From blistered hands and racking coughs to financial savings and bright smiles – this is the story of women of Kedia in Bihar who took up organic farming. It has not just improved the health of their families and the soil, but also transformed their own lives.

Nearly 1,000 acres of ‘banjar bhoomi’ in Banka district of Bihar is today flush with green as lemongrass cultivation has proved to be surprisingly bountiful on the stony and unforgiving terrain. With help from the district administration, more than 500 farmers have transformed their barren lands into fragrant fields, and have also set up their own FPO to export the lemongrass oil.

Scientists of the Krishi Vigyan Kendra, Morena, in Madhya Pradesh are encouraging wheat farmers to use the zero tillage seed drill to sow their wheat crop. They say the farmers will spend less money on cumbersome ploughing this way and they will see better yield.

Due to their low milk yield, cattle rearers in Madhya Pradesh are preferring high milk producing cows from other states. As a result, the number of indigenous cows are on a decline. If present trends continue, Madhya Pradesh will lose the local breeds that can survive on less fodder and are helpful in transportation.

Cashew farmer Aniyamma from Kannur in Kerala found ways to save her cashew trees from borer infestation, protect them from cyclonic storms, and regenerate new cashew trees from the old ones.