ACHARYA OF NATURAL FARMING

The Gujarat governor's efforts to persuade farmers to use a no-expense fertiliser, Jivamrut, has led to improvement in soil fertility across the state 

- JUMANA SHAH

A new elixir of life is changing the lives of 900,000 farmers in Gujarat Called Jivamrut, it is a no-expense fertiliser made by processing cow excreta, essential pulses, jaggery and earthworms. And pushing its use is none other than the governor of Gujarat, Acharya Devvrat, who not only developed the process but has also deployed it on his 180 acres of farmland in native Kurukshetra for the past eight years. A completely natural method, as opposed to pesticide-driven or even organic farming, this 'zero-budget farming' is now happening on 752,000 acres across the state, from Kutch to Navsari to Saurashtra.