Imagine this scenario: A few years from now, an apple a day may no longer keep the doctor away. A well-balanced vegetarian meal may not be your passport to good health. Milk, meat and poultry products may come with a health warning.

There is growing concern about the use of harmful chemicals in food. Such is the awareness that it is not unusual to find many progressive farmers in India keeping part of their farms free of chemicals — to grow fruits and vegetables for their own consumption.

There, they employ the ancient techniques of farming, which include an extensive use of neem (Azadirachta indica) leaves.

The neem is the most celebrated medicinal tree of India and finds mention in the Puranas. Ancient scholars and naturopaths knew about the qualities of the tree as a source of medicine and as a pesticide.

Now, the neem is again becoming an agro-scientific celebrity. It figures prominently in seminars and workshops in the West, where scientists are discovering the neem's qualities which the ancient Indians knew centuries ago.

Fitting fable

A fable highlights the importance of the neem. A king wished to appoint a vaid (physician). He summoned accomplished practitioners and asked them to take an unusual test.

He had a tray with ten bottles brought in and, pointing to them, said: “The first bottle contains a medicine which helps cure piles, the second makes the skin glow, the third is good for diabetics, the fourth cures toothache, the fifth banishes dandruff, the sixth helps obese people lose weight, the seventh stops bleeding, the eighth checks vomiting, the ninth heals wounds and the tenth purifies blood.

"There is an ingredient that is common to all of them. Tell me what it is.''

Needless to say, the man who won the coveted job was a vaid who, after sniffing the bottles, gave the magic answer: “Extract of neem leaves''.

Indeed, the neem has superb pharmaceutical properties. It also has pest-controlling qualites. The azadirachton compound found in it is an effective insecticide.

Neem extract also contains salanin, a potent pest controller which is far more effective than any insecticide synthetically produced.

Margosa, the oil that is extracted from its seeds, contains oliec and stearic acids.

The combination of these substances makes the neem a rejuvenating tree.

It also aids longevity and guards against heart disease, high blood pressure and arthritis. It prevents cholesterol build-up by clearing arteries of fat.

Neem's cosmetic value is established in Indian tradition. In olden times, women applied a paste of neem leaves and turmeric for a glowing skin.

Medicinal secrets

Old-timers chew neem leaves every morning as they are said to contain blood-purifying qualities.

They also use neem twigs to brush their teeth (datoon). Neem leaves can be applied to wounds and sores to hasten healing. Concoctions made by blending neem leaves and honey are said to cure skin rashes.

German and American scientists are researching the neem's revitalising properties and realising that it contains powerful compounds that act as potent weapons against a host of illnesses and don't have side effects.

Chance discovery

However, it is the neem's pest-control qualities that have truly stirred the imagination of Western scientists.

This discovery was purely by chance. In 1959, a German doctor, Heinrich Schumtterer, working on a research project in Sudan, saw a swarm of locusts descend on a farm. They plundered everything except the neem trees.

He embarked on a study and discovered that neem leaves contained properties which were repugnant to over 250 species of crop-destroying insects.

All-weather survivor

One of the biggest advantages of the neem is that it is a hardy tree and can take root rapidly even in hostile soil conditions.

It does not need much nourishment and doesn't impinge on the food supply of other crops. It also has the unique quality of enriching the surrounding soil and making it more conducive to water retention.

Agricultural scientists say the neem is the most eco-friendly pesticide. They recommend that its kernel be mixed with compost.

The pesticide is ready in around four months.

Pesticide-free farming using neem extract is still done on a minuscule scale in India. Despite growing demand, there are few organic products available.

However, some companies claim to make organic farming a line of their business.

But scientists suggest that rather than switching completely to neem-based organic farming, it may be more practical to switch to the integrated pest management technique.

This method advocates the use of less harmful chemical pesticides where the neem is not effective.

It is practically impossible to switch completely to organic farming as this technique works only on a small scale and certain crops require artificially produced pesticides to come to full bloom.

However, there is a certain urgency in advocating the use of the neem as a pesticide because there is a growing concern about the lethal pesticides used in day-to-day foods.

It was in 1971 when an American, Robert Larsen, imported the neem to his country. Soon a number of companies began marketing medicines made from neem extract.

Export irony

Ironically, even as its prices shoot up and exports keep rising, the ubiquitous neem tree may become out of reach for the ordinary farmer.

Thus governments should think in terms of subsidies for the agriculture sector. The neem should not be left to just proliferate but should be used to provide continuity to the rich tradition of this wonder tree.

By Dr S.K. Mishra, Newsman Features

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