CSA work in Maharashtra.

1. ECOLOGICALLY AND ECONOMICALLY
SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE
Centre for
Sustainable
Agriculture

2. FARMING BECOMING UNVIABLE






Increased costs of cultivation
Increased risk of crop failures
Lower Productivity
Lower price realisation
Drudgery for women
Disguised unemployment

3. INCREASING THE INCOMES OF THE FARMERS
 Community Managed Sustainable Agriculture:
basic principles
 Regenerative, ecologically sound practices
 Organized action by communities in planning,
implementing and managing the program
 Govt/ngos playing facilitating agency role
 Farmer Field School approach
 Value chain approach
 Reducing the costs of cultivation
 Reducing risk of crop failures
 Increasing Productivity
 Increasing the price realisation
 Improving the work efficiency of the
farmers/agriculture workers through small farm
mechanisation and establishing custom hiring
centres
 Additional income generating activities

4. IMPACT

Working with 1750 people in 35 villages in two districts (Yavatmal
and Wardha) of Maharashtra

Among them about 724 (41%) are completely pesticide free and
about 338 (19%) have become organic and others are in various
stages of shift other are in various stages of shift

Pesticide use reduction it was 100% with 1062 farmers which includes
338 organic farmers (amounts to Rs. 53.10 lakhs) and about 70%
with the rest (about Rs. 0.32 lakhs).

Fertiliser use reduction: 338 farmers have reduced their fertiliser use
by 100% (amounts to Rs. 7.65, lakhs) and about 40% by the rest
(amounts to Rs. 13.53).

One producer company currently into production and marketing of
seed



Wheat (5.4 tons), Soybean Bengal gram (5.4 tons)
80% good seed realisation
In Andhra Pradesh CSA directly works with 5000 farmers who adopt
these practices and 3.5 lakh farmers covering 7.0 lakh acres through
Community Managed Sustainable Agriculture during 2005-2008.
Currently the program is spread over 36 lakh acres.

5. COMPARATIVE ECONOMICS (2012-13)
Operations
Cotton
Wheat
Soybean
Gram
Cost (NPM) Cost (Chemical) Cost (NPM) Cost (Chemical) Cost (NPM) Cost (Chemical) Cost (NPM) Cost (Chemical)
Preparatory Tillage
₹ 3,800.00
Seeds Bed Preparation
₹ 550.00
Seed & Sowing
₹ 2,400.00
Nutrient Management
₹ 500.00
Pest and Disease
₹ 200.00
Management
Intercultural Operation
₹ 2,700.00
Harvesting
₹ 7,000.00
Transportation
₹ 1,400.00
Dealers margin/storage
₹ 750.00
Total Cost
₹ 19,300.00
Yield (q/acre)
14.00
Selling price (Rs/q)
₹ 4,000.00
Total Returns
₹ 56,000.00
Net income
₹ 36,700.00
Benefit: Cost
1.90
₹ 2,900.00
₹ 200.00
₹ 2,060.00
₹ 3,920.00
₹ 3,000.00
₹ 300.00
₹ 500.00
₹ 500.00
₹ 830.00
₹ 400.00
₹ 2,250.00 ₹ 2,800.00
₹ 6,000.00 ₹ 2,500.00
₹ 1,200.00
₹ 850.00
₹ 600.00
₹ 19,960.00 ₹ 10,850.00
12.00
17.00
₹ 4,000.00 ₹ 1,800.00
₹ 48,000.00 ₹ 30,600.00
₹ 28,040.00 ₹ 19,750.00
1.40
1.82
₹ 2,200.00 ₹ 3,500.00
₹ 1,800.00 ₹ 1,800.00
₹ 1,500.00
₹ 500.00
₹ 2,700.00
₹ 1,800.00
₹ 850.00
₹ 3,000.00
₹ 300.00
₹ 500.00
₹ 500.00
₹ 2,100.00
₹ 300.00
₹ 1,100.00
₹ 1,400.00
₹ 200.00
₹ 1,000.00
₹ 200.00
₹ 2,000.00
₹ 900.00 ₹ 2,800.00
₹ 2,500.00 ₹ 2,200.00
₹ 600.00
₹ 350.00
₹ 1,800.00
₹ 2,500.00
₹ 450.00
-
₹ 9,500.00
12.00
₹ 1,600.00
₹ 19,200.00
₹ 9,700.00
1.02
₹ 11,350.00
8.00
₹ 3,500.00
₹ 28,000.00
₹ 16,650.00
1.47
₹ 11,100.00
9.00
₹ 3,500.00
₹ 31,500.00
₹ 20,400.00
1.84
₹ 2,800.00
₹ 1,300.00
₹ 2,200.00
₹ 2,200.00
₹ 700.00
₹ 600.00
₹ 1,400.00 1200 (storage)
₹ 11,600.00
₹ 11,000.00
14.00
12.00
₹ 3,000.00
₹ 3,000.00
₹ 42,000.00
₹ 36,000.00
₹ 30,400.00
₹ 25,000.00
2.62
2.27

6. COMMUNITY MANAGED SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE
 Colloboration with women self
help groups, Society for
Elimination of Rural Poverty
and NGOs
 2004-05 started with 225
acres in one dist and reached
7 lakh acres in 2007-08 in 18
dist.
 A national program called
Mahila Krishi Sashaktikaran
Pariyojana (MKSP) is
launched based on this
experiencce
4000
3500
3000
2500
2000
1500
1000
500
0
3500 3600
2800
2000
1300
0.225 25
15
0.1
200
80
700
300
Acerage ('000 acres)
1500
1000
600
Farmers ('000)
1600 1770

7. STATUS OF PESTICIDE UTILIZATION IN DIFFERENT STATES**
States/UTs
2005-06 2006-072007-08 2008-09 2009-10 kg/ha kg/ha
2000-01 2009-10
Punjab
5610
5975
6080
5760
5810
0.98
0.82
Haryana
4560
4600
4390
4288
4070
0.84
0.68
Andhra Pradesh
1997
1394
1541
1381
1015
0.34
0.09
Maharastra
3198
3193
3050
2400
4639
0.17
0.24
Tamil Nadu
2211
3940
2048
2317
2335
0.32
0.45
Gujarat
2700
2670
2660
2650
2750
0.30
0.29
Kerala
571
545
780 272.69
631
0.31
0.26
Karnataka
1638
1362
1588
1675
1647
0.17
0.14
**Source: http://ppqs.gov.in/IpmPesticides.htm MT of active ingredient

8. REPLICABILITY, SCALABILITY AND SUSTAINABILITY
 The basic principles are replicable any where…production practices/models were evolved
for Himachal Pradesh, Assam, Odisha, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh etc..
 Institutional systems, knowledge management and extension are key for scaling up
 Sustainability
 The farmer groups needs five years of intensive support and five years of handholding support to
become completely self-sustainable
 After that beneficiaries would continue to use the practices as it would reduce their costs of
cultivation
 The capacities of the group and the community resource persons would be built to handle day to
activities
 They may need regular capacity building updating their knowledge and skills in production,
institutional and financial management, marketing etc
 By fifth year, the farmer cooperatives starts functioning and can generate enough surpluses to pay
for the capacity building services.

9. STRATEGIES
 Scientific approach:
 Focus on agroecological approaches
 Evaluation in farmers fields
 Mainly based on local situations and resources
 Change as ‘Factor 10’
 Knowledge based Extension
 Using ICT tools: Krishi TV (http://www.krishi.tv)
 Incremental change
 Viable Community Institutions
 Convergence with the ongoing government
programmes
 Showcasing the success stories
VRC1
Farmer Service Cente
Integrated services:
• Knowledge
• Inputs
• Market
• Financial
VRC2
VRC3
VRC4
VRC5

10. ORGANISATIONAL CAPABILITIES

Well experienced agricultural scientists and
field staff

Research on Agroecological practices,
participatory breeding and selection of
seeds, Quick composting methods, green
enterprises like Malkha,

Currently working with 5000 farmers in AP,
Maharashtra and Punjab and supporting
various groups in Assam, Himachal Pradesh,
Odisha, Madhya Pradesh and Bihar

Seed Producer Company registered and is
operational at Wardha. Seed production and
sales are operational

Sahaja aharam marketing procurement was
initiated 4 years back.

11. www.csa-india.org
www.krishi.tv
www.agrariancrisis.in
Facebook: ramoo.agripage
Twitter: ramanjaneyuluGV
Email: ramoo.csa@gmail.com
Phone: 040-27017735, 09000699702