Human urine can be a good fertiliser

A doctorate student at the Gandhi Krishi Vigyan Kendra here is doing a study on how human urine can be utilised for agriculture.

By K.G.VasukiBangalore, Dec.6 : A doctorate student at the Gandhi Krishi Vigyan Kendra here is doing a study on how human urine can be utilised for agriculture.

Sridevi, the scholar, has grown 83 tonnes of maize on 7.3 acres using 750 litres of human urine. She is presently growing 200 banana plants using only human urine as fertiliser.

She says: "Initially, the farmers hesitated. But after seeing the good yield in maize cultivation they are eager to use human urine for cultivation."

It is a known fact that human urine contains an appreciable quantity of nitrogen, phosphorous and potassium which are essential plant nutrients and readily absorbed and assimilated by the crop.

Prasanna, a farmer, says that utilization of human urine yields good crop and saves expenditure on chemical fertilizer.

Around 10 houses in Nagasundra and Swami Vivekananda School near Dodaballapur have adopted eco-sanitation that is eco-friendly toilet. And it's the first time in India a study on eco-sanitation has been conducted.

Developed with the main objective of protecting environment and saving water resources, these eco-friendly toilets are used for recovery of nutrients from human waste to be used for agriculture.

Amrutha, a student of Swami Vivekananda school said that the idea is to grow vegetables for their mid-day meals using nutrients recovered from human waste from the eco-sanitation in the school.

Meanwhile, Sridevi wants the government run school which have mid-day meal system for children, to consider her model for kitchen garden. She has requested the government authorities considering these schools have enough vacant area to adapt her model.

ANI