Let us do the

Nilagiri Development Society

So you can give your best WITHOUT CHANGE

Nilgiris Development Society (NDS) is a registered Social Welfare Society with Reg.No.148/2008, working for the upliftment of the rural poor residing in the Nilgiris District in Tamilnadu in South India. It is a registered charitable society and a secular voluntary organization established in the year 2008. It is the official social service organization of the Catholic Diocese of Mananthavady in the Nilgiris. It does undertake various social welfare programmes for the rural women and children working in the Tea Estates and small scale farmers in the Nilgiris District. NDS aims at Socio-economic empowerment of the target group consisting of Tribal people, Women, Youth, Children and Small & Marginal farmers through participatory development interventions. The Nilgiris Development Society (NDS) is a leading NGO working in the District of Nilgiris concentrating in particular among the small & marginal farmers for their betterment in the overall context, highlighting ‘Sustainable Development’ as the motto. More than 80% of the target community belongs to farming community. At awareness and organizational levels, the Society has done a lot apart from introducing several innovations in the farming sector and popularizing them by implementing specific projects and programmes. NDS is a subsidiary unit of Wayanad Social Service Society (WSSS) which is already selected as Service Provider Agency for promoting organic farming in the State by National Centre for Organic Farming (NCOF) & Regional Centre for Organic Farming (RCOF). Organic cultivation of spices in the Nilgiris District has been included as a key component of the Natural Resources Management programme of NDS. In the recent years, NDS has been on relentless campaign of converting the agricultural land holdings as certified organic farms. At its sustained intervention about 540 farm holdings got certified as fully organic as per the international standards with certificates issued by Lacon Germany. In addition, about 1500 farms are under the rigorous process of certification lasting a minimum period of three years as per the norms fixed by the international certification agency. Out of more than 80% farmers belongs to small and marginal farmers. Another salient feature pertaining to organic spices development is that the Society undertakes the purchase, processing and marketing of the organically certified products with value addition with the help of BIOWIN AGRO RESEARCH CENTER establishment with the support of NABARD under UPNRM Project and Ministry of Commerce under ASIDE Scheme. NDS with its preferential option for the farming community has strengthened its involvements in terms of organizing the community with bargaining power while stressing upon fair pricing and value addition by conforming to quality norms. During the course of the last eleven years 179 Village farm clubs of organic farmers have been formed and many more are in the offing. These village level organizations are purported to be part and parcel of a network encompassing the whole of Gudalur and Pandalur Taluks which regulate the agriculture economy and the various dynamics thereof-decision making processes, small holder group certification, internal control system, participation in organic farming systems, common procurement, farm cluster services, value added primary processing & marketing, micro credit dynamics, etc, inbuilt. Also NDS farmers are formed in a Farmer Producer organization named WOFFA (WSSS Organic Farmers Fair-trade Association) for Promoting and Strengthening of farmers of Wayanad and Nilgiris fully committed to Fair-trade. WOFFA is the registered Farmer Producer Organization (FPO) established in the year 2008. WSSS is positioned in the system as a Producer Organization Promoting Institution (POPI) taking care of the needed institutional & business arrangements and resource services. Looking at from different angles and analyzing the situation in the farming sector of Nilgiris in depth, there is imperative need to continue the lead role of NDS as a Producer Organization Promoting Institution (POPI). In the present context, the organic agriculture sector has to be strengthened to the optimum levels attuned with the availability of natural resources, man power and market potential by availing of advanced technology and credit facilities. The Society stands committed to extensively promote Farmer Producer Organizations (FPO) for extending organic farming and totally convert Nilgiris as an eco zone for sustainable agriculture and bio diversity of spices. NDS is on a multi faceted mission of reviving and sustain agriculture on the one hand and on the other ensure standardized and stable prices to the farming community through appropriate market interventions, vale added processing and evincing the bargaining of the actual farmers.