The 18-hole golf course close to Nal Sarovar, that is driving an unfettered property development near the bird sanctuary, threatens to upset the delicate ecology there. Environmentalists say that the amount of fertilizers, pesticides, fungicides and other chemicals required to maintain this vast, artificially created, landscape is a threat to the bio-diversity of the lake. According to experts, the usage of chemicals in maintaining golf courses at times even exceeds the amount used in agriculture. With such intensive use, golf courses threaten to pollute ground and surface waters. Member of Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) and IIM-A faculty Prof Priyadarshi Shukla says this type of projects causes gradual and irreversible damage which breaks sustainability, putting pressure on the ecosystem. "Our green assets are under threat with a lot of property deve l o p m e n t h ap p e n i n g closer to ecosystems. If special laws are made for SEZs, which are productive assets, special laws are also needed for luxury assets, our ecosystems,' he says. "The golf course is being developed as a private property, but that should not happen at the cost of the ecology of Nal. Development should take place without compromising on the existence and sustainability of the ecology' says Shukla. According to environmentalist Kandarp Kathju, the golf course is more detrimental to the health of Nal Sarovar than any other project coming up there, such as the Film City. "Nal Sarovar and its downstream water bodies are at the heart of the delicate ecological system of the area. Today's golf requires tabletop greenery and this requires pesticides and fertilizers to maintain the course,' he says. Golf courses also require huge amount of water, which can result in depletion of underground as well as surface water levels. The entire area of Nal Sarovar with 360 islets is extremely shallow and seldom more than two metres deep, most of which get submerged during monsoon. Traditionally, farmers in the area have used water from the lake for cultivation. There are around 20,000 buffaloes in surrounding villages that feed on the aquatic plants and grass on the edges of Sarovar eight months of the year."The pesticides are likely to flow into the water bodies, besides percolating into the water table. Not just the aquatic environment, but the entire ecology, of which local communities are an integral part, is facing the risk of toxic chemicals polluting the water bodies,' says Kathju. Shukla says, "Developing a market requires foresight, and it is time the policy makers started

Perhaps genetic engineering could help to increase the efficiency with which crops absorb nitrate from soil (5 January, p 28). However, the claim by Arcadia Biosciences that this will substantially cut agricultural emissions of the greenhouse gas nitrous oxide appears Utopian rather than Arcadian. (Letters)

This report provides an overview of information on the world fertilizer situation in 2007/08 and a forecast till 2011/12. The fertilizer situation is examined in relation to crop production and factors likely to affect the latter. High commodity prices experienced over recent years led to increased production and correspondingly greater fertilizer consumption as reflected in tight markets and higher fertilizer prices at the start of the outlook period. While demand for basic food crops, for high value crops such as fruit and vegetables, for animal products and for crops capable of being used to produce bio-fuels is likely to remain strong, it is expected that increased fertilizer consumption required to support higher levels of production will be adequately catered for by growing supply world wide during the outlook period.

In recent decades, the introduction of fertilizer and irrigation responsive high yielding dwarf varieties of rice have resulted in more widespread and intensive use of chemical fertilizers, insecticides and herbicides. The indiscriminate use of such chemical agents led to a wide array of problems and has forced mankind to consider safer ways of crop production and protection. Many such approaches are, in fact, practices that our ancestors had employed for centuries.

With the aim to study the comparative effects of vermicompost, farm yard manure, biofertilizer and chemical fertilizers on growth, yield and quality of food product, the most common vegetable crop - Lady's Finger was selected and the impact of these four supplements on shoot length, fruits, plant and protein content of the fruit was studied by growing this crop in the botanical garden of S.B., P.G. College, Baragaon Campus, in the year 2005 and 2006.

In ancient India, agriculturists were quite aware of the relation between soil properties and crop production. Several systems of soil classification were in vogue. Ancient Indian scriptures contain elaborate injunctions regarding the use of various kinds of manures for crop production.

Ber (Ziziphus mauritiana) is an important indigenous fruit. The farmers of western Rajasthan have adopted various commercial improved varities of ber at large scale. However, the attack of pests and diseases on ber/ber based cropping system is a major problem of ber growers. The low fertility level of the soil also have negative impact on progress of the above cropping system.

for 18 years now, scientists have discussed the reasons for the global decimation of amphibian populations. The cause list has been expanding

Opposition to gm The All India Rice Exporters Association filed an application in the Supreme Court, in November 2006, asking to be included as petitioners in the civil writ petition filed by Aruna

Small and marginal farmers are the worst hit by the problems that afflict agriculture. The macro and micro level factors together have created stress among the poor farmers forcing them to commit suicide.

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