Nestled in the B.R. Hills of Karnataka, Amrita Bhoomi is an inspiring farmer's training center with a powerful vision that brings together the well-being of farmers, indigenous people and their traditions, and the environment. Started by Professor Nanjundaswamy in 2002 the leader of KRSS (Karnataka Farmers Movement), he believed that apart from resisting the colonization of traditional and indigenous seeds and agriculture, farmers must also create the alternatives to the 'green revolution' agriculture promoted by multinational agri-businesses. Thus Amrita Bhoomi was born to be the place of learning for farmers and the promotion of the ideals of sustainable living.
I visited Amrita Bhoomi in January 2019 to get a deeper understanding of their work and to see it first hand. Even though it was a very short 5 day visit, I left feeling impressed, inspired, and excited for the future of Amrita Bhoomi (AB) and its potential impact on Karnataka. While there I had the opportunity to spend time with Avinash a very dedicated and experienced member at AB who is keen on experimenting with and promoting food forests not just in Karnataka, but India in a large way. What I found that was very unique about his vision was the combination of natural farming (regenerative agriculture) and five layered food forests. The long-term benefits of combining the two are endless for farmers and their families as well as for our ecological crises. As Avinash explained it, addressing climate change requires us to create more forests around the world. But there is very little usable land left for us to do that. He believes that farmlands are our only available land and thus we need to plant forests on agricultural lands. However these are no ordinary forests, but extremely well-designed and high-yielding fruit and food forests that provide the farmer with everything they might need for self-sufficiency as well as enough yield to obtain a decent income. Avinash is in the process of creating demonstration food forests that are designed, created, and maintained by combining the principles of permaculture, regenerative agriculture, and natural farming. Creating deep swales (an important method of slowing, sinking, spreading, and storing rainwater) spaced every 15 ft apart on the slope contour is one of the first steps in the creation of a food forests. The variety and placement of trees and other plants is based on their sunlight requirements which is where the 5-layers terminology comes in.
Promoting forest-based agriculture systems itself is radical but combining it with natural farming techniques such as Jeevamruta and Bijaamruta that enhance soil microbiology takes the 5-layer food forest to a whole new level. As I have been learning more about the importance of soil life and how extremely important it is to promote and preserve soil biodiversity by creating minimal disturbance to the soil, I have found that there are very few agriculture systems that address these needs of the soil. AB's food forest system is definitely one of those ecologically sound systems that improve the soil while providing yields for multiple generations. And it only takes 3 years for these food forests to become established and begin yielding Rs.10,000 per month per acre. AB aims to create multiple demonstration food forests on its lands and also has a vision to create one food forest in every village in Karnataka over the next 20 years. It is important to remember that food forests are important not just for humans but for all living beings since it is a system that creates "food for all." Being with the farmers at AB was also one of the highlights of my time there. As we laughed, sang, and danced together while cleaning toor dal, I realized that there seemed to be a real sense of ownership among the farmers who worked there. It felt like a truly horizontal organization run by farmers for farmers. I was really inspired by members like Avinash who is a passionate, yet humble man dedicated to the future of farmers and the environment, as well as Vasantha, who has almost single-handedly over the last 3 years conserved and collected over 200 varieties of indigenous seeds at AB and has created a seed bank for farmers to access all around that area. I feel very grateful to have had the opportunity to visit Amrita Bhoomi at this point in time as they expand their vision and I am very excited to visit again in the future to see how amazingly well their efforts are paying off. For more information please visit www.amritabhoomi.org
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