister, Dr. A.B. Patil, Dr. S.A. Patil, Former Chancellor of Agriculture, Dharwad, Dr. KM Indiresh, Vice-Chancellor, University of Horticultural Sciences, Bagalkot, Dean of Sirsi Horticultural Sciences College, Dr. NK Hegde and various other experts will present topics such as conservation of mankind through soil conservation, the importance of World Soil Day, and the essence of organic and cattle based agriculture.
Sri Swamiji described that undergraduate, postgraduate and research students will exhibit wallpapers on topics such as organic farming for sustainable soil health, improved agriculture and soil productivity, integrated agriculture, integrated disease and pest management, soil and water conservation and the importance of cattle based agriculture.
Importance
Soil means land. All plants grow from the soil. About 85 percent of food is directly obtained from soil to mankind as vegetarian food. Non vegetarian food is also indirectly obtained from the soil. By 2050, the world’s population will reach 950 crores, and a large number of people will need to produce food from 12 percent of land. The purpose of this symposium is to educate the masses, especially the farmers, about the need to preserve soil fertility.
Fertility of soil is essential for plants to be nutritious. According to the World Food and Agriculture Organization, over 250 crore people worldwide suffer from deficiency of various nutrients and minerals. It is undisputed that the soil in which we grow is deficient in minerals. The role of healthy soil is crucial in building a healthy society.
Soil conservation has been emphasized in India since ancient times and cow dung and urine of Indian cattle breed has played an important role in protecting soil fertility. This is confirmed by the ancient texts, folklore and historical articles of India. The quality of the soil started declining after artificial chemicals were added to the soil in the name of the Green Revolution. The aim of the symposium is to convince the people that the solution to the problem of decreased soil fertility is only through cattle based farming.
In the world’s only GouSwarga research is being undertaken not only on cattle based farming but also on the importance of cow products. Through the assistance of MRPL, a huge cattle based research centre will be coming up at GouSwarga shortly. Finding that GouSwarga, which has already become a laboratory for conducting various agricultural experiments, is an appropriate platform for conducting the symposium on preservation of soil fertility, this place has been selected.
Dr S S Prakash, Sri Samyojaka of Research Wing Gururaj Padil were present on this occasion.
