APRIL 2022

TOPIC NOTES
Context: Prime Minister of India called for Natural farming to save mother earth.

About Natural Farming

 In natural farming, neither chemical nor organic fertilisers are added to
the soil. In fact, no external fertilisers are added to soil or given to
plants whatsoever.
 In natural farming, decomposition of organic matter by microbes and
earthworms is encouraged right on the soil surface itself, which
gradually adds nutrition in the soil, over the period.
 In natural farming there is no ploughing, no tilting of soil and no
fertilisers, and no weeding is done just the way it would be in natural
ecosystems.
 There are many working models of natural farming all over the world,
the Zero Budget Natural Farming (ZBNF) is the most popular model in
India.

Zero Budget Farming (ZBNF):

 ZBNF is a set of farming methods, and also a grassroots peasant
movement, which has spread to various states in India.
 Subhash Palekar perfected it during the 1990s at his farm in Amravati
district in Maharashtra’s drought-prone Vidarbha region.
 According to the “zero budget” concept, farmers won’t have to spend
any money on fertilisers and other agricultural inputs.
NATURAL  Over 98% of the nutrients that crops require — carbon dioxide, nitrogen,
FARMING water, solar energy — are already present in nature.

Similarities between Organic Farming and Natural Farming:

1. Natural and organic both are chemical free and more or less poison free
farming methods.
2. Both systems discourage farmers from using any chemical
fertilizers, pesticides on plants and in all agricultural practices.
3. Both farming methods encourage farmers to use local breeds of seeds,
and native varieties of vegetables, grains, pulses and other crops.
4. Organic and natural farming methods promote nonchemical and
homemade pest control methods.
 Differences between Organic and Natural Farming:
1. In organic farming, organic fertilizers and manures like compost,
vermicompost, cow dung manure, etc. are used and added to farmlands
from external sources.
2. In natural farming, neither chemical nor organic fertilizers are added to
the soil. In fact, no external fertilizers are added to soil or give to plants
whatsoever.
3. In natural farming, decomposition of organic matter by microbes and
earthworms is encouraged right on the soil surface itself, which
gradually adds nutrition in the soil, over the period.
4. Organic farming still requires basic agro practices like plowing, tilting,
mixing of manures, weeding, etc. to be performed.
5. In natural farming there no plowing, no tilting of soil and no fertilizers,
and no weeding is done just the way it would be in natural ecosystems.
6. Organic farming is still expensive due to the requirement of bulk
manures, and it has an ecological impact on surrounding environments;
whereas, natural agriculture is an extremely low-cost farming method,
completely molding with local biodiversity.
About:
 Taxidermy is the art of preserving an animal’s body via mounting or
stuffing, for the purpose of display or study.
TAXIDERMY  The taxidermy by killing animals is banned in India as per the Wild life
protection Act 1972.
 There is only one lone taxidermist named Santosh Gaikwad who is
authorised in India.
1. Microplastics, industrial and agricultural waste being dumped into rivers
are causing hypoxic conditions in the river’s waters, harming marine
life.
2. Microplastics and other pollutants may be causing growth defects and
skeletal deformities in fish inhabiting rivers.
3. Microplastics today are found everywhere on earth, including in human
bloodstream, in foetuses within pregnant women, inside plants, deep
on the sea bed, in Antarctica, on top of Mount Everest, and in the air,
we breathe in daily.
4. Sources of microplastics are plenty, including in our everyday use items
such as clothes and water bottles.
5. In water, microplastics can enter into fish and other organisms, and in
MICROPLASTI turn, pass higher up the food chain, even ending up on human plates.
CS 6. In animals, they can cause a range of damage to cells and DNA,
affecting ecosystems across the world.

Hypoxic Conditions:
1. Hypoxic conditions generate molecules that are categorised as Reactive
Oxygen Species (ROS).
2. These include molecules like peroxides and free radicals like hydroxyl,
which are derived from molecular oxygen.
3. ROS molecules are unstable and react upon coming in contact with most
substances.
4. These molecules interfere with organelles in cells, causing toxicity, and
leading to cell death and deformities.
5. The range of observed symptoms included DNA damage, reduced heart
 rate, build-up of fluid in the wall of the heart, death of cells, skeletal
defects, lowered life span, and more.
6. Hypoxic conditions are induced by both microplastics, which break
down, and by chemicals that are dumped into the water, putting marine
organisms under oxidative stress or reduced ability to repair damage
caused by ROS molecules. This in turn leads to a range of DNA and
morphological defects.
1. The NITI Aayog has released its first State Energy and Climate Index
(SECI).
2. Among the larger states, Gujarat has topped the index followed by
Kerala and Punjab, while Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh
ended up as the bottom three performers on the index.
3. Among the smaller states, Goa, Tripura and Manipur were the top
performers, while Meghalaya, Nagaland and Arunachal Pradesh were
the bottom three states.
4. Chandigarh, Delhi and Daman & Diu and Dadra & Nagar Haveli emerged
as the top three performers among UTs while Andaman & Nicobar, J&K
and Lakshadweep were the bottom three performers.

Objectives: The objectives of the index are:

STATE
1. Ranking the States based on their efforts towards improving energy
ENERGY AND
access, energy consumption, energy efficiency, and safeguarding the
CLIMATE
environment.
INDEX
2. Helping drive the agenda of the affordable, accessible, efficient and clean
energy transition at the State level,
3. Encouraging healthy competition among the states on different
dimensions of energy and climate.

Parameters: The State Energy and Climate Index (SECI) ranks states and UTs
on six parameters:

1. DISCOMS' (Power distribution companies) Performance,

2. Access Affordability and Reliability of Energy,
3. Clean Energy Initiatives,
4. Energy Efficiency,
5. Environmental Sustainability,
6. New Initiatives.