Inside a dingy and dark room of a house at Odayarpalayam village in Karnataka’s Chamrajnagar district, old earthen pots and worn-out plastic jars are lined up on ramshackle wooden shelves. Inside them are colourful beads and seeds, labelled neatly.

These are native seeds, painstakingly collected and documented by Gurusamy, a traditional seed collector and farmer, who has been in the business for the past 10 years.

P. Rajachar, Programme Officer of the Mysore Resettlement and Development Agency (Myrada), says that thanks to Mr. Gurusamy’s efforts, hundreds of varieties of native seeds have been collected and distributed to farmers. These varieties are now grown on nearly 25 acres.

“I think there are more than 3,000 farmers in Karnataka who grow and maintain such seed varieties. We’ve a good network of suppliers who see to it that our bank balance [read seed bank] doesn’t go down,” adds the self-effacing farmer, who has sustained his efforts creditably.

His suppliers are mainly farmers who want to grow native varieties. “Mostly my suppliers are growers who are eager to preserve native varieties. While supplying seeds, I reach an informal agreement with them to give me back a portion of the seeds after the harvest,” says Mr. Gurusamy.

Seeds, symbols of fertility and vitality, have been a part of Indian culture and heritage for long; to a farmer they personify self-respect. In fact, long before hybrid seed companies set up shop and went commercial, the traditional farmer had saved his own seeds, swapped them with neighbours or exchanged them with others.

Mr. Gurusamy said:

“Sadly, this intimate knowledge of the farmer and his traditional wisdom have been systematically devalued by several scientists, who are keen to promote technologies and seeds that are not suited to a particular area or community.

“High-yielding seed varieties and chemical fertilizers and pesticides that came with the Green Revolution destroyed several indigenous seed varieties. As farmers stopped saving and exchanging seeds, and instead started buying them from the market, their native expertise became irrelevant and crop diversity suffered. In a land that once had several thousand varieties of crops, most of them are no more to be found.

“Farmers used to grow these, swap them with neighbours and preserve them for tough times. These seeds have beaten several odds. In fact, even today we’re able to hold out against the multinational seed companies that are trying to dislodge us and our collection.

“I normally do not charge for the seeds if the farmer desires to grow it in a small area, say, in his backyard. I simply request him to return a small portion of the seeds. But for those growing the crop on four to 10 acres, I charge a nominal amount. It could be anything between Rs. 5 to Rs. 20, depending on the seed one wants.”

There are four persons who help Mr. Gurusamy in his work. They go to various places in Karnataka and Tamil Nadu to source seeds, and update and maintain a database of native growers.

“Like Mr. Gurusamy, C. Rudriah from Kadambur, C. Palaniammal from Bargur, V. Narayanan from Kottamallan, D. Mahesh from Kadatti, N. Alamma from Kottarai and B. Ambamani from Hongalvadi are some of the farmers who preserve and supply native seeds,” says Mr. Rajachar.

These people are simple farmers who cultivate on their meagre holdings. It is their interest in protecting local and native seed varieties that has turned them into seed saviours.

Mr. Gurusamy’s phone number is 09008167819; Mr. Rajachar’s is 09449203217.

source: http://www.TheHindu.com / Home> S&T> Agriculture / by M. J. Prabu / Chamrajnagar, May 02nd, 2012

Citizens of South Bengaluru have something to cheer about!

If all goes well, a mega park spread over 100 acres, akin to Lalbagh or Cubbon Park, will come up at the Banashankari 6th stage layout formed by the BDA, said Chief Minister D.V. Sadananda Gowda on Tuesday.

During the inspection of infrastructure projects in south Bengaluru, he said that about 100 acres of land falling under the state at the Turahalli range will be converted into a beautiful park with green cover. It will afford alternatives to Cubbon Park and Lalbagh and provide additional open pace, said Mr Gowda.

However, the blue print for the development of the 100 acres of Turahalli forest land is yet to be decided. In all probability, the BDA will be entrusted to develop such a park. South Bengaluru is developing rapidly and it needs the lung space very badly. Adjacent to the park, a sculpture park showcasing modern works of art is being readied by the BDA on eight acres of land, he said. Works of artists from New Delhi, Vadodara, Mysore, Hyderabad, Mumbai, Vishakpatnam will be displayed here.

source: http://www.DeccanChronicle.com / Home> Channels> Cities> Bengaluru / DC, Bengaluru / April 04th, 2012

Trees outside my window

Nature is sometimes only as far away as one’s window! Here’s the view from an apartment balcony:

I can see four kinds of trees. Pic: Deepa Mohan

One can see the roads and transport and one can also see four different types of trees in the picture.

Framing the photograph at right and left, are some of the most common trees in India, the coconut palm. What a wonderful tree it is, with every part of it being useful to us…the palm fronds used for thatches, brooms and pandals for auspicious occasions; the coconuts being useful as one of the few drinks that cannot be adulterated, and is very nutritious; the trunk being used for both wood and boats!

On the median in the road are what are called Mast trees….they grow tall and straight like masts, and are often useful in breaking the force of the wind. They are often called Ashoka, too, but it is “Faux Ashoka”, since the real Ashoka trees (you can see them at Lalbagh) are spreading trees with flowers and fruit.

Across the road, next to the small Traffic Police Station is a Jungli Badam tree. It is from this tree that our Badam (almonds) trees have been cultivated. This tree, too, has the same fruits…but they are likely to be much more bitter. This tree was planted after the Rain Tree on that spot was cut down for road-widening…and already gives welcome shade, with its broad leaves and spreading canopy.

Behind the Jungli Badam are a row of beautiful Mahogany trees, which are often planted as an avenue tree in our city. The Mahogany is known for its hard, termite-resistant wood, used in making furniture.

It’s surprising how an urban scene can give us so much of information about trees! We have many kinds of trees in our city, and Lalbagh has many kinds of trees brought from all around the world, too. Trees, and the life they support, are fascinating to know about!

source: http://www. bangalore.citizenmatters.in / Features> Trees / by Deepa Mohan / March 12th, 2012

Deepa Mohan is a freelance writer who fell in love with Bangalore when first she moved from Chennai, and has been both enthused and worried over the rapidly changing city. She is also a Bangalore metroblogger

Marianne de Nazareth

His energy revitalises all of us wilting in the noon day sun. And his passion for birds and the environment is palpable in the way he speaks with such drive and enthusiasm, giving up his Sundays to take ordinary citizens around Bangalore’s dying lakes. This is part of the Whispering Wilderness Programme conducted by the Wildlife Rescue and Rehabilitation Centre (WRRC) Bannerghatta, on the Urban Lakes and Birdlife of Bangalore. Dr Subbu Subramanya is a scientist working in the Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, and one of the top ornithologists in the country. His basic funda is, we need to band together to save what is left of our city’s open spaces. Being a scientist he sees how wrong some decisions taken by our citys administrators are and he takes it upon himself to educate them.                 Dr Subbu Subramanya creates awareness among fellow citizens on the importance of preserving the remaining water bodies in Bangalore “Bangalore had no natural lakes. In the past our ancestors dammed the streams that flowed in the monsoons so that they could grow two crops instead of just one. They were not stupid like us and respected the lakes, understanding the need to keep them clean and the water fresh. “It was a dynamic relationship, where the water was used carefully. When the lakes dried out, fresh water flowed in during the next rains through specially created inlets from the catchment areas which were grassy meadows around the lakes.

“Today the meadows are built up and to top it all, untreated sewage is let out by all the posh buildings around the lakes directly into the lake. Therefore what we have now in Bangalore are cesspools of sewage, not fresh water lakes,” says Dr. Subbu with feeling. Every time it rains, certain areas in Bangalore flood. Dr Subbu says that is because there is no path for the water to pour into the lake or in some places even the lake has been built up. So taking its natural path the water somehow makes its way and floods the lower floors and basements of these buildings. “Dramatic pictures of floating cars are printed in the next day’s papers and one sees people being ‘rescued’ in life boats by the army,” says Dr Subbu. Lakes replenish the ground water table and are mandatory requirements in any urban city, explains Dr.Subbu. If we build them up, or abuse them we are sounding our own death knells. The heavy metals and lead which percolate into the soil of the lake from all the dumped chemical waste or untreated pollutants, and sewage let out into the lake will come back to hit us. These pollutants percolate into the acquifers that we tap now with our numerous bore wells, he says. “Isn’t it better to treat our effluents rather than pollute these lakes which are our life line?” asks Dr Subbu, whose only hope is that Bangalore’s citizens will rise up to save the few remaining water bodies from extinction.

source: http://www.theweekendleader.com / Home> Causes> Open Whispers / by Marianne de Nazareth / Bangalore / Vol.2, Issue 51 / December 23rd, 2011