Mundgod Tibetan Settlement

McKown, Colleen. “Mundgod’s Tibetan Farmers on Organic Methods and the Monsoon Pattern”. The Tibet Post International. 29 Sept 2011.

This article discusses concerns with farming and organic farming, the monsoon, and having the future generation continue the farming tradition. In Mundgod, a Tibetan settlement about seven hours south of Bylakuppe, there are nine camps six of which are fully organic. The Dalai Lama expresses the importance of producing organically, just like they did in Tibet, in order for good, healthy food. Lobsang Chodack from camp eight emphasizes his concerns with organic farming stating that it requires more paid help to take care of the farm and much less product is produced. In order to maintain his organic farm teak trees must surround his farm in order to keep the cows out; the soil must be a mixture of 5kg cow dung, 1kg cow urine, and 1 kg jiggery to detract pests and still pests attack his crops somehow. The Central Tibetan Administration is beginning to advise farmers to grow cash crops such as alphonso mango, coconut, cashews, and amla to boost farmers gain. There is a roaming fear that the younger generation will not keep the family tradition. The younger generations are leaving the farm to the parents care and Lobsang believes the only way to keep them involved is to gravitate towards modern technology. Lastly the monsoons of the last few years have been unpredictable so it is impossible to know how to protect the crops. My questions are if they could predict the weather how would it change farming techniques? Would location be different? Does the future generation plan on eventually continuing the farm? If so, will they continue organic farming?