Natural Farming: A Chemical Free Agricultural Practice towards Sustainable Agriculture

Abstract

India is predicted to overtake China as the most populous country in the world by 2050, with a population of nearly 1.7 billion. With the possibilities of horizontal expansion of arable land quickly diminishing, the nation must go after a policy of vertical productivity growth in order to feed this exponentially growing population. Moreover, continuous cropping depletes the nutrients in the soil, making it necessary to replenish the soil with important major and minor plant nutrients. To put an end to Silent Hunger and the morally reprehensible continuation of growing numbers of undernourished children and anemic mothers, the nation cannot compromise on the availability of nutritious food. Agro-ecological farming practices known as "Natural Farming" (NF) are thought to be a useful strategy for overcoming some of these difficulties. The nation plans to reorganize its agricultural production system, including research and development, in order to address growing issues. However, the 2018–19 economic survey made a compelling argument in favor of widespread adoption of ―Natural Farming‖ widely known as "Zero Budget Natural Farming" (ZBNF), which would double farmers' income. Crop productivity will therefore continue to be low now-a- days, and with this level of output, farmers will be helpless. Today‘s practices neither will able to earn enough to double their income nor will pay off their debt. We won't be able to meet the food and nutritional needs of the growing population at the national level either, which will prevent us from achieving the sustainable targets of "Zero Hunger and Poverty Elimination" by 2030. Therefore, using low-cost natural farming techniques, we can feed India and the rest of the world