These Scientists help farmers boost their income

June 25, 2019 Unknown Wizards Valli Sarvani No comments

RD and Rohini Iyer are agricultural scientists. After retiring from their jobs, they started working in the agricultural sector due to their passion.

The couple chose Thazhava village in Kollam, Kerala and decided to work for the welfare of farmers.

Rohini has a plot which was acquired through inheritance from her mother. The couple built a small home in the plot.

Their three daughters had settled with their careers and the couple started their second innings.

They established an NGO, the NavaSakti Trust for the empowerment of farmers.

They mainly focused on small farmers who cannot hire labourers and suffer the most.

Rice is a major crop in Kerala and the state grows around 600 varieties of rice. The price of rice is constantly growing in the state. However, only some farmers are benefitting from the hiked price. This is because 91 per cent of rice is being imported from Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana.

Moreover, small farmers face difficulties with these imports. Even if farmers put their complete efforts in cultivating this crop, they could suffer terrible losses if the market was low.

So, the couple started focusing on multiple crops even for low size farms. This way the farmers can earn a steady income despite market crashes.

Tapioca, coconuts and jackfruits are very popular here. Hence, the couple started motivating the farmers on intercropping to yield high returns.

Several farmers started working as per their words and witnessed the benefits. In some instances, the income of farmers has grown by more than 10 per cent.

The couple also researched for a highly beneficial crop with minimal efforts and they found mushroom cultivation.

Oyster and milky mushrooms are nutritious yet they are expensive. Hence, they began conducting classes on mushroom cultivation. They also encourage the farmers to grow coconut which yields good returns for its final product. Thus, these scientists helped improve the income of the farmers.