General Overview of Zero Budget Natural Farming (ZBNF)

Abstract

India will surpass China as the most populated country in the world, with an estimated nearly 1.67 billion people by 2050 (World Population Data Sheet, October 2019). In order to feed this population, the country has to adopt a policy of vertical growth in productivity as the opportunities of further horizontal expansion of cultivated area are almost exhausted. Continuous cropping depletes the soilnutrient reserves and hence, the soils are to be replenished with the essential major andminor plant nutrients. In this context, Zero Budget Natural Farming (ZBNF) given by Subhash Palekar is not appropriate technology to adopt the farmers because in this technique, cannot provide adequate quantity of nutrients required forhigher crop productivity as soil has a limited nutrient supplying capacity. In addition, ZBNFrecommends use of traditional varieties of crops having almost half the yield potential ofmodern high yielding varieties. Thus, farmers will not earn enough to double their income with low crop productivity.