Natural Farming in India | 14 Oct 2025

Source:TH 

Why in News?

Himachal Pradesh is witnessing a major shift as thousands of farmers move away from chemical-based agriculture toward natural farming. This transition reflects India’s wider push for sustainable and eco-friendly agriculture.

What is Natural Farming? 

• Definition: As per NITI Aayog, Natural Farming is “a chemical-free traditional farming method” rooted in agroecological principles integrating crops, trees, livestock, and functional biodiversity. 
  • It follows the philosophy of working with nature, emphasizing minimal human intervention (often referred to as “do-nothing farming”) and the complete avoidance of synthetic chemicals. 
• Key Features and Principles: 
  • No External Chemical Inputs: Completely avoids chemical fertilizers, pesticides, herbicides, and growth regulators. 
  • On-farm Input Generation: It relies on agricultural inputs such as Neemastra, Agniastra, Jeevamrit, and Beejamrit, which are locally prepared on farms using materials like cow dung, cow urine, jaggery, gram flour, and soil. 
  • Livestock Integration: Native cow breeds are central for sourcing inputs and maintaining the nutrient cycle. 
  • Diversified Cropping System: Encourages intercropping, mixed cropping, agroforestry, and crop rotation. 
  • Soil Health and Biodiversity: Emphasizes mulching, cover cropping, and maintaining microbial activity for fertile and living soil. 
  • Water efficiency: Uses minimal irrigation and improves soil moisture retention naturally. 
• Scientific and Environmental Benefits: Enhances soil organic carbon and soil fertility, reducing the need for synthetic inputs. 
  • Promotes biodiversity, including beneficial insects, pollinators, and soil organisms. 
  • Reduces greenhouse gas emissions by avoiding urea and other nitrogenous fertilizers. 
  • Improves climate resilience of farms, especially under drought and erratic rainfall conditions. 

How is Natural Farming Benefiting Farmers and Rural Livelihoods in India? 

• Reduced Cost of Cultivation: Natural farming is not just an ecological alternative but also offers tangible socio-economic benefits to Indian farmers. The Zero budget natural farming (ZBNF) is the most popular model in India. 
  • The cost of inputs under natural farming is 50–60% lower than conventional chemical farming.  
  • Farmers significantly save on input costs since bio-inputs are prepared on-farm using locally available resources.  
• Improved Farmer Incomes: Though initial yields may be stable or slightly reduced, long-term productivity is sustained or increased due to improved soil health. 
  • Income stability is achieved through intercropping, value-added products, and reduced crop failure risk. 
• Employment Generation: Encourages local entrepreneurship in bio-input production, seed banks, composting, and local market chains. Promotes rural youth participation by making agriculture more knowledge-based and sustainable. 
• Health and Food Security: Natural produce is free from harmful pesticide residues, ensuring better nutrition and food safety. 
  • Enhances nutritional density of food, addressing concerns of hidden hunger and health disorders due to chemicals. 
• Women Empowerment: Involves women in preparation of bio-inputs, composting, kitchen gardening, and farmer producer groups. 

What are India’s Initiatives for Natural Farming? 

• National Mission on Natural Farming (NMNF): A centrally sponsored scheme by the Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare, promoting chemical-free, ecosystem-based natural farming rooted in traditional knowledge. 
  • The NMNF targets 7.5 lakh hectares across 15,000 clusters and aims to facilitate 1 crore farmers. 
  • An incentive of Rs 4,000 per acre per year for two years is being provided to encourage adoption of natural farming practices. 
  • NMNF builds on the earlier Bhartiya Prakritik Krishi Paddhati (BPKP) under the Paramparagat Krishi Vikas Yojana (PKVY). 

• Bhartiya Prakritik Krishi Paddhati (BPKP): As of March 2025 it supports 28 lakh farmers practicing natural farming on 9.4 lakh hectares. 
• State-Level Initiatives:

What are the Key Challenges in Mainstreaming Natural Farming Across India? 

• Knowledge and Skill Gaps: Natural farming is knowledge-intensive and site-specific, requiring farmers to understand ecological interactions and adopt new practices. 
  • Many farmers, especially in remote areas, lack practical understanding and require continuous handholding by Krishi Sakhis. 
• Behavioural Resistance: Farmers accustomed to high-input, chemical-intensive practices often hesitate to shift to low-input, labour-intensive natural farming. 
• State-Level Variability: Successful models exist in Himachal Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, etc., but soil, climate, and social conditions vary, making uniform replication challenging. 
• Policy Convergence Complexity: Coordinating NMNF with other central/state schemes (livestock, rural development, AYUSH, food processing) and local institutions is administratively challenging. 
• Market Linkages and Premium Pricing: Establishing reliable markets for chemical-free produce remains a challenge. 
  • Farmers may hesitate to switch if premium pricing and assured minimum support price (MSP) are not consistently available. 
• Input Availability and Infrastructure: Ensuring timely availability of bio-inputs across all regions, especially remote areas, requires robust Bio-input Resource Centres (BRCs) and supply chains. 

What Measures can be Adopted to Scale Natural Farming in India? 

• Decentralized Farmer Clusters: Form contiguous natural farming clusters to enable peer learning, reduce input costs, and facilitate community-level extension support. 
• Strengthen Knowledge Networks: Deploy Krishi Sakhis, Community Resource Persons, and KVKs to provide hands-on training in NF techniques, bio-input preparation, pest management, and multi-cropping. 
• Bio-input Accessibility: Establish local Bio-input Resource Centres (BRCs) and promote on-farm production of organic inputs to reduce dependency on external chemical inputs. 
• Market Integration and Certification: Develop PGS/organic certification, promote a national brand for NF produce, and strengthen linkages with Agricultural Produce Market Committees (APMCs), Farmer Producer Organizations (FPOs), and local markets to ensure fair pricing. 
• Agro-ecology Based Research: Tailor region-specific NF cropping systems and soil-moisture management practices to enhance resilience in varied agro-climatic zones. 
• Digital Monitoring and Knowledge Sharing: Use geo-tagged tracking, online portals, and mobile advisory services to monitor adoption, yields, and ecological outcomes while providing timely guidance. 

Conclusion 

Natural farming promotes nutrient-rich, chemical-free food while reducing input costs for farmers. It aligns with India’s broader sustainability goals, supporting SDG 2 (Zero Hunger) by improving food security, and SDG 12 (Sustainable Consumption and Production) by encouraging eco-friendly agricultural practices.