%0 Journal Article
%T A Review of Organic Farming for Sustainable Agriculture in Northern India
%A S. K. Yadav
%A Subhash Babu
%A M. K. Yadav
%A Kalyan Singh
%A G. S. Yadav
%A Suresh Pal
%J International Journal of Agronomy
%D 2013
%I Hindawi Publishing Corporation
%R 10.1155/2013/718145
%X In the post independence period, the most important challenge in India has been to produce enough food for the growing population. Hence, high-yielding varieties are being used with infusion of irrigation water, fertilizers, or pesticides. This combination of high-yielding production technology has helped the country develop a food surplus as well as contributing to concerns of soil health, environmental pollution, pesticide toxicity, and sustainability of agricultural production. Scientists and policy planners are, therefore, reassessing agricultural practices which relied more on biological inputs rather than heavy usage of chemical fertilizers and pesticides. Organic farming can provide quality food without adversely affecting the soil¡¯s health and the environment; however, a concern is whether large-scale organic farming will produce enough food for India¡¯s large population. Certified organic products including all varieties of food products including basmati rice, pulses, honey, tea, spices, coffee, oilseeds, fruits, cereals, herbal medicines, and their value-added products are produced in India. Non edible organic products include cotton, garments, cosmetics, functional food products, body care products, and similar products. The production of these organic crops and products is reviewed with regard to sustainable agriculture in northern India. 1. Introduction The organic movement in India has its origin in the work of Howard [1] who formulated and conceptualized most of the views which were later accepted by those people who became active in this movement. Organic farming is a production system which avoids, or largely excludes, the use of synthetic fertilizers, pesticides, growth regulators, and livestock feed additives. The objectives of environmental, social, and economic sustainability are the basics of organic farming [2]. The key characteristics include protecting the long-term fertility of soils by maintaining organic matter levels, fostering soil biological activity, careful mechanical intervention, nitrogen self-sufficiency through the use of legumes and biological nitrogen fixation, effective recycling of organic materials including crop residues and livestock wastes and weed, and diseases and pest control relying primarily on crop rotations, natural predators, diversity, organic manuring, and resistant varieties. A great emphasis is placed to maintain the soil fertility by returning all the wastes to it chiefly through compost to minimize the gap between NPK addition and removal from the soil [3]. Today, the burgeoning population
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