Kamla Bai, a member of Asha Kisan Pragati Samuhhas triumphed this year in okra cultivation, with a huge profit. Kamala Bai and her husband Dhansingh, from Lakshminagar village are members of Asha Pragati Samuh, an SHG under the Punjapura Pragati Samiti. In a family of four, farming in their five bigha land along with daily wages, their total annual income comes to a meager 30,000 rupees only.
One day Mukesh Kirade, a member of the Agriculture team at Samaj Pragati Sahayog organizes an exposure visit for the Samuh members to Laxminagar village, to see the farm field of Radha Bai.
Radha Bai Mora is a member of Kisan Pragati Samuh who practices NPM agriculture. Kamla Bai is very impressed with the sponge gourd, okra and other vegetables in Radha Bai’s garden and enquires about her farming techniques. Radha Bai explains the benefits of NPM farming, stating that it yields a profit of 40 to 50 rupees per kg on okra and gourd. Inspired by the visit, Kamala Bai and her husband decide to grow vegetables in their field after harvesting the kharif crops. Considering the availability of borewell and river water, the couple grows gourd, coriander, okra and spinach in their two bighas of land. While they planted most of the vegetables in small quantities for household consumption, okra is grown in huge quantities for market sales since its rates are typically high.
However, their hope to earn from okra is soon dashed as their okra plants fall prey to leaf curl disease, a disease transmitted by white-flies. Noticing the disease, Mukesh Kirade from SPS recommends organic remedies of ‘paanch-patti kada’ (five-leaf concoction) and ‘neem kada’ (neem concoction), assuring Kamla didi and her husband of its efficiency in improving the crops growth through combating leaf curl virus.
Encouraged by this glimmer of hope, the couple goes to a fellow member of their Samuh who runs a Bio Resource Centre (BRC) in the village. They purchase 10 liters of ‘paanch-patti kada’ and 5 liters of ‘neem kada’ at a mere price of 450 rupees, a fraction of the cost of the chemical pesticides in the market. Kamla and Dhansingh diligently spray the mixtures in their farm as per the recommendation of Mukesh Kirade, witnessing a gradual transformation unfold. New leaves start to sprout in the crops and they witness a spur in the production of okra of an exceptional quality.
The organic alternatives have not only helped to drastically reduce the production costs but have also paved the way for a bumper harvest. The premium quality okras fetch a lucrative price of 40 rupees per kilogram in the market, culminating in a substantial profit of 150,000 rupees in one season for the couple, a testament to the efficacy of non-pesticide management practices.
As Kamla and Dhansingh revel in their new found prosperity, Mukesh Kirade shares how the SPS Agriculture team is working to spread the use of the organic concoctions through their BRC centres where women produce different kinds of bio-pest repellent, crop growth tonic, soil fertility applications. SPS has so far established 55 such BRCs which make organic concoctions available to the farmers who may not have the infrastructure or raw materials to prepare the mixtures themselves. The BRCs are also growing to be a good source of income for the women entrepreneurs.
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