Kanyakumari is surrounded with hundreds of homesteads scatted amid clumps of coconut trees surrounded by a watery patch work of paddy fields. The fields glittering with paddy, rivulets burbling with water and the sun sparkling, this is the pretty picture that many visitors to Kanyakumari regions often carry back home. But the reality is something else altogether. There is paddy but always heavily dosed with pesticide and the fertile tilth being slowly rendered toxic

CADRE-India’s agriculture initiatives in Kanyakumari district are aimed at providing agricultural educational support to the small and middle farmer. Like in the rest of the country, in this district nearly 70% of the population is dependent on agriculture for their livelihood.

CADRE-India believes that agriculture has to be run on organic methods rather than using chemical fertilizers. The aim is to re-educate the farmer on crop cultural practices so that dependency on pesticides and fertilisers decreases while maintaining the output level.

Objectives

* To enable farmers to have easy access to the latest crop management technology and to all the inputs in the value chain in a timely and user friendly manner using technology and building alliances;

* To establish kitchen gardens in farmers’ houses;

* To establish vermin – compost units in farmers’ fields;

* Two-way interaction of farmers with researchers, traders, policymakers, etc

* To provide information on market trends and opportunities to establish market linkages;

* Sharing indigenous knowledge of agronomic practices and use of different MAPs grown throughout the region

* To provide information on market trends and opportunities to establish market linkages;

* Exchange of germ plasm between/among the farming communities of different localities encouraging farmers to start domestication (nursery raising) and large-scale cultivation of medicinal plants

* To create awareness about value-addition opportunities and support setting up of value-addition projects - basically helping farmers to become more market oriented.

1. Medicinal Plants

Our project Sustainable Cultivation and Harvesting of medicinal Plants is aimed at the conservation and sustainable utilization of medicinal plants through herb orphanages for preservations & propagation of endangered species and establishment of micro plantations of medicinal plants and community managed bio-enterprises. According to the estimates of World health Organisation, 80% of the people relies on medicinal plants and animals for their health.

Increasing internal and external attraction on Ayurveda and Siddha medicine opened a good opportunity before the farmers. To overcome the problem of over exploitation of natural resources and to meet the increasing demands of herbal products, the emphasis should be on encouraging commercial cultivation of the potential species. Therefore, conservation, propagation, cultivation, maintenance and sustainable commercial use of these natural resources is essential

Services offered

* Promoting MAPs cultivation

* Exchange of indigenous knowledge of MAPs

* Selection of Species

* Problem and solution analysis

* Marketing

* Other skills

Alliance Partners

* CAPART- Council for Advance of People’s Action and Rural Technology