Article: “Of Farmer’s Suicides, Biodiversity and Pragati Vidhanam” by

Dr G.B.K Rao, CMD Pragati Group

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Farmers Suicides: Who is responsible? Pragati Vidhanam is the only answer for this crisis.

Today, we celebrate International Biodiversity Day (22nd May, 2018). At this juncture of time, our nation confronts two challenges of hunger and pollution. The farmer in India who should create wealth and provide food to the people is now committing suicide. Who is responsible for farmer's suicides? The farmer who once had abundance of joy, prosperity and happiness is now begging on the road for help. Who is responsible for this? The farmer, who grows amruth (elixir) ahaar (food) for all, now grows poisonous food. Who is responsible for this? There is now environmental pollution on a global scale with ozone layer punctured and the harmful UV rays causing cancer in humans. Who is responsible for all these global environment and ecological imbalances? In India, earlier there were 1000 trees per person, now it is only 28. Who is responsible for this drastic reduction in the number of trees per person? We and our successive governments are responsible for this state of farmer's suicides, hunger and pollution.

Foreigners who came to India to loot the country's wealth have introduced agricultural practices driven by science and technology. We have blindly followed western scientific practices leading to impoverishment, indebtedness and subsequent suicides by farmers. Today the world has recognized the inordinate value of our country's sacred herbal and medicinal plants (vanamoolikalu) and heritage cows (aavulu) which according to our tradition are prana pradatalu and aarogya pradatalu. Right from the plants found in our backyard viz. munaga (drumstick), gorinta, boppayi (papaya), usiri (amla), neredu, maredu, velaga, raavi, juvvi, and marri (banyan tree) we have a number of sacred herbal and medicinal plants that are an integral part of our life.

From birth to death, we are dependent on plants. The protector and guardian of plants and nature, the farmer in India now faces an enigmatic and catastrophic situation. For each crop, the farmer is forced to take loan to buy seed, fertilizer and pesticides. Fake seeds and fertilizers have caused huge crop losses, leaving the farmer in deeper financial crisis and no option than to commit suicide.

According to Hindu tradition, in Satyuga man lived for 350 years, in Tretayuga man lived for 250 years, in Dwaparayuga man lived for 150 years, and in Kaliyuga man's life is said to be 120 years. In the present age, due to consumption of poisonous food our life span has been decreasing. We are becoming prone to many new diseases unknown so far. On 20th May Sunday, there was the celebration of Sahasrachandra Darshana, an elaborate ritual to present the profound relationship between man's life and nature. This celebration tells us that plants which are the Kalpavrukhaslu and cows, the Kamadenuvulu are an integral part of our culture and tradition. Dr G.B.K Rao, CMD Pragati Group and his family members performed puja of sacred herbal and medicinal plants of panchavati vanam, panchabhoota vanam, dattatreya and medi plants.

By performing homa (fire worship) that includes burning of wood of sacred plants, the released smoke cleanses the air and nature. During this celebration, Dr Suryanarayana Murthy, the renowned Vedic scholar explained about nature and its interlinkages with our cultural values, practices and traditions. He described this interlinkage as 'sapthathi' which stands for biodiversity. Great gurus (teachers) from renowned ashramas in India gave their bessings to all. They elaborated on the divinity associated with Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati as 'ardhanaarishwari' which inturn stands to signify the sacred essence of nature.

The profound message from the celebrations and homa is that, without the tree there is no human. We are dependent on plants for the air we breathe, food we eat and water we drink. If we pray and protect the tree, the tree will protect us. We will be happy, joyful, peaceful and prosperous. Dr G.B.K Rao has established the Pragati Biodiversity Knowledge Park and showed to the whole world the important relationship between man and nature. His efforts in the direction of protecting biodiversity won the appreciation and accolades of 650 mayors from all over the world attending the UN Convention on Biodiversity (2012) at Hyderabad.

In the olden days people took different millets as their staple food. Then, there were very rare cases of BP, Diabetes, Cholesterol, obesity and excess weight problems. In the present times we consume food rich in carbohydrates (sugar) and fats that has lead to increasing incidence of BP, Heart Attacks and Diabetes. To stay healthy and fit, it is better to shift to millets, the food of the future. Also, to grow one kilogram of rice 12000 litres of water is required, and of wheat 18000 litres. But the benefit with millets is that they consume very less water only 300 litres.

If we have pleasant surrounding with lots of greenery around us, our focus, energy and productivity levels are high. From a young age, children should be made to understand the importance of nature, sacred plants and cows that help in the development of the human personality completely. Unfortunately, the present system of education makes children mechanical with focus on rote learning and getting higher scores. This means to deny them not only the knowledge of the inordinate significance of nature in man's life but also to promote a stunted and meek personality. All schools, teachers and parents should provide their children complete information on nature, sacred plants and heritage cows and their inordinate significance for development of biodiversity.

If farmers choose to follow the Pragati Vidhanam there would be no scope for farmer's suicides. This message needs to be understood by people as well as governments. Pragati, the vast expanse of 2500 acres was a NO-GO area, where even lizards wouldn't lay eggs. Since 1994, Dr G.B.K Rao has converted this barren limestone quarry area into a biodiversity park rich in greenery, vanamoolikas and avulu, gardens and landscapes with sounds of chirping birds, fluffing peacocks, lull of gently flowing streams and rich aromas from different flowers that cleanses your body of toxins. Here there are more than 800 varieties of herbal and medicinal plants. Through the Pragati Biodiversity Knowledge Park Dr G.B.K Rao has shown to the world the richness of India's biodiversity and how man's life is intertwined with nature, plants and animals. Pragati stands as the testimony for coming generations of India. Pragati brings to us the best of our glorious past by promoting and protecting biodiversity, with nature made an integral part of our samskruti and sampradayalu.