Workshop on traditional farming held in Salem

A workshop titled Bharat Traditional Vegetable and Seed Festival organised by Isha’s Save Soil Movement was held here on Sunday.

Project coordinator Swami Shrimuka said that the key to toxin-free food and healthy, disease-free living lies in natural farming. “For the past 20 years, we have been actively promoting natural farming practices through the Save Soil Movement. Today, pesticides are routinely sprayed on vegetables, leading to a rise in food contamination. This has led to an excessive rise in diabetic and cancer patients in the country. The purpose of this event is to advocate for the production of toxin-free food.”

Pioneer farmer Thakkali Raman gave a presentation on tomato cultivation: technologies from Seed to Sale, while pest management expert Poochi N. Selvam discussed simple solutions for pests and diseases in vegetables.

Additionally, home garden and food forest trainer Vidhaithivu Priya, along with pioneer farmer Marimuthu, shared insights on profits from vegetable cultivation in containers.

Senthilkumar and V. Shankar, chief scientists from the Bengaluru Indian Institute of Horticultural Research (ICAR-IIHR), delivered a special lecture on soil and crop resource management technologies, discussing high-yield vegetable varieties and the techniques to cultivate them.