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Relevance of Gandhi - Cherkady way
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Life's irony is that those who grow food for others die of hunger. Suicidal deaths have become a day-to-day phenomenon. Pursuing Cherkady way - blend of Gandhian and Fukuokan principles - may be the answer to many questions posed by modern agriculture and life style. ANITHA PAILOOR illustrates the success story of Cherkady Ramachandra Rao, who explored Gandhian ideologies in his own way and led a contented life, inspiring those who are in search of alternatives.
THE word 'Gandhi Jayanthi' instantly strikes certain set words in our minds. The reason is simple, October 2nd repeats every year and so do the speeches. The monotonous meaningless birthday celebration of the father of our nation has taken away its popularity, having only a few attendants for whom the function is 'inevitable'.
To those who want to celebrate Gandhi to their heart, a visit to Cherkady Ramachandra Rao in Karnataka would serve the purpose. Rao, flanked by green trees and plants helps us to visualise Gandhi. He hasn't read much about Gandhi, but he has a better understanding of Bapu's vision about life. He is imparting those steps in his life in his own way, the instrument of success being his farm. Ramachandra Rao, a known name for the farmers in coastal Karnataka, is trying to work and live in simple ways that he discovered on his journey to realise the dream of Gandhi. Like us, he hasn't fixed a day to revere Gandhi. Each day, for him, is a day to experiment with Gandhian thoughts. He has continued nurturing his plans and dreams through his favourite, the mother nature. Ramachandra Rao's dreamland is just an eight-kilometer away from Brahmavar towards Hebri in Udupi District. The green patch of land with huge trees and tiny plants between large locales of dry hilly land immediately strikes one as a 'living' place and forces to enter the compound with inquisitiveness. Once you introduce yourself to this active man of 84, he describes you each inch of his two-and-a-half acre land and life in his own philosophical tone. He has experimented every possible crop in his land, except areca for which he has a reason. He doesn't want to harm the society with his produces. He finds areca harmful, and never started growing. Those who have a fixed notion about farming pass through the farm quickly as they find little to see. While for those who are genuinely interested it feels that no further expansion is possible in the land. But Rao has planned to plant few more coffee seedlings amidst the present plants. He doesn't want to waste even a bit of his land. He has spread pepper vines over all the trees in the farm, without leaving even a small single plant. Rao explains the reason, as we are in the receiving end we are not choosers. Each tiny object has its own importance in the earth and we should realise that. In the case of pepper, vines attached to a small plant yield less but every paisa counts in a rupee. This determines the roots of his success. Rao even had converted human waste as manure for his farm. A 3x3 feet square pit is dug, and the bottom lid of the commode automatically opens downwards when weight falls on it, and closes again. The pit is added with dry leaves every day. "Good manure in 3-4 months -without any bad smell."
"I'm happy and content in my own world. I'm in no way harmful to the nation, not even behind the government pleading for material needs. I'm not ready to accept even if they offer. This had happened in few cases. Let them give pumps and lights to those who are in need. My land provides me all the necessities making me self-reliant." He sounds rare in the disastrous condition of Indian farming and farmers. There are mango trees, coconut plants, cashew nut, ginger, papaya, sapota, gua, pineapple and few vegetables. He considers ginger as a hidden treasure, which he can use whenever he needs. He expresses, " Ginger is my fixed deposit. Ginger crop - when the market rate of the harvested crop is not good, I bury them like this, till I get good rates ... they are like buried treasure ...!" Banana plants that yield consuming only rainwater are another asset to Rao. "Every plant in my farm is useful. Nature is very kind towards us. It is our fault to set target for production. We should accept whatever she provides. We should understand the secrets of mother earth and our inner-self to experience an integrated farm life. If we sit idle in the name of natural farming the result will be zero." Here comes the architect of natural farming, Masanobu Fukuoka into our minds. Both of them have very many things in common, yet they remain distinct and different. Fukoka discovered the chemistry of life, interacting with nature. He had immense affection towards nature. This passion for nature drew him back to his village quitting his position as a scientist. Cherkady came close to nature on his way to discover life in Gandhian way. Having studied only till 2nd standard and with 2 acres of land, his contribution and success was in no way lesser than Fukuoka's. Their goals and intentions - fertility of soil and purity of heart - were similar but ways were different: Fukuoka explored it by experimenting with natural farming and Cherkady achieved it by following Gandhian way. In 1948-49 when there was lack in the production of food grains, Gandhi suggested people to produce rice for themselves along with clothing. This message led to the resignation of Rao to his post in Khadi Board, Moodabidri instantly. He came to Cherkady with a mission to practice Gandhian ideology. He accomplished his goal by becoming another Fukuoka who might have started his venture almost the same time. Another person who influenced Cherkady is Vinoba Bhave. Vinoba's words of consideration about farm life and his respect for land inspired Rao to proceed further. Now he is a great success, it was a hard journey, though. One of his relatives lent him a piece of dry land in which Rao and his wife Lakshmi started a new life. They lived under a thatched roof without electricity and any other modern facility. They continued with spinning and simultaneously, took up farming. The gross income was inadequate for their living. In the next monsoon, they produced vegetables, which was more profitable. This made this family to involve completely in farming. For 10 years, there wasn't any progress in either the land or their home front. One fine morning in 1961, he discovered the secret of land's fertility when he observed a healthy rice plant under a mango tree. The plant, grown out of natural nutrients had yielded more than a usual variety. This was a turning point in his life. Rao experimented with the same breed and it was a great success. He used to grow paddy without tillage or other common practices. It didn't even need irrigation, forget other fertilisers. The method named 'Sarvodaya paddy cultivation' became practically popular in the area as 'Cherkady crop'. Though its popularity faded away with the entry of hybrid variety, the method is considered to be appropriate for hilly and dry areas. Cherkady's one straw revolution! Influenced by his success, district authorities of the time offered him few acres of dry land to further his experiments with rice cultivation. For him small patch of land was quite sufficient to lead a meaningful life. Cherkady's realisation of earth spirituality is quite unique devoid of any other ideational influence than Gandhian thought. "Earth does not belong to us. We belong to the earth. We should remember where we come from. Nothing can exist as an outsider, in isolation. If we try to do so, life ends up in disaster. So let us not go against the nature's laws. Let us not misappropriate earth to further our material needs. Let us understand the intricacies of nature and practice organic farming to realise the beauty of life." Each day that he spends time with the grass, greenery around and in the farm, he feels being with his mother. This makes him interact with the earth more intimately. Spending time in the farm is, thus, a respectful and meditative act, where he reiterates his commitment to the earth. He strongly feels that as the earth is like our mother, it implies that we cannot violate her. "Let us not be ticks sucking blood from mother but be children who drink the milk from nature. Nature is God. Why go in search of another God,"- Rao questions. We can consider Cherkady as a blend of Gandhi and Fukuoka. He led his life in the lines of Gandhi and while achieving that he became another Fukuoka. "Earth is the best resource, and there is no need for any external support if land is utilised properly. Farmers should strive to become self-reliant and should be independent of government support." Rao lived with minimum needs, which he felt every last person in the economic ladder could afford to. This made him independent of all external inputs. He even watered his plants indigenously by driving water from a 60 feet well. To drive water easily from the well he created a mechanism, called the 'Sarvodaya Rate'. This pulley like device has two buckets on its both sides and when one bucket comes up with water the other goes down. "We could draw 100 buckets of water in 10 minutes." An amazing creativity that made watering an easy task. An excerpt from his visitors book says, "When I heard about Fukuoka; I wondered whether it is practical. After seeing this farm by Cherkady, I realised that there is no point in searching for Fukuokas outside! Let Cherkady be a model to those who kill agriculture by sowing the seeds of techno-culture!" Rao does not believe in insuring the crop. " These long standing perennial trees are insurance, which can be relied upon in drought," he says pointing at various trees spread all over the farm. His forethought made him plant trees like coconut, mango, cashewnut, jackfruit - in his farm, as he thought when he grows old, it is tough to work as before. Underlining the statement, "I don't want to be a dependent." These trees are now yielding highly helping him to be independent. Now the trees have grown tall limiting his option to grow 'sarvodaya crop'. The rice plants that need sunlight get curtailed under the shadow of these trees. But not to depress those who are interested in the method, he has maintained few plants as sample. He also guides 'Namma Bhoomi', a charitable institution in Kundapur, in experimenting this method. Natural farming is neither growing a few crops by non-chemical methods nor harvesting the crop by 'doing nothing'. It is ultimately a distinct thinking and way of life. Those who appreciate Fukuoka's exertion hesitate if it suits to our conditions. But Cherkady, unaware of the success of Fukuoka in Japan, cleared such doubts. Unfortunately, Cherkady's success story never crossed the boundaries of Karnataka. Natural farming builds a reverential relationship of human with earth and her non-human off springs. But of late, natural farming is often promoted as rejuvenation of our ancient traditions. This often makes many farmers to consider it unscientific. They feel that science has nothing to do with this form of cultivation. This wrong notion has restricted the popularity of non-chemical farming. "Natural farming doesn't mean turning our backs on the scientific and modern world. This type of farming can find its true purpose only when it has scientific background," Cherkady's words are very similar to that of Fukuoka's. In her book Bapu Kuti, Rajni Bakshi quotes, " Claiming to tread Gandhi's path makes you work on the self, it makes a person measure oneself by a tough yardstick, and many people do not want to do that." Cherkady is a person who has accepted that yardstick and has spent his lifetime striving to live accordingly. His farm life not only demonstrates the strength of eco-friendly farming but also the relevance of Gandhian ideology. Life's irony is that those who grow food for others die of hunger. Our farming community lives in such a paradox. Suicidal deaths have turned to be a day-to-day phenomenon. Don't we have any way out to preserve a balance in our farming community and move towards sustainability? According to Rao, there is. When the farmer stops pleading others for facilities and works upon himself understanding the nature. One should limit his desires to minimum needs. No draught or price fluctuation will affect him when he finds ways to tackle it, Rao states, giving his own example. He strongly objects such policies as globalisation and treaties like GATT as they magnetise Indian farmers to take up ultra modern methods of farming that no doubt are dangerous by all means. " Here money dominates over all other values in life. Let us produce for ourselves first, then try to deliver goods outside. Why are we worried about globalising everything when it is pushing farmers backward in real terms?" Pursuing Cherkady way may be the answer to many questions posed by modern agriculture and lifestyle.
Address: Anitha Pailoor is a freelance journalist based in Dharwad. Email: snownitha@yahoo.com |
