Madan Lal of Tiara in Himachal Pradesh, addressed the Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK) Kangra and said that he has attended all of the training sessions delivered by the government. Madan said he has chosen agriculture over other professions or business because poultry farming, fisheries business or growing vegetables in polyhouses provides much more income.
Madan Lal said that many of his fellow Himanchalis had left their rural areas to go to big Cities in hope of greater income and improved standards of living. He said there is no need for this as the soil of Himachal is very fertile and hence productive. Through animal husbandry you can produce anything that you need. Through Black Mulberry trees you can produce silk. Everything is available here at home.
You can use cow dung for manure and treated cow urine can be used as insecticide, which does wonders against diseases. He said multi-cropping is very important and vegetables can be grown alongside growing crops. He said the young generation must come forward and take lead in becoming self sufficient.
He said those leaving their homes to live in urban areas must calculates the cost that they will have to pay for food, shelter and there won't be any savings. So you must build your livelihood and family life through efforts in your rural areas.
The KVK (Krishi Vigyan Kendra) representatives and scientists are here to help you with any issues that you may face. Their training will give you more knowledge and you will be able to earn more through efficient farming. He repeats that instead of wandering off to far off places you can build a good life for yourself here at home. He himself is farming over 5 kanals and is trained in growing mushrooms and other crops.
He said he used to own two cows and then had four. He was not employed and was dependent on his land and agriculture for livelihood. He has two children who he educated and got married. He has never depended on anyone for financial support in his life. He believes in crop rotation and firstly he grows cauliflowers, next he grew peas and other vegetables that grow on vines and finally around August he plants Mustard. He always got good harvests and Mustard always gives good rates.
He came to Kangra 20 years back and wanted to farm. He started by raising cows and his work continued growing and growing. He has ditch with earthworms that produces organic manure in good quantity. His organic chemical free products are in great demand locally. He is always in touch with KVK incase his crops are affected by any disease or for any other issues.
He has not bought any machines on which government subsidies are available and he does most of his work manually. Due to financial issues in family he has given one cow to his sister and another to his brother in law. Before giving these cows he was able to get 20-25 Kgs of milk every day. He grows mushrooms with his organic vegetables. Please click here to see the video yourself.