MCL Promote organic farming through Aahaar Mandal

MCL is implementing this innovative project in Himgir block of Sundargarh district Odisha through ‘Gram Samrudhhi’, a registered voluntary organisation formed by agriculture graduates and headed by an IITian with agri major. 200 SC/ST farmers of 10 villages with 2 Aahaar Mandal sites in each village will be the direct beneficiaries. 

 

How it works: Ahaar Mandal is all about growing a 30ft radius orchard of vegetables by adopting organic means through natural harvesting There is a central point surrounded by 3 concentric circles having diameter 6ft, 18ft and 30ft. There is a 2ft deep circular pit at the centre having diameter 6ft filled with chopped biomass (paddy straw, coconut husk etc) soaked in Amrut Jal (An organic solution of cow dung, cow urine, jaggery, and powder of grounded cereals). The middle and outer circles are drawn at 18ft and 30ft. Two circular pathways of at 18ft and 30ft radius and 7 straight pathways joining outer circle to innermost circle are constructed by brick or stones whichever is locally available. Amrut Mitti (a mixture of cow dung, vermi-compost and decomposed food waste in solid form) is put over the whole garden. Plants source the vital nutrients from Amrut Jal and Amrut Mitti. Although the project has a tenure of 12 months, beneficiaries can adopt the system permanently. 

The plants are watered on daily basis. Central pit is hydrated once in a week to keep the organic mass in liquid form. There is no need to provide any other nutritional supplement or fertiliser. To balance the nutritional value, central pit is replenished with solution of jaggery, besan and cow urine once in 6 months. 

 

In the inner circle, annual plants like banana, papaya, corn are grown. In the middle circle, daily consumables like dhania, methi, palak, cucumber, pudina, tomato, brinjal, chili, and seasonal tuber crop (grown beneath the soil) like carrot, garlic, onion are grown. In the outer circle, crops which come only once and which take long time to yield, like sugarcane, red beet, herbal plants, medicinal plants and annual tuber crop like beetroot and cereal are grown. 

 

It can be seen that the circular land is divided into 7 segments separated by walking path duly numbered 1 to 7. To begin with on the day 1, the beneficiary would walk through path no. 1, pluck the vegetables in the segment between path no. 1 and path no. 2. In a span of 7 days, he will pluck the vegetables in all the 7 segments.  The system enables the plants to regrow vegetables by the time the process is repeated in the next week. Thus, the plant gets 7 days’ time to recoup and refruit/ regrow. This way, the beneficiary reaps the benefit throughout the year.

 

With the hallmark features of food security, sustained productivity, low cost and minimum water use, the Aahaar Mandal, is all set to provide the village folk with the much needed naturally harvested green food so essential for their allround wellbeing.