Tale of a Rice Warrior

Shubho Bijaya Dashami!

In this festive season, we are sharing an interesting discussion on agriculture, with specific emphasis on rice cultivation. In this interview with The Wire, agri-ecologist Debal Deb shares his rare insights on genetic diversity of indigenous rice-varieties; their natural resilience – time-tested over centuries; how we almost lost them due to policy decisions (including the famed green revolution) designed to kill diversity; the very serious implications of these developments; and what he personally has done to turn the tide. The findings are backed by Deb’s field-research, and rooted firmly at the intersection of agricultural and ecological science.