Santosh Pachar of Jhigar Badi village in Rajasthan's Sikar district wishes her to produce to be the best in the market like all other farmers. Santosh, a traditional farmer has only completed class 8 of his education.
Santosh's Experiments
Beginning in 2002, Santosh and her family used organic farming methods to grow carrots and other traditional crops on their 10 acres of land. However, they were unable to achieve the anticipated outcome. They observed that the carrots were frequently thin and twisted. They failed to attract clients in the market, which resulted in lower profits. Her family was barely meeting their needs.
Her experiments, however, were recognized today with the President's Award for her revolutionary carrot-growing techniques, which included prize money of Rs.3 Lakh.
Santosh and her husband had no remedy for the low-quality produce. They began attending agricultural fairs organized by the State Government in order to obtain a better understanding of farming and find a solution to their concerns. It assisted them in learning more about farming.
Santosh discovered that the seeds she used to grow carrots were of poor quality, which was the cause of her dismal yield, thanks to her newly acquired knowledge and connections with specialists. She made the decision to solve the problem herself. Santosh began using a novel pollination process that involved mixing 15 mL honey with 5 mL ghee (Indian butter) and drying them without direct sunlight exposure.
Santosh blended honey and ghee with carrot seeds in the hopes that the ghee would add its shine and the honey would enhance the carrot's flavor.
She experimented with the seeds, as foolish as it may sound, and after a few harvests, she saw a noticeable improvement. The carrots had become sweeter and more lustrous. They were also growing in size and shape.
According to Santosh, the seed required years to mature into a higher-quality product. They used the newer version of seeds from the fresh harvest and processed and sowed them back again in the soil.
The experiments began in 2002, and they were able to declare the qualities and attributes of these newly evolved seeds in 2010. Unbeknownst to them, they were using a scientific procedure called grading to increase seed quality.
Accomplishments and Awards
The couple gave the samples to their neighbors, who were impressed with the quality. They gave some seeds to state agriculture inspectors, who tried and tested the seed before declaring it a whole new type. The couple named it SPL 101.
The couple began selling carrots and established a nursery to grow saplings from seedlings. They started making 1.5 times as much profit as they were before.
Earns Rs 20 lakh per year
With the previous, low-quality seeds, the couple made roughly Rs 1.5 lakh per year. However, the new version now earns them around Rs 20 lakh per year. Their revenue has increased by 20 times over the years.
In 2013 and 2017, she got the President's Award for her innovative approaches. Santosh has since taught over 7,000 farmers in the state how to cultivate carrots organically. Santosh's years of hard work have paid off handsomely for her and hundreds of others.
