Guest guest Posted December 9, 2005 Report Share Posted December 9, 2005 A very important article. Thanks for sending it to us. Can anyone find that Prabhupada quote to the effect that there cannot be any peace for mankind unless there is sufficient grazing grounds for the cows? ys hkdd Rosalie Malik wrote: >- ><newsletter (AT) csenews (DOT) org> ><newsletter (AT) csenews (DOT) org> >Thursday, December 08, 2005 6:05 PM >The 'other' food crisis - CSE news bulletin[Dec. 8, 2005] > > > > >>Please add CSE's fortnightly news bulletin to your Address Book so >>this newsletter doesn't get filtered or tossed into your bulk folder >> >>============================= >> >>CSE's Fortnightly News Bulletin [Dec. 8, 2005] >> >>============================= >> >>An e-bulletin from the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), >>India, to our network of friends and professionals interested in >>environmental issues. Scroll to the bottom of this page for >>information on how to . >> >> >> >>< http://www.cseindia.org/programme/industry/index.htm > >>Email: monali (AT) cseindia (DOT) org >>Mobile: +91-9811808883 >> >> >> >This will make you weep. This is what is happening all around here. and >all over India >ys Labangalatika dasi > > > > >>================================ >> >>Editorial: The 'other' food crisis >> >>================================= >> >>There is so much about rural India that escapes notice that one more >>area of neglect will not break the camel's back. I am talking about >>the crisis of fodder for livestock. A grim silence surrounds it. 'Grim >>', because in rural India, domestic animals aren't 'pets' but engines >>that drive the economy. They provide resilience and wealth -- people >>cope with adverse conditions because of their livestock. But no policy >>exists on how to feed these 500 million or so animals. Rural India >>today isn't fodder-secure, and the grim reality is that food security >>in this country is not possible without fodder security. >> >>Fodder insecurity begins with the question: where are these animals to >>get their food from? In India, less land has been set aside for >>domestic livestock than for 'flora and fauna': protected areas such as >>sanctuaries and national parks sprawl over 15 million hectares (ha), >>while land classified as 'permanent pastures' cover 11 million ha. >>Moreover, over the years, these 'permanent pastures' have shrunk or >>simply degraded. >> >>In addition, there officially exists 13 million ha of land classified >>as 'culturable wasteland'. Couldn't such land provide fodder? Yes, but >>not country-wide: only two states, Rajasthan and Gujarat (both >>livestock-dependent), account for roughly half such land. Also, >>'culturable wastelands' are controlled by state revenue departments: >>usually, the rich are allowed to encroach upon them, or politicians >>distribute them as 'largesse' under so-called land reform programmes. >>If these lands, critical for rural life-support, don't get gobbled up, >>they remain neglected and degraded. >> >>Animals survive by foraging on available land and on agricultural >>residues. But the productivity of our common lands -- forest and >>revenue land -- are pathetic; grass yields on these are mostly >>illusionary. Sheer grazing pressure ensures animals literally nibble >>away a pasture's productivity, suppressing regeneration of grasses and >>tree fodder. Add to these the fact that agricultural production is >>stagnating, or that farmers are shifting to crops that do not yield >>fodder. The result? Crisis. >> >>How serious is this crisis? We don't know, empirically. What we know >>is that unlike most other neglected issues -- be it fuelwood to cook >>food or water to drink or food to avert famine or malnutrition >>deaths -- this is a crisis about many kinds of neglect. First, it >>concerns the very poor that depend on livestock to survive another >>tomorrow. Second, it relates to the country's most neglected lands: >>common forests. Third, it is about neglected animals. >> >>So it is that I say: we must know now, to find the ways ahead. Trying >>to put together a fodder-scenario is literally like catching straws in >>the wind. Every time I travel to villages in dry and drought-prone >>areas, or forested areas, I enquire about fodder. Poor people, living >>within what we would believe is a non-cash economy, tell me what they >>spend on buying fodder. That in the dry months, of peak shortage, they >>end up spending as much as Rs 6,000 - 7,000 of their household income, >>buying fodder at Rs 500-800 per tonne. >> >>Ghazala Shahabuddin and her colleagues, studying villages in and >>around the Sariska Tiger Reserve, find similar trends. They report >>that even in villages located within forests, pastoral households >>spend 31 per cent of their household expenditure on buying fodder - >>commercial and farm fodder. This is the single largest expenditure >>after food. In times of fodder stress, it costs a livestock owner Rs >>600 - 1,000 per month to feed a buffalo. When milk yields improve, and >>the buffalo owner gets an average daily yield of two litres per >>buffalo, then selling this milk at Rs 10 per litre provides Rs 3,000 >>per month. But such yield is seasonal, so this earning is temporary; >>expenditure on fodder, on the other hand, remains constant year-round. >> >>Couldn't the solution to the above problem be animals with higher >>milk-yields? The problem is also that animals with higher milk >>yields -- the crossbred cows our planners are fond of -- need better >>quality fodder. These animals do not forage on degraded land; they >>require stall-feeding. Improving the animal economy, then, demands >>improving the quality and quantity of fodder available to livestock. >>But this has simply not been planned for, or done. >> >>The fact is that the fodder crisis is part of the larger land and >>water crisis of rural India. Better agricultural productivity on >>private lands is a sure-shot source of additional fodder. But this >>productivity is limited by the non-availability of water to irrigate >>crops. Every time I ask people why they persist in taking their >>animals to graze in forestlands, I am told that part of the problem is >>there is no water to grow crops, and so, no agricultural residues for >>animals to eat. Water then becomes the first enabling tool. It is, >>therefore, imperative that we link fodder security to water >>security -- building water recharge structures for irrigation. >> >>But this is still half the story. The other half relates to the >>largest grazing lands -- the common lands -- degraded through sheer >>pressure. It is understood these lands ought to be regenerated. But >>what needs to be further understood is that such regeneration is not >>possible without factoring in the animal economy. Building boundary >>walls to keep grazing animals out will not succeed; the pressure is >>too great. Planting non-browsable species will also not work. In the >>past, this has always led to greater shortage of fodder and, >>domino-like, to greater pressure on forestlands. It has always led to >>an unproductive stalemate between the forester and the grazier. It is, >>therefore, clear we also need to link fodder security with forest >>security -- replanting and regenerating our vast common lands. >> >>But all this is still not the real story. The real story is that this >>is an 'other' food crisis, raging through a forgotten animal world. >> >>-- Sunita Narain >>< editor (AT) downtoearth (DOT) org.in > >> >>Read this editorial online >> >>http://www.downtoearth.org.in/cover_nl.asp?mode=2 >> >> >>================================= >> >>Hands-on training programmes >> >>================================= >> >>Water Pollution and Urban Sewage Management >>[New Delhi, Jan. 16 - 20, 2006] >> >>This course familiarises participants with viable, cost effective >>alternatives to the flush-and-dilute paradigm of human waste disposal >>management. It comprises a critique of current water-waste, pollution >>management practices and policies, and presents an alternative >>paradigm more suited to the Indian context. Hands-on workshops enable >>participants to plan, design and monitor localised wastewater >>treatment and reuse systems. This course has been designed keeping a >>broad audience in mind, including engineers, researchers, architects >>and urban planners, NGO representatives, researchers, policy makers in >>India and around the world. >> >>Programme Modules: >>- Status of water pollution and management in Indian cities >>- Research on water-waste linkages >>- Alternate wastewater management paradigms >>- Fundamentals of wastewater treatment >>- Plan, design, implement & monitor a localised wastewater system >>- Reuse of treated wastewater >>- Norms and laws on pollution and wastewater treatment >>- Understanding Eco Sanitation >>- Site visits, design workshops, practical sessions and more. >> >>For details and to apply online >> >>http://www.cseindia.org/misc/water-pollution.htm >> >> >>================================= >> >>More in Down To Earth magazine >> >>================================= >> >>Home sweet yuck - Mumbai apartments being built on toxic waste. >> >>In Mumbai, land means the chance to achieve the dream of home >>ownership. But what price are Mumbai residents willing to pay for this >>dream? >> >>Read complete story>> >>http://www.downtoearth.org.in/cover_nl.asp?mode=3 >> >>----------------------------- >> >>Does BT bring better times for Punjab? >> >>After years of plummeting production, Punjab is now flooded with >>cotton thanks to the state promoted Bt crop. However falling support >>prices, and ecological concerns raise new issues. >> >>An in-depth look at Punjab farmers' unique experience with Bt cotton. >> >>Read complete story>> >>http://www.downtoearth.org.in/cover_nl.asp?mode=4 >> >> >>----------------------------- >> >>Film Review: >> >>Documentary>> Litigating disaster (Directed by Ilan Ziv) >> >>December 3, 1984: The biggest industrial disaster of all times strikes >>Bhopal. More than 20 years later, the victims still await justice. >>Director Ilan Ziv uses the litigation as the narrative thread for the >>film. >> >>Read complete review>> >>http://www.downtoearth.org.in/cover_nl.asp?mode=5 >> >> >>================================= >> >>CSE films and books >> >>================================= >> >>A fresh look at water: A package of five CSE publications covers the >>theoretical and practical aspects of water policy, management and >>implementation in India. >> >>"Making Water Everybody's Business" and "Dying Wisdom" analyse the >>technologies, traditions and policies of water management. The "Water >>Harvesters' Manual", "Wastewater Recycling Manual" and "Tanks of South >>India" give you all you need to practically implement urban water >>harvesting and wastewater management. >> >>Order online at (secure gateway) >> >>http://csestore.cse.org.in/store1.asp?sec_id=1&subsec_id=20 >> >> >> >>The Rain Catcher >> >>CSE's latest film is a clear and comprehensive resource guide. It >>answers all your questions about rainwater harvesting and documents >>successful case studies ranging from slums to sports stadiums. Covers >>policy dimensions, products, technologies and maintenance issues >>across India. >> >>VCD & DVD. Region code free-PAL >> >>http://csestore.cse.org.in/store1.asp?sec_id=4&subsec_id=27 >> >>For questions contact>> >>films (AT) cseindia (DOT) org >> >> >>================================= >> >>CSE is hiring! >> >>================================= >> >>CSE is looking for a 'Business Development Manager'. Preferably an MBA >>with an understanding of e-marketing and direct selling. Will lead a >>team selling information products - training programmes, publications >>and advertising space. >> >>Only professionals with at least five years of experience need apply. >>Email resume to: Jagdeep Gupta <jgupta (AT) cseindia (DOT) org> by December 10, >>2005 >> >>To learn more about this and other opportunities at CSE>> >>http://www.cseindia.org/joinus-index.htm >> >> >>=============================== >> >>About this email >> >>=============================== >> >>You are receiving this newsletter because you have asked to be >>included in our list, attended a CSE event or requested information. >>To stop receiving this e-bulletin, please e-mail: feedback (AT) csenews (DOT) org >>with the word '' in the subject. >> >>CSE is an independent, public interest organisation that was >>established in 1982 by Anil Agarwal, a pioneer of India's >>environmental movement. CSE's mandate is to research, communicate and >>promote sustainable development with equity, participation and >>democracy. >> >>Contact CSE: http://www.cseindia.org/aboutus/feedback.htm >>E-mail: < cse (AT) cseindia (DOT) org > >>Privacy policy: http://www.cseindia.org/misc/privacy.htm >>Address: 41 Tughlakabad Institutional Area, New Delhi - 110062 >> >>Tell us if you know a colleague or friend who might enjoy this >>newsletter >> >>© Centre for Science and Environment >> >> >> >> >> > > >----------------------- >To from this mailing list, send an email to: >Cow-Owner (AT) pamho (DOT) net > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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