Meet the Greatest Contributors to Agriculture in Kerala

Krishi Jagran is proud to present to you, “A talk with the Kerala State Best Farmer Awardees” to share their farming experiences. You can watch the event on Krishi Jagaran Kerala's official Facebook page today at 11 am with the winners of the State Agricultural Award 2021 in 9 individual categories. 

For those who love agriculture and want to know about the experiences of the award-winning farmers and their farming practices, the program offers a whole new level of enjoyment. Let us know the nine greatest contributors in the field of agriculture participating in this event.

The Mitraniketan Padma Shri K Viswanathan Memorial Award for Best Group Farming Committee was received by the Polepadam Padashekhara Samithi of Thakazhi Panchayat, Alappuzha District. The award carries a cash prize of Rs 5 lakh and a certificate for cultivating 135 acres of paddy land. State Bank of India has acquired this group, which has been cultivating two crops continuously since 1992, and provides assistance including agricultural loans.

According to the climate of Kuttanad, the agricultural calendar is maintained and cultivated according to it. The Polepadam Committee was selected for the award by the State Level Expert Committee after examining the activities of the group for 20 years in the field of agriculture. Thankachan Pattathil, Secretary of the Polepadam Padashekhara Samithi, is coming to share the agricultural activities at our event.

Sudheesh Kumar, secretary, of the  Bedadukka Women's Service Co-operative Society, Kasaragod district, received the ‘Kshoni Samrakshana’ award 2021. He follows a mixed farming method without harming trees. Kumar's farm maintains the farm like a natural forest. He is cultivating 10 acres of land with different varieties of organically grown crops. In addition to vegetable cultivation, he also does poultry, duck, and fish farming.

Hasina Jabbar, who quit her teaching job to pursue a full-time garden maintenance career, has been nominated for the State Government ‘Udyana Sreshta' Award. The prize money is Rs 1 lakh. At first, gardening was just a hobby for her.  Later, when the demand for plants and seedlings in Hasina's garden increased, it was started on a commercial basis. Today, about 500 different species of plants can be found here. Hasina also has foreign flowers in her garden.

This is a proud achievement for J George who received the award for the ‘Harithamitra’ Award for the best vegetable farmer. He has been active in the field of agriculture for 16 years. He is cultivating 18 acres of land. Of this, only vegetables are grown on 11 acres. He is adopting only the organic method for growing vegetables in his entire career.

Jomon Jacob received the ‘Karshaka Prathibha’ Award for the Best College Student. He is a second-year BA Multimedia student who cultivates more than three acres of land using modern farming and scientific farming methods. Along with fruit plants, Jomon is also good in flower farming. He also operates its own agricultural dryer for making value-added products.

This year’s Award for Best Jackfruit Processor was for R Rajashree who introduced more than 450 value-added products made from Jackfruit. They are running a company named ‘Fruits n Root’ in Alappuzha district. From the Jackfruit she is making a wide variety of products such as Pasta burgers, Shawarma, Chocolate, ice cream, etc. 

The first pasta she made from Jackfruit with the help of The Central Plantation Crops Research Institute (CPCRI) Kayamkulam, Kerala.

Asha Shaiju, who was homered with the state government's Best Young Farmers Award, started her own vegetable garden at home. Cultivation, which started at 13 cents, is now spread over six and a half acres. Completely organic vegetables are grown on six and a half acres. Asha, who has been in agriculture for 11 years, has been cultivating all kinds of vegetables with the help of drip irrigation technology.

Eliamma Sibi, the owner of Matha Honey & Bee Farm Industries unit in Kasaragod district, received the state government award for the Best Bee Farmer in the state. 4500 bee colonies have been established in different places. It produces 45 tonnes of honey per annum. Honey is sold by Ayurvedic companies and Horticorp.

These nine agricultural contributors will share their farming experiences on Krishi Jagran Kerala today at 11:00 am.