Why he Chose Barren Land, The Story of a Centre in India Supporting Horticulture for Income Generation
When Dr. Virender Singh took on a key role in developing an Agriculture and Horticulture Centre for Pidilite Industries Limited in India, he had to decide whether to select the fertile land or the barren land from the 200 acres of property allocated for the project. Before he could confidently make a choice he sought to deepen his understanding.
Dr. C.M. Patel, the Joint Director of the National Horticulture Mission for the Government of Gujarat, told him about the Advanced Crop Production and Irrigation Technologies programme at Galilee Institute in Israel. “The opportunity to attend this course proved to be a turning point for me in the development of this centre,” Dr. Singh says.
The land allocated for the centre is in Manar, a village in central Gujarat. “In Israel, the climatic conditions, sea water ingression and water scarcity problems are similar to this part of Gujarat,” he explains. After seeing agriculture focussed upon irrigation, efficient water use and conservation during the study tour to the Arava desert research station, Dr. Singh found the confidence to use the barren land. He learned of water recycling techniques for agriculture and important irrigation principles, such as wetting the root zone and not the soil.
Since his return, Dr. Singh has been actively implementing some key advancements that he discovered, to improve vegetable production and increase farm income. His quest for knowledge coupled with careful planning has enabled him to advance the project’s main goal of strengthening farmers with the latest cultivation practices in horticulture for income generation through extension, demonstration and training. The farmers will receive the know-how to implement and boost sustainable crop production and productivity.
Dr. Singh shared his list of immediate goals:
• Improve productivity, practices and input management for crop cultivation
• Adapt GAP (Good Agriculture Practices) and precision farming techniques
• Increase awareness of protected cultivation and high tech production technologies
• Demonstrate postharvest management techniques for reducing losses
• Implement soil and leaf tissue analysis that is easy to asses
• Popularise organic farming as value addition
• Increase utilisation of honey bees for better pollination in coconut and other crops
• Increase awareness of value addition for crops
“It cannot be explained in words,” Dr. Singh says of his experience. “I had to start from scratch. After my visit to Arava research centre, I took up the challenge and selected the barren land for our centre and developed it into a green farm full of fruits and vegetables. This was the major value addition for our organisation.”
For more information about programmes such as the one Dr. Virender Singh participated in, visit our Centre for Agriculture, Environment and Water.
