We apologize for the inconvenience the postponement has caused.

ABSTRACT

 Abstract with title of paper, name of author(s) and affiliation(s) should be submitted in MS Word file (doc version) via electronic media to one of the contacts given below not later than August 31, 2011 to ensure its inclusion in the Abstract book. A Scientific Committee will decide by the end of September if the abstract is selected as an oral or poster presentation unless opted for a poster presentation. The text of abstract should not exceed 350 words, and should not contain tables or figures. Indicate preferred session for presentation and type of presentation (poster or oral).

FULL PAPER

 Full paper should be submitted in MS Word file (doc version) via electronic media along with two hard copies to one of the contacts given below prior to the conference. Please follow the guidelines for paper writing as given for Nepal Agriculture Research Journal of SAS in the website: www.narc.gov.np.

POSTER

 Poster should be prepared in AD form, 120 x 85 cm upright (portrait). An electronic copy of the poster should be submitted to one of the contacts given below. Make sure that the poster should be readable when reduced to A4 size to include in the Conference Proceedings.

CONTACTS FOR ABSTRACT / PAPER SUBMISSION:

1. Dr. Hira Kaji Manadhar

President (SAS-N)

Plant Pathology Division

Khumaltar, Lalitpur, Nepal

Email: hirakaji@gmail.com

Mobile no.: 9741007828

2. Prof. Dr. Durga Mani Gautam,

Executive member, NHS

IAAS, Rampur, Chitwan, Nepal

Email: gautamdmg@yahoo.com

Mob no: 9845153015

3. Mr. Narendra Chaudhary

Director, Directorate of Research, IAAS

Rampur, Chitwan, Nepal

Email: journal@iaas.edu.np

REGISTRATION

Please send your completed REGISTRATION FORM by email or post to:

Ms. Sabitri Dahal

Email:sabitri@sadpnepal.org; sabitri10@gmail.com

GPO: 8975 EPC: 611

REGISTRATION FEE

• SAS/NHS/IAAS/SADP and partner members (national): Rs. 300
• Non- members: Rs. 500 (Individual), Rs. 1500 (Institutional)
• Students: Rs. 200, if abstract is accepted.
• SAARC Countries: US $ 50 (Individual), US $ 200 (Institutional)
• Other Countries: US $ 100 (Individual), US $ 300 (Institutional)
• For Exhibition: Rs. 2000 plus extra charge for stall, if a stall need to be ordered.

The registration fee includes coffee/tea and lunch during conference, a conference dinner and local transportation. Accompanying spouse may join conference dinner at a modest price.

Please download conference registration form:conference registration form

Basic organic agriculture training was conducted in demonstration site (resource centre) in Pokharelphant on October 4 and 5, 2010. During the training period 27 participants were present from Tanahusur VDC, Kyamin VDC and Vyas municipality of 9 no. ward of Tanahun district. The participants are mainly of adults with 14 male participants and 13 female participants. Male and female participants equally participated in the training.  Two days organic farming training emphasis advantages of organic farming in terms of social, economic and environmental point of view. Farmers were worried about the pest management through the organic farming method. The documentaries regarding pest management, effect of chemical fertilizers through “Slow poisoning of India” and success story in organic farming of single woman were shown during training. These documentaries reflect the real fact of the use of chemical pesticides and proved that one can be successful commercial farmer with the adoption of organic farming methods. Some of the participants like Gau maya Darai, Jeet Rana Magar, Pappu Baniya, Bhakti BK etc who had already adopt organic methodology were blissful in their deeds as the soil fertility has increases and can consume healthy, tasty vegetables. The other participants, who use knowingly or unknowingly chemical pesticides, also found solution to manage pest through organic farming approach. Though the farmers use chemical pesticides are not getting rid of pest from plants. After watching the documentaries, all participants were furious to see ill effect of chemical fertilizers in farm and 85% participants agreed on use of physical trappers, light trappers and use of bio-pesticides to manage pest of the farm as an alternative to chemical pesticides. The concern was focused on the soil health (ecology) and production of healthy products for the consumption.

Formation of farmer groups:

During the proposal development for the project “Research and support to Organic Agriculture in Tanahun district of Nepal”, interested farmers group were identified from different caste, ethnicity and location during need assessment survey (conducted in April) and local level workshop (January, 2010). The group was formed among the local farmers from Kumal community, Darai community, Saldanda and Tallo Naranga of Kyamin VDC and other location of Tanahun district like Tanahunsur VDC and Satiswara VDC with diverse ethnicity. The groups are first minimizing the use of the chemical fertilizer and pesticides and practicing organic farming in a small area as a trial basis. The members are active in awareness rising on organic farming among the neighbors. There are altogether 60 farmers in 6 groups. There is a provision of adding members who are dedicated in following the philosophy of organic farming. The group was formed with 5 members in Darai organic farmers group now which reached to 13 where as in “Thulo Kumal Gaun Organic Farmers Group” there are 15 members. In this way local people were getting attracted towards organic farming in recent days. The leaders of each group were chosen considering gender balance. The group leader conduct regular meeting once a month to discuss the issues arises during farming. The group was already formed with 18 members in Tanahunsur and is farming through organic farming approach. Most of the farmers were commercially involved in organic farming.

Visitor group from Bhutan

On November 14^th, 2010, 16 Bhutanese farmers visited Organic farm of Govardhan Sharma Organic Agriculture Resource Centre which is developed with joint effort of SADP-Nepal and GSMTF. The Organic Village, SADP-Nepal and LEAD-Nepal jointly organize the visit program for Bhutanese farmers in Nepal. The community members from Kumal (indigenous group) decorated with traditional customs and bouquet of flower express heartfelt and warm welcome. There was a beautiful traditional dance which fascinated Bhutanese farmers and dragged them on stage to grab memory of Nepali culture. The group then have short visit program around Kumal Village. The organic farming methodology was shared among each other during visit. The staff members of SADP-Nepal shared the preparation of Organic growth promoters (OGP), bio-pesticides and compost preparation methodology which was prepared with available materials and natural resources.

OY: Hello there! Mr. Slimy! I have a few questions for you.

Mrs. Slimy: Oh are you talking to me? Sorry but I am not Mr. Slimy.  I am his wife Mrs. Slimy. Mr. Slimy is heading away from the sun in that pile of compost.

OY: Sorry to bother you Mrs. Slimy. Can we talk to your husband for a minute?

Mrs. Slimy: Sure.  Let me get him for you.

OY: I see you are wearing dark glasses Mr. Slimy.  Are you feeling the heat too much and also you seem to be running away from the sun.  Can you tell us something about it?

Mr. Slimy:  Aha! I was wondering when you would ask that.  Let us first discuss my name shall we? Actually I am called Slimy because I have mucous all over me.  That’s the thing that keeps us (earthworms) moist – so we can breath through our skin! Does that make sense to you?

OY: Yes it makes good sense and also explains why people call you Slimy.  No offence though! You sound interesting and I am sure your work is even more interesting. Can you tell us more about yourself and your work?

Mr. Slimy:  Now that you ask me, I have to tell you that I am not very pleased at people calling us “lowly worm”.  They don’t understand the service we are providing them.  I wonder if they even think that way at all these days. Well there were some who really liked us and appreciated our work in the past. Did you know we’ve been around for 120 million years? More recently in the time of the Egyptian Pharoahs, Cleopatra said we were sacred. Aristotle, the philosopher from Greece, called us “the intestines” of the soil. The famous scientist Charles Darwin, you know the Victorian naturalist, who formulated theory of evolution.  Yes the same one studied us for 39 years in the last century! Do you know why? Darwin in ‘History of the world,’ said, “…….it may be doubted whether there are many other animals in the world which have played so important a part in the history of the world as these lowly organized creatures.”

Ah regarding my job. I am satisfied with it.  Well it’s a dirty job but someone has to do it and it’s us, who do it. We’re the underground farmers who turn the soil over like a plough. In just eight ropani of land there can be a million or more of us, eating 10 tons of leaves, stems, and dead roots a year and turning over 40 tons of soil. Imagine us all over the world — billions and billions of earthworms, tunneling through soil, chewing up fallen leaves and animal remains, pushing heavy stones. And don’t forget our droppings! It is called castings or vermicompost (worm compost).  It contains the recycled nutrients from everything we eat. Our tunnels add air and our castings work as fertilizer for the land. We change the dirt under human’s feet into fertile land fit for cultivation. That is the reason why the farmers consider us as their friends.

OY: This sounds like dangerous work.  What do you have to say about that?

Mr. Slimy: You bet it is. We worms face possible death or mutilation every step of the way. You can only imagine what we go through every day dodging bird beaks, gardening. And oh the little bugs we call “Dhamira” in Nepali and ants they give us a real headache. There are tons of others that are real threat to our lives don’t get me started on it. It will never end. Know what one of their favorite foods is? Us!!! No wonder, majority of us probably don’t make it much past a year!  After all this we, worms, don’t get the respect we deserve! Just imagine what we have to go through. Too bad us worms don’t get bravery medals for those who die in line of duty. Then again there are pleasant moments too though they are short lived ones.

OY: What do you mean by pleasant moments? Would you mind elaborating?

Mr. Slimy:  Ah yes.  I remember the moment I met my wife.  It was in a pile of vermicompost.  We were on duty to make more compost.  Then one day I was chewing on one of the wonderfully tasting apple core. I was on one side of it and she on the other side.  Gradually as we ate we moved towards the center and that’s how we met. She was pretty shy you know. She still blushes when I remind her of that moment. Of course how can I forget the feasts that we have every time someone adds organic leftovers for us to eat.  Those are indeed delicious, much different than the ones that use chemical fertilizer. I hate vegetables with chemical fertilizer. Now I call that downright YUCKY!!! I wonder if the people are aware of it too. Now that you raised the issue, I realize the amount of vegetables with chemical fertilizer given to us to eat has decreased.  My folks are becoming aware of the change in taste.

OY: You are lucky you met such a wonderful slime and such a nice place to call home.

Mr. Slimy:  Yes actually we both are lucky.  Wanna know why? Not because we found each other, rather we live in a farm that is well taken care of.  We are fed regularly.  They take care not to harm us when the remove the excess compost and also they let us go to the bottom during the whole process.  They do not use gardening tools so that really saves us.  Look they have even plastered the floor for us. How thoughtful. Now if only they could take care of the rats that would be wonderful.   Anyway, you have a home and a cover over your head and good food to eat and of course a loving wife what more would you ask for right?

OY: I agree. Is there something else that you want to tell us?

Mr. Slimy:  By the way let me give you a scoop here.  We earthworms carry both male and female reproductive parts.  Shocked?  Don’t be because we both produce baby earthworms and still are husband and wife.  The thing is she (my wife) likes to call me her husband that’s all and I am glad to have her as my wife and companion.

OY: You lucky slimes!!! Did I tell you, you have a big heart to tell me all about yourself?

Mr. Slimy:  No problem I do have a big heart. Not just one; five of them.  Shocked again? Looks like I am enjoying shocking you. You might be thinking why five hearts?  Now you will need five of them to manage excess calcium in your diet if you eat a lot of dirt. Remember our staple food is dirt!

OY: Thank you again for providing me with the opportunity to interview you.  I am sure our audience will like what you had to say.   Who knows may be improve the way they look at you, now that you have spoken about yourself and your feelings.

Thank you guys. Goodbye now and take care.  This is Organically Yours reporting from the compost pit.

How do you like the interview? Do you like it?  Were there more things that you wanted to know? Let me know and if there are more things to know, we will catch up with Mr. Slimy again soon.

Usha Pokharel
usha at pokharel dot net

Nepal is a mountainous country with plenty of natural beauties and an Agriculture-based economy with about 75% of the population being dependent upon agriculture. About 70% of the Nepali people are in the rural areas of the country where the main occupation is agriculture. A significant part of the population is dependent upon this sector, which remains a backbone of the country’s economy, where as 36 percent GDP is covered by agriculture production. In this situation it cannot be taken for granted that the overall development of the country is possible without the development of this sector. The development of the farmers is not possible without the development of this sector, and the purchasing power of the farmers cannot improve until their conditions improve as well. In the absence of improvement in the purchasing power of the farmers, direct and indirect impact on the demand for industrial outputs, so the industrial development is also hindered. The fact that other various sectors will be affected directly or indirectly cannot be denied. For the above reasons, there is an urgent need for improvement in the agriculture sector. However, the following factors are responsible for the backwardness of this sector in the country: Traditional farming practice, fragmentation of agricultural land, lack of irrigation, lack of adequate technology & skill manpower, dual ownership in land, lack of timely provision of quality seed and fertilizers, absence of well organized agriculture market, lack of utilization of public and private land, less participation of private sector in Agro & Agro Forest sectors etc. are the main obstructions of agriculture development in Nepal.

The population is increasing day by day, but on other hand, the fertile land has been converted into cities or industrial areas. If this continues, there will be no remaining fertile land for growing crops. Kathmandu Valley can be taken as an example. This problem threatens the well being of human beings in every country of this world.

The disorganized agricultural activities are also a serious problem in Nepal. The vast area of land is misused. However, the major issue in this sector is lack of skilled and qualified manpower as well as the appropriate technology. The great effort of Nepalese farmers has become fruitless. Still, we can find the large area of land uncultivated and unutilized. In this regard, it is necessary to implement a planned policy immediately. In the absence of concrete vision and policy, the existing few agricultural entrepreneurs are also facing great problems. On the other hand, there are no such better situations created to exist as private entrepreneurs. The farmers have been doing hard labor, but they are compelled to live in a miserable condition. Every government in Nepal has been claiming that agricultural development is in top priority, but the results are not found satisfactory. The way we can pursue agricultural development in this country, is through the use of organic agriculture. In the world context now organic agriculture is an emerging situation, so this is the right time to begin thinking about organic agriculture development in the country. For a country bestowed by nature with tremendous organic agricultural probability, this must be the right choice. Presently, it is in its infancy stage due to the lack of awareness amongst farmers, consumers, students, scholars, activists and policy makers. Even the government of Nepal has not given any priority for Organic Agriculture (OA) development. What we are facing today owes to the total lack of planning and foresight in the country’s organic agriculture sector. Farmers have been applying chemical inputs in the name of commercial farming, which is hazardous to both human life and the environment. Soil fertility is degrading day by day, and people are suffering with critical diseases. If we do not become timely conscious and create awareness, the situation will be beyond our control, and become a great threat to the human existence in this country. Necessary steps must be taken immediately for preserving both the environment and its creatures by supporting (institutionalizing) organic farming. Our initiative actions in this regard can be recognition for the future generations.
To create public awareness about the importance of organic agriculture, to formulate concrete planning and policy for the betterment of farmers to reduce poverty through organic agriculture, and to establishing organic agriculture resource centers all over the country will be main steps of the Nepali Government as well as those institutions and organizations who have been involving in this sector in a joint effort. It is certain that organic farming will be more cost effective than modern farming in the long run. Employing organic farming methods will lead to higher profits for farmers, not only because of price premiums, but also because of lower production costs (Rosegrant, et al., 2005; von Braun, et al, 2003). OA technologies can decrease the costs of production as chemical inputs are substituted by locally available and cheaper organic inputs and more intensive labor which the farmers often have in abundance. Adoption of OA systems also lowers the need for credit, which is often expensive and difficult to obtain for small farmers. There is substantial evidence linking OA with improvements in the profitability and income of poor farmers in developing countries. Case studies by UNESCAP (2002) shows that certain organic farming groups were able to double their income due to the lower cost of organic inputs and lower credit costs. More importantly, studies show that OA has been particularly profitable for smallholders. In the context of Nepalese farmers, OA is the only technology to adopt for their livelihood as they have a small holding of land. So it is vital to think of organic agriculture development in the country by it’s government. Government is providing subsidy in chemical fertilizer, likewise the government should have to provide necessary support to those who have been involving in the field of organic agriculture development. It should also formulate a policy in regards to organic agricultural development within the country, so that Nepal can gradually become known as an organic country.

Ramesh Nath Sharma
Executive Chairman
SADP-Nepal
Pokhara,
Email: rameshnath54@gmail.com

Climate Change and Organic Farming

The world is concerned about the global climate change with its impacts in the Himalayas in present. In the mean time Copenhagen summit was also completed in December, 2009 with some positive resolution. Entirely concerning to Nepal, recently Kathmandu is listed among 15 cities most vulnerable to green house effect, according to a report released in Copenhagen at the climate summit. So the concern to Nepal should be prioritized. The mitigation measures not only to vehicular pollution or industrial pollution but concern should also be focus on the agricultural residues which emits green house gases (GHG), causing global warming with the use of synthetic pesticides, sprays etc that can also be applicable for the agricultural country like Nepal where around 21% of land is cultivated. Regarding to the developed country like US major agricultural activities in 2007 contributed an estimated 5.8 percent to total U.S. GHG emissions. GHG emissions from these inputs add to the overall carbon footprint of agriculture.

In regard to the country like Nepal, most of the people are dependent on agriculture in which most are commercial farmers are still using synthetic fertilizers in the farms. Certainly development in agriculture is crucial for reducing poverty, and preliminary findings from the National Living Standards Survey indicate that the agriculture sector has made a significant contribution to poverty reduction. In the case of gross domestic product (GDP) of Nepal, agricultural activity constitute about 38 per cent, which is highest among other components of GDP and accounts for 75 percent of the total export while the contribution of agriculture to the total gross national product (GNP) was 56% according to 1985 (CBS, 1985). So the agriculture sector is one of the crucial parts for the national economic development and need enhancement to the farming technology to adapt the climate change in mean time.

As like the developed country, Nepal is also not untouched to the massive use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides. Panchkhal is the living example with the consequences of mishandling and overuse of chemical pesticides where the people are suffering from skin irritation, headache, nausea, and the cases of skin cancer are also been identified at an alarming rate. According to PPD (2007), annual consumption of pesticide in Nepal was 131.3 metric ton in the year 2006. The ignorance and awareness among the rural people leads to present consequences. Of the total pesticide consumption, about 40-50% is used in rice, 10-20% in vegetables and the rest in cash crops. Fertilizer is one of the necessary inputs for the higher agricultural productivity; the import of which in the country increased significantly after the implementation of Fertilizer Deregulation Policy 1997 and National Fertilizer Policy 2000 with the provision of supplying products in a subsidize rate to the farmers. Even though average fertilizer consumption in Nepal is 26 kg/ha according to 2002 (SAIC, 2004), which is very low as compared to other SAARC countries but unbalanced and massive use of chemical pesticides and fertilizers is widespread in the country specifically in areas where commercial production of crops has already started.

In the recent days, the practice of organic farming in Nepal is in crisis. Farmers are tempted by higher returns using chemicals, and feel the higher price of organic products does not offset the lower yield as the policy of government in 2058 B.S. broadens the market of pesticides and ease the private sector to import chemical fertilizers. And public who owes it unaware of the dangers of chemicals does not demand their product. So, the indiscriminate use of chemicals goes on, and callous use of agrochemicals banned in most other parts of the world. Tomatoes are dipped in diluted DDT, cauliflowers are sprayed with a pesticide cocktail the day before they are plucked, and chemicals like Aldene and Metacid are regularly used. A recent report issued by the Cancer Relief Society has shown that cancer rate in Kathmandu has raised the alarm about cancer causing risk posed by chemicals in vegetables and fruits.

At the same time the agricultural sector is impacted by climate change, research indicates that current agricultural activities are a significant source of greenhouse gases that aggravate climate disruption. The impact of climate change is severe on a least developed country like Nepal because of the geographical and climatic conditions, high dependence on natural resources and lack of resources to cope with the changing climate. Nepal’s vulnerability to damage from climate change due to increasing temperatures are more in high mountain areas as glaciers and snow fields will recede and may even disappear, reducing Nepal’s dry season river water source. So Nepal should be alert with the mitigation of climate change.

From the study, it is found that sustainable and organic agricultural systems can help to reduce agricultural GHG emissions through energy conservation, lower levels of carbon-based inputs, lower use of synthetic fertilizer and other features that minimize GHG emissions and sequester carbon in the soil. As soil is a major store of carbon. If organic agricultural systems are adopted which improve overall soil quality and provide for relatively stable GHG reduction or sequestration that can be verified and measured with reasonable accuracy.The study suggests that widespread adoption of organic farming practices would offset 23 per cent of greenhouse gas emissions from agriculture through soil carbon sequestration alone.

The result is that agricultural soils have the capacity to take up carbon through roots, litter, harvest residues, and animal manures used in agricultural production. Recent deliberation and steps towards the climate change is appreciable to some extent but still developed country should focus on the organic farming approaches neutralizing other pollutants or emitter of green house gases. Overall, the sustainable and organic agricultural systems integrate soil, crop, livestock and water management techniques that can increase production while enhancing soil carbon sequestration and reducing GHG emissions. Examining relationships in complex, integrated farming systems does not lend itself easily to isolating cause and effect of the system on various factors. But research on these systems has made clear that mitigation of the adverse effects of rapid climate change cannot be achieved simply by picking out individual agricultural practices in isolation. Rather, a holistic system of agricultural practices must be adopted in order to attain the full measure of a productive and resilient agriculture. Though the annual GHG emission of Nepal is about 0.025% with less than 0.4% of the world population which is negligibly small, Nepal should follow the philosophy and science of organic farming to reduce green house gases and also in order to achieve healthy and sustainable livelihood to set an example to the world forming Nepal as “Organic Country”.

By Sabitri Dahal

Email: sabitridahal(at)hotmail(dot)com

(published in Rising Nepal on 18th June, 2010)