For the last 20 years, Ravi Kanitkar has been pottering around his laboratory in the company of various species and strains of micro organisms.He was out to disprove many of existing theories of biotechnology for manufacturing biofertilisers. Not many understood or appreciated what he was doing. But he stuck to his guns. He has been patiently testing his products in farms across the country. Now with 40,000 field trials under his belt and thousands of satisfied farmers on his side, Kanitkar is ready to take on the world. In December 1997, his efforts finally bore fruit when he was awarded the first patent in the country for biofertilisers. Now Kanitkar is filing for an international patent.
Wooing Kanitkar for his new technology and products are giant fertiliser companies who now see great potential in the products. Kanitkar is enjoying this attention and is savouring every moment of his success. He is taking his time at the negotiating table and promises that a big announcement will be made soon. Heknows he has hit a goldmine and does not mind sharing his wealth with the big chemical fertiliser companies as they can reach the products to greater number of users.
"I do not have the marketing or money muscle to reach my products to every nook and corner of the country but as I have the patent now I can tranfer the technology and give marketing rights to those who can market my products well," says a visibly jubilant Kanitkar. His company -- Kumar Krishimitra Bioproducts -- has already commercialised his products -- Bioplin and Vitromone. His is the first company to introduce liquid biofertilisers as well as microbial foliar sprays in the country. Kumar Krishimitra has also signed a memorandum of understanding with The National Research Development Corporation (NRDC), which will be taking this technology to Mexico.
Though the potential of biofertilisers is well known and its eco-friendly characteristics are undisputed, Indian farmers have not had a happy experience with them and continue theirobsession with chemical fertilisers.
Hardly five per cent of the total cultivated land uses biofertilisers.Kanitkar puts the blame squarely on the scientists and technologists who failed to convince the farmers and instead antognised them with their poorly developed products and ill-suited technology. Biofertilisers are the only way of farming without harming, Kanitkar says. He was determined to make these fertilisers work.
Biofertilisers are derived from various nitrogen-fixing and phosphate-solubalizing micro organisms. These organisms are found in soil, water and leaves surface. Azotobacter was one of these nitrogen-fixing organisms and was till then being used as a soil innoculant or for seed treatment.
A carrier base was thought to be necessary for formulating Azotobacter biofertilisers. And only single species were thought to be effective in supplementation of crop nutrients. So mono cultures were used for making such formulations.
When Kanitkar started work on his project, he was keen ondisproving all these theories. He said that there was no need of carriers for the Azotobacter biofertiliser and that he could make the product in liquid form.
What this meant was that instead of bulky bags of lignite-based Azotobacter fertilisers, Kanitkar was going to make it available in small 100 ml bottles in liquid form. This was something unheard of and totally disbelieved. What Kanitkar has done is that strains of Azotobacter having various properties were identified, segregated and stored while keeping their natural characteristics intact.
These micro organisms are kept in a dormant cyst form. When it is mixed with the soil, the dormant form gives rise to active cells. This also helped increase the shelf life of the biofertiliser from the normal six months to more than two years.
The second theory challenged was that only one strain was effective in being a crop nutrient. As a result, a different strain was needed for different crops and different agro climatic conditions which only causedconfusion among farmers. Kanitkar went and made formulations by mixing strains. This mixed culture formulation worked successfully and was equally effective in any kind of agroclimatic zones and different kinds of crops. This helped in standardising the biofertiliser.
Today, he manufactures 40,000 litres annually and is planning to expand capacity to meet the growing demand. Kanitkar says he owes a lot of his success to his father.If it were not for his father, Ravi Kanitkar would have been working in a hospital or running his own dispensary. It was his father, the late UK Kanitkar, who worked with the agriculture department and advocated the use of biofertilisers. While the senior Kanitkar was carrying out research, the junior Kanitkar, who was studing for his MBBS degree, helped in the laboratory during his free time. But this activity developed into a life-time passion and obsession. And after his father passed away, he again found inspiration in the family.
His wife Deepa, a trained microbiologist,too, was convinced about his ideas and joined his company.
Kanitkar has carried on research work on his own with available resources. "I have never depended on any government institution for a single farthing," Kanitkar says. He set up his company in a 50:50 partnership with LK Jain, a prominent city-based builder, who has supported his research endeavours.
It was not as if he had lots of resources to play around with. He could afford to continue his research thanks to the innovative streak in him. Take, for instance, if expensive material or processes were needed, Kanitkar most certainly would innovate and come out with cheaper solutions. So if he needed bioreactors which cost upward of Rs 6 lakh, which he could not afford, he converted a 15 litre steriliser into a bioreactor and it worked fine. Instead of clean rooms with airconditioners and a dust-free atmoshpere, Kanitkar used a nook in his laboratory and covered it with ordinary plastic sheets to prevent contamination and this worked well too.
Whenhe needed more flasks and test tubes which were expensive he replaced them with used whisky bottles and injection vials. It is such rare ingenuity that has helped Kanitkar put 20 long years into research and stay afloat. It is now time to reap a rich harvest.
Copyright © 1998 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.
