 "Whenever we visit farmers who have attended our training sessions to found out how they are doing, they ask us, 'Why did it take you so long to show us these techniques?'" While working on a science project with her 8th Std. students in 2002, Revathi, a school teacher and environmentalist discovered acute discontent, frustration and indebtedness among farmers. Further investigation revealed that India's green revolution and heavy reliance on chemical inputs and hybrid seeds had rendered the farming community resource-poor and debt-ridden. She realized that organic farming techniques could be a simple solution for farmer's problems. She quit her job to work with Nammalwarji, a leader of organic farmer movements in TN, to provide training and support to farmers throughout Tamilnadu and beyond. After the Indian Ocean Tsunami in Dec 2004, she visited agricultural villages in Nagapattinam dt. where, due to the inflow of sea water, large quantities of agricultural lands turned saline and crops were destroyed. This motivated Revathi to work in one of the worst affected village South Podhigai Nallur (S.P.Nallur). With funding from a German NGO and AID, she started work in this area in March 2005. With able support from the collector of Nagapattinam and the villagers and more funding, she brought the lands of SP Nallur and 3 nearby villages back to full productivity. Revathi is currently working on a number of projects - training and resource center establishment, developing a group of trainers who can further spread the word and a magazine on organic farming 'Thai Mane Vanakkam'. | |||
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