NATURAL RESOURCE

MANAGEMENT-2014

Vishnu
Wishwas
Sudhangan
Akilan

Pathashaala TCEC - KFI

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................................................... 4
OUR DAY TO DAY PROGRAMME ..................................................................................................... 6
BROAD PERCEPTIONS OF OUR TEAM ........................................................................................... 15
CASE STUDIES OF FARMERS .......................................................................................................... 20
OUR SUGGESTIONS FOR VILLAGE IMPROVEMENT ....................................................................... 31
APPENDIX ...................................................................................................................................... 33
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ................................................................................................................... 36

INTRODUCTION
When you tug at one end of nature you find that it is
connected to the rest of the world.
- John Muir
This report is based on the study conducted in
Vallipuram village. This study spanned for 4 days. The
first day we spent in and around Kancheepuram
looking at various projects initiated by the HIH (Hand In
Hand) with regard to water shed management, Solid
Waste Management and organic agricultural practices.
The remaining 3 days we spent in Vallipuram village
doing the following Looking at all its water bodies (natural and
manmade).
Interviewing several farmers in the village with
regard to their farming practices and the problems
they face.
Investigating what is being done to the solid waste
which is generated in the village.
Analysing and representing statistics gathered by
the survey group (the survey was conducted in 200
households, in the village).
In conducting this study, we have gained an
understanding of the existing beliefs and practices of
farmers. We are also left with the following questions

- How do we sustainably manage the solid waste in

the village?
- How do we implement conservation and proper
usage of existing water bodies?
- How do we communicate the importance of
organic farming especially in this era?
In our study we explore these questions.

OUR DAY TO DAY PROGRAMME

In this section we outline all the activities we did during
our four day study.

Day 1 15/09/14 - Trip to Kancheepuram

During our trip, we visited:

Vandavasi TOFA meeting

Vandavasi HIH cattle pond
Vandavasi HIH farm pond
Vandavasi HIH drinking water pond
Uthiramerur Solid Waste Management shed.
TOFA Executive Committee Meeting

The meeting was happening at the 2 acre organic farm

of Mr. Vasudevan, the secretary of TOFA executive
committee. Methods used in organic farming were shown
to us. These included Jeevamrutham, Panchakavya, 5 leaf
solution, Agni astra and border indicators. The meeting
was a discussion between HIH officials and organic
farmers regarding what can be the consequences if the
loans given by HIH are not repaid by the farmers.

On the left is the TOFA executive meeting. On the right is the 5 leaf mixture/an organic pesticide.

HIH Cattle Pond

This is a previously existing cattle pond in Vandavasi. It
was dug an extra 1.5 metres by HIH in 2011. This helps
recharging wells and groundwater within a radius of 300
metres. This also helps livestock and cultivation. The pond
is periodically recharged by rainwater. The pond is in
common land and 10% of the expenditure was given by
the people.

Above is the cattle pond at Vandavasi

HIH Farm Pond

This farm pond is located in a farmers private land. It was
built for pisciculture and as a water source for the farmer.
The farmer was helped by HIH to build the farm pond.
10% of the construction expenses were given by the
farmer.

Above and below is

the farm pond in
Uthiramerur built by
HIH for a farmer.

HIH Drinking Water Pond

This pond is located in a village. It is a project initiated by
HIH. 10% of the expenditure was given by villagers. It
currently needs cleaning. It is located in vizhudhupattu.

Above is the drinking water pond, a project by HIH Vizhudhupattu.

Uthiramerur SWM Shed

It is a place where solid waste is dealt with. They
segregate and process the waste so that a minimal
amount is sent to the land fill. This includes segregation of
waste, composting bio-degradable waste and dealing with
plastic. Their aim is to segregate garbage at the source
and sending a minimal amount of garbage to the land fill.
They also have working vermicomposting and bio
composting units. -

HIHs solid waste management shed in Uthiramerur.

Day 2 16/09/14 Vallipuram field study

We met some farmers and saw the conditions of some of

the water bodies in Vallipuram. We met three farmers
Thirumalai, Arunachalam and Devaraj. All three of them
are not practising organic farming but are interested, if
taught and supported in one acre of their land. They have
been here since their childhood. We also met a labour
farmer named K.Kaniyappan who also gave us information
on farming practises and the water issues in the village.
All four shared that there has been a shortage of rain
water lately, they use extensive amount of bore water,
practically all the farmers in the village practise inorganic
farming and the water table in the village is between 1525 feet beneath the ground.

We also visited the Vallipuram eri, one artificial recharge

tank, two temple ponds and a well. The Vallipuram eri
was overgrown with Ipomoea and many bores were fitted
at the bed of the eri. Many ladies were digging at the eris
edges to make a catchment, as part of a govt.
programme. The artificial recharge tank requires land
levelling and clearance of bushes in and around it. One of
the temple ponds and the well were saturated with algae.
The other temple pond is being used by cattle.
In our walk we noticed that a lot of garbage from various
households was dumped close to a eucalyptus plantation
near the eri. We also noticed that garbage thrown in a
panchayat dustbin near the Amman temple was not
segregated. A vermicompost shed near the ration shop is
defunct and has a collapsing shed.

The defunct vermicompost shed at Vallipuram.

Day 3 17/09/14 Vallipuram field study

We interviewed two farmers and information regarding
two other farmers was given to us by Mr.Devaraj, a
farmer we interviewed yesterday. We visited the water
board unit in Vallipuram which extracts water from Paalar
and pumps it to Thirukhazhukundram. We visited two
water tanks. We also located other places where garbage
is being dumped. Notable in these places were behind the
PHC where medical waste is being dumped and in the
Vallipuram Govt. School where large amounts of garbage
is being burnt.
During our walk we noticed that the medical waste from
the PHC (Primary Health Centre) is being dumped in a
large pit behind the PHC building. This even includes post
delivery
placentas
and
related
waste.

Heap of medical waste behind the PHC.

We also found large garbage heaps along the road leading

from the PHC to the Vallipuram bus stand.

Heaps of garbage on the way to the bus stand from the PHC.

We also noticed that within the Govt. School campus

large amount of garbage is being burnt in a corner (we
found that this was almost on a daily basis).

Garbage being burned in the Vallipuram Govt. School.

(Another observation of ours was that the two water

tanks in the old colony were leaking from pipes leading to
them resulting in a large amount of water wastage)

Water stagnation under water tank due to leaking pipe.

A walk on the road leading to Paalar revealed that

numerous alcohol bottles, water bottles, water packets
and plastic cups were strewn along the road sides.

Water packets, plastic cups and bottles strewn near Paalar.

Day 4 18/09/14
This day was largely spent in looking at the data we
gathered, analysing, collating and authoring our report.

BROAD PERCEPTIONS OF OUR TEAM

With regard to the three areas we focused on, we found

that there were some broad issues which are existing with
respect to each. That we go on to elaborate here.
Farmers and agriculture
Farming is the major occupation in Vallipuram and its
surrounding villages. Almost all the residents are
hereditary farmers for ages. In spite of this, agriculture
has seen a decline in the recent past and this is due to the
accumulation of various factors.
Emigration is a major factor affecting agriculture. Some of
the main reasons for emigration are prevailing
unemployment in the village, wanting to work in urban
areas, looking for higher paid jobs, modern education and
other such reasons. Due to this, labour for farming
activities has become a demand and has lead to a
dramatic increase in labour wages. For instance male
labour wage in 2007 was Rs.100 per day and in 2014 it has
reached Rs.300. As a result, farmers are cultivating less
land and many of them find it profitable to even sell their
land to real estate. Increase in farming expenses forced
many farmers to take loans and often face debt.
Ground water is decreasing due to lesser rains and
improper farming practices such as excessive extraction of
water by way of running their motors as long as there is
electricity, even 24 hours. In our conversations with

farmers we found that the existing myth amongst them is

the more the irrigation the better the crop is. Excessive
sand mining at the Paalar River nearby has also
contributed to reduction in ground water, as aquifers are
not recharged. Nearby Eris which irrigate the cultivable
land are not being recharged due to a significant drop in
rainfall.
Another problem the farmers are facing is the dramatic
rise in the prices of agricultural chemicals and fertilizers.
The table below shows the comparison of different
chemicals over three years.
Chemical
DAP
Complex
Urea
Potash

Rate in
2011/50kg
500
400
220
400

Rate in
2014/50kg
1200
850
300
850

(The rate is in Rs. This information is according to a farmer we interviewed)

Many farmers were hesitant about converting to organic

farming due to the relatively less production during the
first two or three years. But, many of them are willing to
test organic methods in a small scale, if supported, before
they think about converting entirely. It is also notable that
some farmers are already practicing some degree of
mixed farming using cow dung and natural compost along
with chemical fertilizers.

Water bodies in Vallipuram

In Vallipuram there are 4 ponds, 1 eri, 56 bore wells, and
3 common wells.
A major misuse of water bodies prevalent in this village is
defecation around them, especially temple ponds. The
water from the ponds is used for ablutions. This practice
makes the temple ponds inaccessible for other uses.
Drilling tube wells on the eri bed contributes to depletion
of ground water and delayed recharge of the eri. This
affects farming activities.
In our walk we noticed that a lot of garbage is thrown into
wells, in the eri, ponds and into streamlets coming from
Paalar.
An artificial recharge pond, built by the government,
requires clearing of bushes around it and land levelling.
Clearing of bushes is also required around temple ponds
to make them more accessible. The most common
invasive bush in the village happens to be the Mexican
thorn bush (Prosopis juliflora. Tamil name: Velikatthan).
This encroaches most of the land around the eris and
ponds. These can be cleared to allow growth of native
flora. This is already happening in some measure as
according to the data gathered by the survey group the
major source of cooking fuel in the village happens to be
fire wood (See Appendix C ), most of which comes from
the Mexican thorn bush.

Solid Waste Management

Almost all the garbage generated in the village is buried or
dumped along streets, road corners, back yards, Eris and
other common places. A large portion of this is eventually
burned. For instance, some amount of garbage of the
village is dumped and burned within the campus of the
government school. Even the medical waste such as used
syringes, cotton, tablet strips, medicine bottles, surgical
equipment, post delivery placentas, etc, are being
dumped in a pit behind the PHC
Through the statistics gathered by the survey group we
discovered that most of the garbage is not being
segregated.

Segregation of Garbage

31%

69%
Houses Segregating Garbage
Houses not Segregating
Garbage

Source: Survey Team (this chart is out of 200 households)

Cattle feeding on plastic from garbage heaps is a common sight.

CASE STUDIES OF FARMERS

As already mentioned we interviewed a number of
farmers to find out their prevailing farming practices. The
information we have gathered from each of the farmers
we interacted with, are documented below.
Mr.K.Kaniyappan- a farmer labourer

He says
He has been a farmer labourer for about 40 years.
Rain dependant farming can happen for about three
months year.
Inorganic farming has been happening in Vallipuram
for the past 20 years.
Rains have been decreasing. There are about 19
service motors in the fields beside eri karai road.

 1 cent in Vallipuram is 12000 13000 rupees.

Ground water is found at 15 20 ft.
Lot of farmers are selling their lands to zamindars
and outsiders.
In his childhood, almost all agriculture here was
dependant on rain.
Half of the farm land is owned by Vishvanatha
Mudhalliar

At Vallipuram most of the farm land is owned by few zamindars.

Mr. Arunachalam - farmer

He says
He takes care of 7 acres of land belonging to
Dharmalingam Naadar.
Ground water is available at 20 23 ft.
The rain was very sparse during the last 2 years.
There are about 23 bore wells around Pathashaala.
He is interested in organic farming if support and
methodologies are offered.
He uses 200ml of spray pesticide per acre for a 3
month crop.
He uses 50kgs of DAP, 50kgs of Urea along with
potash and complex thrice during a crop.
He runs the motor throughout the day when there is
electricity.

Mr.Devaraj farmer

He says
He has been a farmer in Vallipuram for the past 14
years. He is a full time farmer, previously working in
TVS at Chennai
He came to his village for farming because his father
died and he had to take care of his land.
He used to farm 13 acres of land previously. Now he
has reduced to 4.5 acres due to labour scarcity and
increased wages.
He does inorganic farming but is interested in
converting to organic if supported.
He uses a single 5hp motor which is situated on the
Vallipuram eri bed.
He runs the motor for 12 hours on alternate days.
He grows sugarcane and paddy

 He depends on rain for about 5 months. One crop of

his is rain fed.
He grows 2 crop cycles per year.
His total expenditure including fertilizer and pesticide
per acre per crop cycle is Rs.8000. In one of his 3
fertilizer applications, he uses cow dung.
There are about 50 farmers in the village.
There are 3 big farmers who have about 50 acres
each and are buying land from smaller farmers.
His father owned 42 acres of farming land (most of
which is occupied by Pathashaala now) which was
sold to a Chettiyar.
Before 25 years an acre in Vallipuram cost Rs.600.
Some of the farmland in Vallipuram has been illegally
built upon and nothing has been done about it.
The farmer association is defunct due to conflict
between farmers. Farmers only came if loans were
given.

Mr.Thirumalai farmer

He says
He has been farming for 30 years.
He currently farms on 4 acres of land which he has
taken on lease for Rs.15000 per year. Previously he
used to farm on 30 acres.
He grows paddy, Water melon, peanuts, cucumber,
Brinjal, Millet, Pumpkin and other vegetables.
He does 3 crop cycles per year. One of them is rain
fed.
He does inorganic farming. His total pesticide and
fertilizer expenditure is Rs.12000 per acre per crop
cycle.
He sells his rice to a rice mill.
He runs the motor for as long as there is electricity.

 He faces an acute rat problem in his farm which he

says is due to lack of snakes.
He is willing to test organic farming on 1 acre of his
farm with support. If he benefits, he is willing to
convert to organic farming.
Half of the farmers in the village sold their farmland
to outsiders.

Mrs.Jaya-farmer

She says
Her ancestors have been doing farming but her son is
now a driver.
They have 3 acres of land that is being shared with
the three brothers in the family. Each of them
cultivates an area of 1 acre.

 They do three crop cycles. Out of which two cycles

are of paddy and one cycle of ground nuts.
They have two bullocks and one cow.
All three brothers use a single bore well and a motor.
They do mixed farming (OF and IF). They are not
willing to convert completely to organic farming.
They are not at all dependant on rain as their land is
on a slope.
Their expenditure per acre per crop cycle is about
Rs.15,000.
They receive a profit of Rs.20,000 per crop cycle.
The rice harvested is sold to rice mills called Chettiyar
mill.
They are able to get water at 25-30 feet. If there is
rain, water is found at 20 feet.
In the past three years there is not adequate rain fall.
40 years ago there were no pesticides and fertilizers.
Due to sand mining the water in Paalar has reduced
and the water that is usually received from Paalar is
not filling the eri.
They are not part of any associations.
Most of the farmers are selling their lands.

Mr.Balasubramaniyam (Younger brother of Panchayat

Head) farmer

He says
He has been farming for more than 10 years.
He has 4 acres of his own land on which he grows
paddy
He grows 2 crop cycles
Gets 25 sacks of paddy for 1 acre per crop cycle
He spends Rs.15000 per acre per crop cycle
Cost of pesticide and fertilizers has increased by 2
times the price before (except for Urea).
Long time back his expenditure was Rs.10 per acre
Farmers expenditure is more than their income. So,
they take loans every time they start growing a crop
cycle

 5 years back, he invested less and got more

outcomes. But now he is investing more and getting
fewer outcomes.
If the govt. reduces the prices of pesticides and
fertilizers, he would gain profit.
A person named Varadarajan, from Chennai, is
practising organic farming in Vallipuram
He is part of an association but is not active because
there have been conflicts during meetings
Long time back the labour cost was cheaper. So the
farmers would get more outcome.

Saravana Pillai farmer

As Mr. Devaraj says
He owns 6 acres of land. He has 4 acres of land for
lease
He has been a farmer since his childhood
He grows paddy for 2 crop cycles. The yield is sold to
a rice mill.
He has 2 motors. One of them is 5hp and the other is
3hp
He practises inorganic farming
The motor runs as long as there is electricity
He is dependent on rain for 1 crop cycle
He is not part of any farmer association

Mr. Seenivasan (Head of Panchayat) farmer

As Mr. Devaraj says
He has 10 acres of land
5 acres of it are used to grow paddy. In the other 5
acres sugarcane is grown this year because loan was
given to him by a sugar factory
He practises inorganic farming
He uses 2 motors. 1 motor runs for 24 hours for the
sugarcane field
1 acre gives 25 sacks of rice
The sugarcane is a 11 month crop cycle. During the
2nd year, the previous cut crop is allowed to grow
again.
He is not part of any farmers association
He sells it to a sugar factory.

OUR SUGGESTIONS FOR IMPROVEMENT OF THE

VILLAGE
We have classified our suggestions under three categories.
These three categories are 1.Those which could be
implemented by Pathashaala via its interaction with the
neighbourhood, 2.Those which could be implemented by HIH
and 3.Those which could be implemented by the Panchayat.

HIH (Hand In Hand)

Reviving the farmer association and facilitating
productive and interactive discussions between
farmers. Make farmer meetings regular.
Connecting the farmer directly with the buyer (without
a middle man) especially during transition from
inorganic farming to organic farming to increase profit.
Creating a forum where farmers can directly sell their
organic produce to buyers (one of the buyers can be
Pathashaala).
Supporting farmers who are interested in organic
farming in terms of methods, resources and little
funding or loans. People with cattle in the village can
be encouraged to make and sell organic farming
products (Panchakavya and Jeevamrutham).
Setup a SWM shed in the village.
Spread awareness on the importance of source
segregation and implement it with the help of green
friends.

Panchayat
Renovate and make the vermicompost shed near
ration shop functional.
Provide adequate dust bins and implement frequent
removal of garbage from the Vallipuram government
school so that mass burning of garbage in the school
is prevented.
Clear bushes and level the land at the artificial
recharge pond near Valliammal temple.
Cleaning and clearing bushes around the Perumal
temple pond and restrict open defecation in its
vicinity.
Pipes leading from the 2 water tanks (in the old
colony) need to be sealed as they are currently
leaking.
The village has a lot of cattle (according to the survey
team there are 313 numbers of cattle in the 200
houses they surveyed); the dung could be effectively
collected, sold or circulated and can be used as
fertilizer for cultivation. Also, a lot of cow dung is
being unusedly dumped beside the road near
Vallipuram bus stand. This could be put to use as
well.
Set up a store where people can buy Jeevamrutham,
Panchakavya (which can be made using cow dung and
urine from the cattle in the village).
A separate dustbin should be given to the PHC where
they can dump medical waste. The medical waste
from the PHC should also be segregated.

Pathashaala
Educating farmers about appropriate and sparing
water usage.
Spreading awareness and conducting workshops
regarding organic farming.
Exposure visit.

APPENDIX

All data here is out of a sample of 200 houses

A
Land Area In Vallipuram

9%
38%

17%

36%

Common Land
Waste Land
Wet Land
Dry Land

Information from the VAO

B
Change Of Land Price
3500000
3000000
2500000
2000000
Change Of Land Price

1500000
1000000
500000
0
1990

2000

2006

2012

2014

Information From The Village People

C
Fuel used for cooking
1%

44%
55%

fire wood
LPG
Kerosene

Source: Survey team

D
What is done to garbage
16%

Dumped at common sites

84%
Burned

Source: Survey team

E
Source of water
106
104
102
100
98
Source of water

96
94
92
90
88
86
Household tap

Public street tap

Source: Survey team

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

We would like to thank

- Mr. Sokkanathan Anna, HIH who introduced us to
organic farming and water related issues.
- Mr. Rajkumar Anna, HIH who showed us Solid Waste
Management shed.
- Sumitra Akka who created the time, space and
framework for this wholly new educational
experience
- Karthik Anna who stayed with us throughout the
project, helping us organise and translate raw data.
- Yuvan Anna who, again, stayed with us throughout
the project, supporting in various ways and helping
us reach our goal.
- Mr. K.Kaniyappan, Mr. Arunachalam, Mr. Thirumalai,
Mr. Balasubramaniyam, Mrs.Jaya and Mr. Devaraj
who willingly talked to us about their agricultural life
and issues related to it.