Bridge Course for SEVAI Shanthi Matriculation school:Neem has powerful pest controlling activities and medicinal properties –Dr.K.Govindaraju.

Dr.K.Govindaraju enlightens the value of neem trees

“Neem has powerful pest controlling activities and medicinal properties” said School founder Dr.K.Govindaraju to the students of Shanthi Matriculation Higher Secondary school, Pettavaithalai. He further said,” In Bridge course in SEVAI Shanthi Matriculation Higher secondary school, e life skills and life coping skills are being imparted. Dr.K.Govindaraju specially mentioned “pesticides made from neem are much safer compared to synthetic pesticides. The side-effects of the synthetic pesticides are often not less serious than the problems themselves. They cause environmental contamination and are a great risk of human health. As a consequence, there has been an intense search for safer pesticides. “The all pervasive use of synthetics in every walk of life, be it agriculture, clothing, preservation or health-care is now paving way for a search for eco-friendly products. All communities, internationally, are today inclined to trust and rely more on green technology than ever before since the advent of modern science. The era of dependency on synthetic chemicals of the early and middle twentieth century prompted synthesis of newer chemicals as a panacea for all diseases and ailments. The conservative attitude of some societies, which depended on natural products in preference to the synthetic, was often credited to inertia or backwardness. Pesticides made from neem are products of natural plant origin. They are biodegradable and non-toxic. Neem products produce no ill-effects to humans and animals; they have no residual effect on agriculture produce. For these reasons Neem is considered as the best substitute to hazardous pesticides. With the current thrust on sustainable agriculture and organic farming, the use of botanical products as pesticides has acquired greater significance. Neem is a highly suitable candidate for environment-friendly, safe agriculture development. Neem can avert environmental crisis in India and other tropical countries as it can be successfully used for rehabilitation of degraded ecosystems and waste lands. Neem is highly recommended for reforestation of semi-arid regions in India. Neem is extremely useful in urban forestry because it has remarkable ability to withstand air and water pollution as well as heat. Neem also helps in restoring and maintaining soil fertility which makes it highly suitable in agro-forestry. Neem is a natural resource to keep environment clean. In villages and cities as well as on farms, it is useful as a windbreak. As a source of shade, it is excellent for parks, roadsides etc. Because of its so many qualities, it is a common practice in rural India to have a neem of tree within the compounds of most of the houses. The tree is not only beautiful to look at, providing grandeur and serenity, but also serves as a refugia to many beneficial organisms, bats, birds, honey bees, spiders, etc. Honey-combs established on the neem tree are singularly free from the galleria wax moth infestation. Many species of birds and fruit-eating bats subsist on the sweet flesh of ripe fruits, while certain rodents selectively feed on the kernel, confirming neem's safety to warm-blooded animals. The litter of falling leaves improves soil fertility and the organic content. Presently, little is known about the mycorrhizal associations between neem and bacterial and fungal endophytes, but the tree seems to be a living microcosm. Neem is useful as windbreaks and in areas of low rainfall and high wind speed. Full grown neem trees yield between 10 to 100 tons of dried biomass/ha, depending on rainfall, site characteristics, spacing, ecotype or genotype. Leaves comprise about 50% of the biomass; fruits and wood constitute one-quarter each. Neem wood is hard and relatively heavy and religious icons in some parts of India. The wood seasons well, except for end splitting. Being durable and termite resistant, neem wood is used in making fence posts, poles for house construction, furniture etc”. -Govin