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A horticulturist with acumen
The 9 acre land of a progressive farmer at Yepilagunta village in Marripadu mandal has become a model farm for ryots of the upland areas for his innovative methods in vegetable cultivation.
Atmakur (Nellore): The 9 acre land of a progressive farmer at Yepilagunta village in Marripadu mandal has become a model farm for ryots of the upland areas for his innovative methods in vegetable cultivation.
- Reaps good harvest despite drought S His fields turn model farm for ryots
Agriculture in the upland Atmakur Assembly constituency is totally rainfed. Farmers of the area cultivate paddy and tobacco depending on the monsoon rainfall. If the monsoon is poor, they are in dire straits to raise crops for want of adequate irrigation water.
When many farmers came to a conclusion that agriculture was no more remunerative for them in the prevailing drought conditions, Hazarath Reddy of Yepilagunta thought of raising horticultural crops to overcome recurring losses due to crop failure.
He was encouraged by local agricultural officials to take up horticulture. He was sent to Bangalore and other places along with farmers of Kuppam on a study tour to make him aware of best horticultural methods to reap a good harvest. Later, he took up horticulture and achieved success.
Hazarath Reddy is now raising lemon in 5 acres and bitter gourd, ridge gourd, bottle gourd, green chilli, tomato, brinjal and other vegetable crops in the remaining 4 acres. For vegetable creepers, he erected permanent structures as support using iron pipes despite criticism from fellow farmers.
The progressive farmer is of the view that the erection of permanent structures for creeper crops will be cost-effective in the long run. Using organic methods of cultivation and drip irrigation, he is reaping a bumper harvest of vegetables. He earned a profit of Rs 60,000 by cultivating bottle gourd in 40 cents of land with a minimum investment of Rs 5,000, which reflects his acumen.
He also took up marketing to get a better price for his vegetables. He purchased an auto to transport vegetables from his farm to the nearby market daily. In the process, the progressive farmer provided employment to some local youths.
Speaking to The Hans India, Hazarath Reddy said: Cultivation of vegetables using organic methods and sprinkler irrigation has proved to be profitable for me. Farmers of upland areas need to be innovative and progressive in thinking to reap a good harvest by overcoming the drought conditions.’’
By V Narsimhulu
