Farming is predominantly worshipped
close to the status of God in Assam. There are historic religious sentiments
attached to each plough, rowing, plantation and harvest. These rules and
practices have been passed down the generations with their religious and
traditional importance. With the background of such deep rooted beliefs and practices,
change was something that most of the farmers in Assam were averse of.
With the implementation of System
of Rice Intensification (SRI) method of agriculture, SeSTA motivated the
farmers to adopt the best practices in agriculture and bring about the change
that is essential to survive. With the tough initial hurdles of a disinterested
audience, lack of trust and stubborn practices, it was a big challenge for
SeSTA to change the mindset of these farmers.
As usual the change is brought
about after there are a few experimenters. “The average production of Dhaan
before SRI was 16-18 mon/bigha (4.5 tons per hect) but after implementing SRI,
I get an average of 25 mon per bigha (7.5 tons per hect)” said Jonaku Barman
who was the first few to adopt SRI practices with assistance from SeSTA in 2008.
Moreover, Jonaku has started tweaking the procedure to suit his needs. “I
follow the line plantation in SRI but not the Nursery transplantion as it
consumes 2 days per Bigha compared to 1 day per Bigha with the alteration. However,
I do incorporate organic farming as much as possible using the Vericompost”.
Success stories do go viral after a hit. “We have village meeting and there are
around 10-12 people who have followed me using SRI principles of agriculture”
Jonaku said.
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| Jonaku Barman with his new house |
The process of change only takes a
small spark as ignition. Looking at the livelihood improvements of Jonaku, many
people started talking about SRI and trying it on part of their lands. “I sell
close to 800 Kgs of Dhan every year and have enough savings to get my 4
daughters educated, build my house and prepare for the next season.” Witnessing
the ample success stories of SRI, close to 75% of the farmers in the village
has adopted SRI. There are no downstream problems in commercial production as
the demand for Dhan is constant with multiple markets available to sell at Rs
14 per Kg.
Although this process of change is
not just limited to commercial success. People have switched to SRI even for
their personal use. “I have implemented SRI techniques encouraged by SeSTA since
2008 and followed each and every rule by the book including the nursery
transplant. It is a laborious process but it has given me a good yield of 26.2
mon per bigha (8 tons per hect)” said Shailendra Narayan Rai. Shailendra has
the record for highest productivity among the SRI farmers in Boitamari block.
Shailendra is one of the many farmers who have adopted SRI without any
commercial agenda. “I mainly cultivate the Ranjana variety of Dhan and the
complete harvest is used in consumption so that we do not have to buy anything
from outside” he said.
The farmers in Boitamari have
realized the potential that SRI carries. With the initial encouragement from
SeSTA and lots of success stories, more and more farmers are adopting to this process
of change. The average yield from a sample of farmers with SRI is close to 20
mon per bigha (6 tons/hect) and the percentage of farmers adopting SRI is
increasing year on year. Farmers have realized that change is not only
essential but also necessary for them to survive and adapt in the present age. They
have to break their traditional barriers to sustain and move forward. It is one
such area where SeSTA has been successful in changing not only the practices
but the mindset of the villagers.
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