A career in agriculture may not be high on the priority list of today's youth, particularly those from metropolitan regions. It is certainly not the preferred option for management and engineering graduates from prestigious colleges.
But here are two young people who have taken to the land and demonstrated that farming can be a profitable career despite numerous challenges such as rising land, seed, and fertilizer prices, and growing labor costs.
Meet Naveen Perla, a graduate of the Indian Institute of Management-Kolkata, and Sudheer Vajrapu, a BITS Pilani (Hyderabad) engineering graduate, who has made this possible.
Following the emergence of the COVID-19 outbreak and the consequent work-from-home policy implemented by their companies based in Mumbai, Naveen and Sudheer were bound to stay in Vizianagaram.
Despite the fact that they had never met before, they met at a conference and shared opinions on a variety of topics, including agriculture. They decided to go for it after discovering a similar goal in agriculture.
With no experience in farming, the task was undoubtedly difficult for them.
However, Sudheer's family members, who were in the food processing industry, stepped in to assist. Naveen and Sudheer obtained a lease on 25 acres of property at Korukonda on the outskirts of Vizianagaram with their advice and moral support.
With the help of agriculture experts and retired horticulture officers, they implemented best practices in plot bifurcation, fertigation, drip irrigation, and mulching, and created a food forest by growing a variety of vegetables, fruits, and commercial crops, including turmeric, which is typically grown in hilly areas.
They could taste their first success in no time because most of the crops yielded in 45 to 60 days. Watermelon, muskmelon, guava, papaya, and banana yielded abundantly.
The two could earn over 40 lakh in revenue while directly and indirectly employing 1,200 people from neighboring areas.
'Frmr Ecosystems Private Limited’: a startup that received recognition from Union Ministry of Commerce and Industry
Not happy with this, Naveen and Sudheer established 'Frmr Ecosystems Private Limited,' a startup that has the potential to receive recognition from the Union Ministry of Commerce and Industry.
The company serves as a link between farmers and agribusinesses.
When Bobbili-based NCS Sugars was unable to secure the requisite sugarcane during the crushing season in 2021, the firm purchased 30,000 tonnes of sugarcane from farmers and delivered it to the company.
Recently, the company delivered turmeric, pepper, and red chili to food manufacturing companies in the Godavari and North Andhra regions.
"Our startup could generate a revenue of 15 crores and a gross profit of 35 lakh." We helped farmers in obtaining a fair and acceptable payment, which is publicly determined by prior agreements with food processing units. "We just receive the procurement charge from food processing companies, which is enough to cover the expenses of our startup," Naveen said.
"Many students work hard to secure employment in top companies even though their parents and family members are involved in agriculture." "Our goal is to bring them back to the fields, which is not only profitable but also rewarding," Naveen said.
