Ezhumalai (45), a farmer from Pattabiram in Tiruvallur district, is happy that his yield has almost doubled in his one-acre farm after the use of “Ponneem,” a bio-pesticide developed by a group of students from Loyola College here. Mr Sundaram of Therkumalaipakkam in Kancheepuram district and Mr Kumar of Sembarambakkam are few of the more than 1,000 farmers who have benefitted from the use of Ponneem in the last fifteen months.
Ponneem, a product from the traditional knowledge of farmers, is a combination of both neem oil and pongam oil. A litre of this pesticide costs just Rs 135 whereas other bio-pesticides available in the market cost more than Rs 200 per litre. “A litre of Ponneem can be mixed with 350 litres of water and sprayed once in 15 days. I found that very effective on sunflower and other plants I have been cultivating,” said Ezhumalai. A group of students from various disciplines led by entomologist Mr Gabriel Paul Raj were discussing the plight of farmers in the country few years ago and arrived at the idea of introducing organic farming techniques to farmers in the neighbouring districts on an experimental basis. Thanks to the research and advice of Dr Ignacimuthu, head of the department of entomology, the group of students produced the bio-pesticide as a first step.
“Ponneem does not cause pollution as it does not leave any residue like the chemical pesticides. It is bio-degradable. It does not kill beneficial insects and kills only harmful insects. The lethal dose study (LDS) conducted on the pesticide for safety analysis found that the toxicity is almost nil,” said Dr Ignacimuthu. “The farmers were apprehensive initially when we visited the villages.
Ezhumalai of Pattbiram agreed to test the bio-pesticide first. When he found that the yield has almost doubled, he told the fellow farmers about it,” said Ms Jinu Abraham (22), a student involved in promoting the bio-pesticide.
“We have covered more than 110 villages in Kancheepuram and Tiruvallur districts in the last 15 months and the response from the farmers has been overwhelming,” said Jayashanti, a lecturer in charge of Students in Free Enterprise (SIFE) in Loyola College, who has been involved in spreading awareness about organic farming in the villages. The students are also in the process of getting Ponneem patented. “As the demand is on the rise, we have plans to set up a plant in Agathiarpatti village in Kancheepuram district for producing Ponneem,” said Mr Antony Robins, team leader of the Ponneem project.
“There are at least two big companies approaching us for buying the formula. Our purpose is not to make profit. So we plan to do it on our own and provide bio-pesticide to farmers at an affordable cost,” said Mr Vishnu, another student involved in the project.