ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on a particular response to the crisis: a natural farming movement, the so-called Zero Budget Natural Farming (ZBNF) method, which came to Wayanad around 2006 at a time when the district made headlines for high incidences of farmer's suicides. It abstains from a detailed content analysis of charismatic leader Subhash Palekar's writings and public performances. The chapter looks at the adaptation of his agronomical principles by smallholder farmers in Wayanad in the context of two competing responses to agrarian crisis: out-of-state ginger growing and certified organic agriculture. It distinguishes between three distinct agronomical systems in Wayanad that are emerging as the most vibrant and innovative modalities of farming for small- and medium-sized landholders. These are: neoliberal agro-entrepreneurship, certified organic farming, ZBNF. In everyday usage, smallholders of Wayanad distinguish between three methods of farming that have come into existence after the crisis: rasa krishi, jaivakrishi, and prakritikrishi.
