From ISRO Scientist to an Organic Date Farmer - a unique story

An ex ISRO scientist and a pioneer in the field of organic date farming ,the story of Diwakar Channappa is a tale of sheer determination and love towards farming and nature. In an effort to grow something unique, he became the first farmer to grow organic dates in Karnataka. 

Towards the Roots

Belonging to an agricultural family, Diwakar comes from a small village Begur in rural Karnataka. Their village lost it's existence due to unprecedented expansion of Bengaluru city. They were forced to take farming land 100 km away from Bengaluru which was no way profitable to them. His father was a farmer growing Ragi, corn and Toor daal but somehow never found farming profitable hence he always wanted Diwakar to move away from roots and excel in life through education.Respecting her father's wish, Diwakar bagged a Masters degree in social work and also worked as a visiting faculty at Tumkur University. He also worked with ISRO as a Project scientist in a social project till he set on to a new life journey in 2009.

Embarking to a new Journey

In 2009, his father suffered a stroke which paralyzed him significantly. Diwakar decided to return to his roads and he came back to his village. When he spent first year with his father, he realised that he was not at all willing to live a city life. However the major catalyst for shifting towards agriculture was the book 'One straw Revolution' written by a Japanese farmer Masanobu Fukuoka. After reading the book for few days,he got the courage to visit his father's farm which he was never allowed to visit. He then decided to move towards farming.

Cultivating a Desert Crop

Initially Diwakar cultivated local crops like to Toor daal, Corns and Ragi. The output was however very poor. At this moment his mother reminded him that why his father didn't liked that he should not opt for farming. Even his In laws were also very upset as they married their daughter to an ISRO scientist and now he opted for agriculture. It was a very tough face for Diwakar. 

He finally decided to take up date cultivation which was actually a crop grown in arid and hot desert region of Saudi Arabia, Oman and Egypt. Before taking up this new venture, he met a Date farmer at one Krishi Mela which was organised in Bangalore. The farmer was from Tamilnadu and was distributing pamphlet on how to cultivate dates in India. Diwakar traced the farmer and went to Tamilnadu to learn all about date farming. Diwakar says" it is a myth that dates can grow only in deserts. All they need is ample sunlight and a lot of moisture. " Diwakar then purchased 150 saplings costing rupees 3000 each with an investment of 4.5 lakhs. He was mocked and people laughed at him however he continued with his decision. He dug 2x2 pits  in the farm and put river sand in it. He then nourished each pit with castor cake, vermicompost, neem and panchgavya and planted saplings in it.

Yielding of Dates

It was in 2013, nearly 4 and half years after planting dates saplings that he saw the first flowering. It was an in memorable moment in his life. In first year, he extracted 800 kg of dates which multiplied to 5 tonnes till now. He is able to generate an income of 6 lakhs per acre from his 2.5 acre farm. As per Diwakar, farming comes up with its own challenges. It was not at all an easy task to take up farming from by switching the job of ISRO scientist however for him a slow and peaceful life was more valuable than any other assets.

Other Initiatives

Diwakar also organize harvest festival two times annually which attracts numerous visitors and sets up a unique connection between farmers and consumers. Apart from dates, Diwakar is also cultivating traditional crops like Ragi, Sugarcane ,Millets and many varieties of paddy hence presenting a sustainable model of farming. He has also collaborated with Udhbhavaha, a  special school in Bengaluru providing alternative education in which he invites students to his farm hence nurturing them with the unique experience of farming and connecting them with the roots.

People like Diwakar are unique examples of those persons who listen to their life's calling and  follow their passion by keeping mental peace over luxuries and greed!

 The Architect Duo from Bengaluru - Houses designed by them are Saving Lakhs of Litre of Water

If I say that I am going to construct a house in which there will be zero water bill , almost negligible electricity bill and the cost of house maintenance is also minimum, what will be your response? Ecocological architecture answers this question very effectively. Meet the Architect duo Chitra Vishwanath and Vishwanath S whose green buildings are setting standards in the field of green architecture and they are a popular name in this field.

Introducing the Amazing Personalities

Chitra Vishwanath has completed her diploma in Civil engineering from Nigeria and degree of Bachelor of Architecture from CPET University, Ahmedabad. She started practicing architecture in 1990. She got married to S Vishwanath, a civil engineer by profession specialized in water harvesting structures and water management and is also the founder of their architectural firm BIOME Solutions along with her wife Chitra. Chitra is currently the Principal Architect and Managing Director of BIOME Environment  Solutions.

Starting BIOME Environment Solutions

After starting her practice in 1990, Chitra noticed that about 50% of the world total energy consumption comes from field of construction and it is one of the biggest producers of greenhouse gases. As per Chitra once Gandhiji told Lorry Baker that all the materials needed for construction of house should be obtained from a 5 km radius from the existing site." but why from 5 km radius why not just below your feet? You can collect the soil just below your feet to make your house. " with this belief , she laid the foundation of BIOME Environment Solutions in 1991 - a multi disciplinary firm providing a complete solution to ecological issues established with a mission to built eco friendly and sustainable structures with minimum energy demands.

Challenges Faced

Chitra is one of the pioneers in the field of eco architecture but this incredible journey was challenging indeed. When she started her journey, her peers considered this thought as unworthy and awful. " It was rather disrespectful. " She smiles. Her first project was their own house built in 1995. With a spark in her eyes, she says " My house is a laboratory for me. Before we teach the world , we designed our own home in an eco friendly manner. It is closest to our heart."

The Sweet Home

They built their sweet home in 1500 square feet plot about 33 year ago from locally available resources. The walls are made up of locally available mud and mortar crushed bricks providing insulation and strength to the house. The house outlines low bamboo gate and recharge well at the front door for water harvesting. Most fascinating feature of the house is that it is naturally ventilated and it has no fan and well planted with trees all around. Most of the wood used in house is recycled. The house uses each and every drop of water in a city like Bengaluru where water comes from Kaveri ,100 km away from the city. Grey water from Green toilet is used for growing rice and irrigating other plants at the rooftop. Segregation of biodegradable and degradable waste is done for composting and this manure is used to feed kitchen garden. 70% of energy needs are fulfilled by solar panels and rest by a biomas heater installed at rooftop in cloudy days.

Unique Initiatives

So far, the architect duo have designed more than 800 ecofriendly houses so far which are saving more than 1 lakh litre of water. They have also dug 2 lakh recharge wells in association with a local community called "Mannu Vaddar "involved in the digging of traditional wells near Bengaluru. When people started digging borewells, they became jobless. Biome started a mission called "Million Wells for Bengaluru" in 2015 and dug wells with the help of  this community. They are aiming at digging 10 lakh recharge wells in Bengaluru. 

The architect duo is setting standards in the field of Green Architecture by their initiatives and leaving a legacy behind for future generations.Hats off to them!

 Iha Dixit - A Green Warrior and environmentalist at the age of 10

An environmentalist ,a green warrior and an awardee of international Young eco Hero award - Iha Dixit, is a name which is echoing amongst all environment and nature lovers throughout the country at just the age of 10 years.

Introduction

Iha Dixit ,a nine year old is studying in St Francis World school in Meerut  in class 1. Her mother Anjali Choudhary is also a teacher in one of the private school in Meerut where as her father Kuldeep Sharma is running a coaching institute. She has been a brilliant girl in academics as well as fond of planting trees.

Starting a Plantation Drive

Reminding the old days, her father Kuldeep Sharma says that her daughter was always fond of doing something different. When she was 4 years old, she watched a TV cartoon showing the importance of planting trees. Iha started insisting her parents to plant a tree. Finally she planted a lemon sapling with the help of gardner in her home garden. When it sprouted later on, she was filled with immense joy.

One day she heard honourable Prime minister Narendra Modi in one episode of Mann ki baat insisting on planting trees to save environment and to reduce pollution. She now started planting trees every Sunday. As it was a noble deed, her parents has to agree for that.

Opening of Green Smile Club

Initially Iha planted trees alone by digging the holes by herself. When sometimes these plants were damaged by animals or due to weather, Iha was much discouraged but soon started planting saplings again with new zeal. As Iha planted more and more trees, her parents kept on sharing this information on Facebook and other social media platforms. In 2018, she established Green Iha Smile club and several other children joined her in this venture. Seeing her passion, her father organised a bigger event in Meerut at a site provided by Housing and Development board where 1008 saplings were planted. That was a turning point and she was noticed in local media and later on by Prime Minister's office and throughout the country.

Other Initiatives

Due to great passion of small Iha, Child volunteers are now associated with Green Smile Foundation which are preparing mini forests, parks and green belts in their surroundings collectively. She has also prepared a Plant Bank by collecting plants which are being donated to her by others. She is also developing her own seeds and distributing it to the aspirants of plantation in future. She wants to become an IPS officer. She plants 5 saplings every Sunday on regular basis.

Awards

Iha Dixit has got first place in the competition organised by Action for Nature, a California based NGO which recognises Eco Heroes every year from all over the world. She has been awarded with International Young Eco Hero Award in August 2023. Iha has also been awarded Pradhanmantri Rashtriya Bal puraskar in 2019.

The story of Iha is a live example of passion and enthusiasm for a noble cause. It also reflects that doing something different and unique for the sake of humanity has no relation with the age. Passion can be nurtured in any age provided that suitable environment is provided !