From the farms

Almost a year back, 49-year-old Anil Ranglani took life-changing decision. Having worked as a developer with a software firm, he felt that it was time for him to, as he puts it, 'stop running behind money'. "I wasn't happy. It was too stressful and the entire idea of working for money was something that had made me neglect the simple joys that one could get out of doing something that I liked," he recalls. Ranglani and his friend, Bharat Nimbalkar teamed up with Mana Chatterjee, who was starting out a new organisation titled 'Mumbai Goes Green'. The idea behind the formation of the organisation was to not only save the green cover of Mumbai but also educate people about the benefits of organic farming in their homes.

"Also with fuel and vegetable costs increasingly exponentially, this would anyway become the norm in the near future," says Ranglani. They recently held their first organic workshop in Pune at a residential society wherein, they taught the members of the society the merits of organic farming. What is even more interesting to know is that they demonstrated as well as taught the members to not just create their own organic soil at home, but also helped them plant six different types of saplings.

"It is something that we have been doing on a regular basis in Mumbai, in schools, IT companies and residential colonies. People need to realise that we have already used the share of the ecosystem that belongs to the future generations. If we don't replenish it, there will be nothing left," he adds.

Usually a typical workshop consists of one hour of theory and three hours of practical hands on training. The organic soil is prepared using cocopeat, and other vital minerals essential for good growth of the plants. The saplings that are usually planted include an Indian herb, spice, a leafy vegetable, exotic herbs and a sapling planted by vegetative propogation.

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