From Harned to Laos: Natural farming pioneer’s story inspires many

Lalit Kalia, a progressive farmer from Harned village in the district, has earned international recognition for his natural farming initiatives after his work was highlighted at the international conference on “Natural Farming and Agro-Ecology” held recently in Vientiane, Laos. The organisation ‘Himrara’ presented a report on transforming 10 villages of Himachal Pradesh into “natural villages”, which received significant appreciation at the event.

Dr DK Sadana, an agricultural scientist and founder of Himrara, showcased the natural farming model implemented in three Himachal villages during his presentation. In it, he highlighted the contributions of Lalit Kalia of Harned village, Kala Devi of Katheo village and Somkrishna of Pangna in Mandi, praising them as exemplary farmers. Dr Sadana said these farmers have excelled in natural farming and played a key role in inspiring others, helping their villages transition toward fully natural cultivation practices.

Expressing his happiness, Lalit Kalia said the recognition was a matter of pride for Harned village and would motivate farmers in neighbouring areas to adopt natural farming. He shared that after witnessing the adverse effects of chemical fertilisers and toxic pesticides, he shifted to natural farming a few years ago and began cultivating crops using traditional methods on his ancestral land.

With support from officials of the Agriculture Department’s ATMA project, he developed the idea of preserving ancient indigenous seeds to strengthen natural farming. Over time, he has built a substantial seed bank comprising indigenous varieties of wheat, maize, traditional coarse grains, pulses, oilseeds and vegetables.

Kalia added that Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu has ensured higher procurement prices for naturally grown crops, a move he believes will encourage more farmers to adopt natural farming. He said these efforts by the state government will yield positive results and help expand the natural farming movement across Himachal Pradesh.