Resilient Agriculture
Role of Natural Farming in Increasing Farmers’ Income and Achieving Agricultural Sustainability
Since India’s Independence, our agricultural policy and practice have largely focused on boosting food grain production to meet the demands of a growing population. While this goal has been achieved in various ways, it has also led to significant concerns like depleted soil quality, loss of biodiversity, and disrupted ecological balance. As a result, there has been a paradigm shift towards building environmentally sound and sustainable agricultural practices such as Natural Farming (NF), a branch of farming which restores environmental health along with enhancing agricultural productivity.
Episode 1
Role of Natural Farming in Increasing Farmers’ Income and Achieving Agricultural Sustainability
Aug 6, 2025 | 03:00 PM IST
To amplify this emerging approach, Sambodhi’s Centre for Resilient Agriculture and Food Systems (RAFS) hosted a webinar titled ‘Role of Natural Farming in Increasing Farmers’ Income and Achieving Agricultural Sustainability’. The event explored the strides of Natural Farming in states across India, including Andhra Pradesh, where its implementation had resulted in drastically reduced input costs and enhanced yields through the utilization of traditional, bio-based inputs such as Jeevamrutha, Bheejamrutha, and Kashayas.
Participants heard from leading practitioners and experts as they delved into cutting-edge research and innovations, shared reflections from on-ground experiences around NF, and outlined the visionary roadmap towards mainstreaming Natural Farming as a powerful alternative to chemical-intensive agriculture.
Speakers
Rajeshwari S. Mallegowda
Director
Ministry of Rural Development (MoRD)
Government of India
Ms. Rajeshwari S. M., a Director in the Government of India, holds an International Master’s degree in Rural Development (Erasmus Mundus Fellow) from European universities. She brings extensive experience from her work with various national and international organizations such as GRAAM, GIZ, and UNDP, in managerial and administrative roles. Until recently, she served as Director of the Project Management Unit (PMU) for HADP projects under the Department of Agriculture, Jammu and Kashmir. She has contributed to the design of policy documents on gender mainstreaming and agricultural export-import (EXIM) aspects for GIZ, UNDP, the World Bank, and the Government of Jammu and Kashmir. Currently, she is serving as Director, heading the Rural Livelihoods vertical at the Ministry of Rural Development, Government of India.
Muralidhar G
Senior Advisor, RySS
An alumnus of IRMA and NIT Warangal, Mr. G. Muralidhar is a widely respected leader in public service and social innovation. With decades of experience across civil society, philanthropy, and government, he has been instrumental in advancing people’s collectives, livelihoods, social enterprises, and natural farming movements.
He co-led the National Rural Livelihoods Mission (NRLM) with UNDP and the Government of India, and has mentored over 100,000 livelihood professionals and 1,000+ institutions. He is the architect of the Integrated TRUE Livelihoods Framework, co-founder of Akshara Livelihoods, and a thought leader who continues to inspire as an academic, writer, and strategist for systemic change.
Ajay Kumar Mishra
Senior Associate Scientist
International Rice Research Institute
Dr. Ajay Kumar Mishra is an Environmental and Ecological Scientist with over 12 years of experience at premier international research institutions. Currently serving as a Regenerative Agriculture Expert at IRRI, he has spent the last four years leading impactful research on soil health, GHG mitigation, and site-specific nutrient management across India’s diverse agrarian ecologies.
Beyond research, Dr. Mishra is deeply committed to translating science into practice, working closely with stakeholders and farming communities to promote sustainable, climate-resilient agricultural solutions.
Saikumar C. Bharamappanavara
Agricultural Specialist
Sambodhi
Dr Saikumar is an Agricultural Economist and Rural Development Expert with 12 plus years of experience in evaluations focused on regenerative agriculture, Sustainable practices, Climate change, Natural Resource Management, Women’s empowerment and microfinance. He has been an Alumnus of Erasmus Mundus and a DAAD Fellow, contributed as a DAAD Young Ambassador, and was recognised as a CIM Returning Expert by GIZ. He has been involved in projects focussing impact assessments, evaluations, process monitoring, needs assessment, and scaling research. Saikumar is well-versed in working on inter-disciplinary projects, multi-stakeholder platforms, international organisations, and national and state government-funded projects, and has worked for projects commissioned by USAID, World Bank, BMGF, DFG, German Development Bank [KfW], GIZ, and for several State governments and the Government of India. Along with his expertise in Behavioural Economics, and socio-economic surveys and research studies, he has also led the design and implementation of Bio-physical assessments such as GHG emission, Crop and Soil residual, water sample Assessments in several projects he has implemented/implemented.
Yash Srivastava (Moderator)
Manager
Sambodhi
Mr. Yash Srivastava is a Computer Science Engineering graduate who went on to pursue his post-graduation, i.e., M.A. in the Development Studies Programme at Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS), Mumbai in 2023. Since 2023, he has worked with Sambodhi Research and Communications Pvt Ltd with the Government Advisory vertical, focusing on the Resilient Agriculture and Food Systems domain. Over this period, he has worked on projects like Andhra Pradesh Community Managed Natural Farming (APCNF)-Independent Verification Agency (IVA), Rainforest Alliance Baseline Studies and Market Study for APCNF and Kerala Climate Resilient Agri-Value Chain Modernisation (KERA) Project. The core theme of their focus is on Sustainable Agriculture, Natural Farming, Climate Resilient Practices, market linkages and certifications. Currently, he is operating as Manager-Research with the Resilient Agriculture and Food Systems (RAFS) domain of the Government Advisory SBU at Sambodhi.
What to Expect
01
India’s agricultural evolution from Independence to contemporary times, a shift from food security to ecological sustainability.
02
Juxtaposition of Natural Farming and chemical-intensive agricultural practices.
03
Reflections upon community-led approaches and stories from the field.
04
Community-led approaches that had made NF work effectively on the ground.
05
Policy and institutional insights were applied to mainstream NF across regions.
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