Hemraj, a farmer from Sadla village in Manohar Thana, Rajasthan, is one of the leading farmers under Literacy India’s Organic Farming programme. He would earlier grow crops using conventional methods, incurring huge costs. After being trained on how bio fertilizers and pesticides are made, he has been using cow dung, ash, and domestic waste to make natural fertilizers.
Hemraj is now cultivating his five bigha land organically and is saving approximately Rs 30,000 annually. He is planning to buy more land and practice organic farming in the next crop cycle, too.
He also participated in the vermicompost preparation certification programme and passed successfully with an A grade.
“We heard about the organic farming but were not very sure about the processes and the results. After trying it out we are now enjoying its benefits and feeling more secure,” Hemraj said.
Dwaraka Bai, a 35-year-old woman, is a member of Literacy India’s vegetable Bari group at Baneth, Rajasthan. She joined the organic farming group in 2017, where she received training in organic methods of cultivation. She used it to grow vegetables for her home kitchen. Later, she expanded the organic vegetable cultivation to her farmlands. Now she sells these vegetables in the local market and earns Rs 900 per season. She grows loki (bottle guard), gilaki, bhindhi (lady’s finger), tomato and chili.
Kalawati Bai, 35, lives with her husband Laxmi Narayan and child in Jatawa, Rajasthan. She helps her husband with agricultural work and is a member of Literacy India’s vegetable Bari group. She joined the organic farming group in 2017, where she was provided training. Using the methods of cultivation that she has learnt she grows organic vegetables on their land. The vegetables are seasonal and are sold in the local market which fetches her about Rs 800 per season.
26-year-old Pansuri Bai is a member of Literacy India’s vegetable Bari group. She joined the organic farming group in 2016 and received training in organic methods of cultivation. She adopted this method and uses it on her farmlands. Selling the vegetables at a local market, she earns Rs 1,000 per season.
Like most women in the group, Pansuri Bai has also understood the value of organic farming and is using to her advantage.
Lali Bai is a 46-year-old woman who lives with her husband Moti Lal in Chandipur, Rajasthan. She is a member of Literacy India’s vegetable Bari group at Chandipur. After receiving training in organic farming, she grows organic vegetables in her 2,700 square feet land.
She cultivates vegetables like loki (bottle goard), gilaki, bhindhi (lady’s finger), tomato, chili and kaddu (pumpkin). She earns about Rs 1,500 per season.
Bajrang Lal took a soft loan to rear cows
Bajrang Lal, a small farmer from Sadla village has been practicing organic farming with Literacy India for seven years. He has realised how the method can increase production with lower costs and meet the demand for organic products.
Recently he started facing problems trying to get cow dung and cow urine to produce organic compost. When he approached Literacy India and expressed his desire to buy a cow, he was provided a soft loan of Rs 8,000 for the same.
Now he rears cows and uses its urine and cow dung to prepare organic compost, organic pesticides and vermicompost for organic farming. He also milks the cows, which provides nutritious milk to his family, and earns an additional Rs 1,000 per month by selling the remaining milk to others.