CSR: Innovation to Manage Waste and Facilitate Organic Farming

India generates about 62 million tons of bio-waste every year. Average of 10 million tons of cow dung is generated every year in the ‘gaushalas’ of the country. About 11 million tons of press mud is generated from the sugar mills which has high nutrition value. The solution to tackle this waste was to either burn it or leave it untreated and unsegregated to decompose in its own time.

Bio-waste is that of great utility in the agriculture sector as it helps in the formation of organic matter in the soil. This organic matter, in turn, helps the micro-organisms and worms to thrive in the soil and enrich it with nutrition. Such nutrient-rich soil helps farmers to get better yields.

The bio-waste before it can be used in the farms need to be decomposed. In order to decompose this waste, it is mixed with cow dung which has a certain kind of bacteria that facilitates the decomposition of the waste. The mixture is then exposed to sunlight and often turned before it gets ready for use in 90-120 days.

Waste Decomposer – An Innovation to Decompose Faster

A large amount of time and added cost of maintaining cattle to convert the bio-waste into manure is tedious for small scale farmers in many cases. The cost often surpasses the cost of chemical fertilizers that farmers have to spend on because of the subsidies available to them. Therefore, in order to aid the farmers and encourage them to adopt organic fertilizers over chemical, National Centre of Organic Farming, Ghaziabad developed a product called Waste Decomposer.

Waste Decomposer is an organic product, made from the cow dung. It is basically the concentrated form of bacteria extracted from the cow dung which can increase the speed of decomposing of the organic waste. Thus the bio-waste is ready for use in 30 days instead of conventional 90-120 days.

The revolutionary product which can be used by anyone, from the municipal corporations, gardeners, farmers, housing societies to communities. The product that costs only 20 rupees, is a bottle of inactive bacteria which can be activated by providing them with water and jaggery. The solution takes 7 days to get ready after which it can be used on its own to re-make it without having to purchase another bottle of decomposer or to make compost out of the wet waste produced anywhere. This can also save up to 60% of the input costs for the farmers.

Benefits of using Waste Decomposer

Waste decomposer basically activates the micro-organism activity in the soil. This improves the health of soil within the matter of days instead of months. The improved soil quality further enhances the quality of yield and reduces the requirement of pesticides, fungicides or insecticides by up to 90%.

It can be used in various ways such as quick composting of biowastes, foliar spray as a biopesticide against most of the plant diseases for all types of agricultural and horticultural crops.

The utilisation of waste decomposer helps in reducing soil salinity. Excess use of chemical fertilisers has increased salinity of soil in many regions. This saline soil hinders the growth of plants and causes stunting in them. Waste decomposer not only provides an alternative to chemical fertilizers but also releases some enzymes which can break down the salinity and assist in effective growth of the plant.

Waste Decomposer has also proved effective in seed treatment which in turn affects seed germination. In this process, the bacteria is applied on the seed surface and then soaked in water. Use of waste decomposer in seed treatment also helps in alleviating seed diseases caused by soil-borne pathogens and abiotic stresses to plant growth. Additionally, it has also proved useful in overcoming the bearings of reduced quality of seed because of seed ageing.

Another crucial benefit of the use of waste decomposer is that it prevents the plants from being eaten by Nilgai. Nuisance by Nilgai has driven many farmers to frustration and helplessness in areas around Faridabad and Kutch in India. This provides a solution to the said issue.

Waste Decomposer is also effective in cleaning toilets and septic tanks as well as reducing foul odour generated from them.

The Waste Decomposer is a verified product which is being promoted by the government. It is being made available for the public to use at a nominal price. The corporates do not have anything to do with it as yet. However, their involvement in marketing it with their CSR budget can solve the waste management problems of the country while benefitting the farmers and helping them turn organic.

This article is part of a series on Organic and Inclusive Agriculture practices.

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