Farmers' representatives from south Asian countries at the inaugural session of a four-day meeting yesterday demanded duty and quota free access of their agricultural products to developed nations to ensure food security in the region.

Farmers who work for security of food and other agricultural produces are themselves in insecure position as fair prices cannot be ensured, said the farmers while sharing views at the meeting on 'Food Security and Food Scarcity in Asia', held at the auditorium of CARITAS Regional office.

M.J. PRABU

The villagers do not have a proper marketing channel to help them

Welcome trend: Farmers of Kothia village in Samastipur district, Bihar seen in front of the village entrance.

PALAKKAD: The grama panchayats should prepare plans for the development of watersheds in their respective areas and seek approval if they want it to be implemented under the National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (NREGS), according to District Collector K S Sreenivas.

Each watershed area should be considered as a unit and agriculture, irrigation, animal husbandry and social forestry activities should be undertaken jointly so that productivity is increased.

M.J. PRABU Traditional varieties are resistant to drought and infestations Low input big yield: Mr. Balaji Shankar of Srikazhi in his paddy field. Organic farming is not something new to the farmers. Several types of organic farming are being practised all over the country. But, in recent years it has been getting a lot of attention from researchers, policy makers, scientists, and farmers. Paddy farmers in the delta districts of Tamil Nadu predominantly use chemical fertilizers for cultivating their crops during the Kharif and Rabi seasons. Several hardships

S. Rajendran BANGALORE: The Karnataka government is embarking on a major plan to encourage organic farming in the State, and Thursday's budget is expected to have an allocation of funds for this. The State will have a full-fledged wing to monitor organic farming. Experts in agriculture and horticulture and agricultural scientists are being roped in under the plan. A sum of Rs. 100 crore is expected to be set apart for organic farming, including a scheme to motivate farmers to adopt organic farming techniques.

Kadapa, July 1: The Department of Horticulture is promoting the concept of organic farming in the district. Food products, especially vegetables, grown with the use of fertilisers, chemicals and other chemical sprays are responsible for making the human body disease-prone and new ailments arising. The chemical deposits enter the body through vegetables, cause sickness and affect vital organs of the body. The assistant director of horticulture, Mr V.S. Dharmaja, said that healthy food can be produced through organic farming and by use of organic manure.