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Protected Cultivation will make Agriculture Lucrative for Farmers

Agriculture plays a vital role in India’s economy with over 58% of the rural households depending on agriculture and contributing around 17-18% to the country’s GDP. Protected Cultivation is a new age farming technique and plays a critical role in the road map of actualizing Honorable Prime Minister’s vision of ‘Doubling Farmers income by 2022’. 

Protected Cultivation makes agriculture lucrative for farmers struggling with conditions out of their control such as arid land, water scarcity, irregular monsoon, etc. In addition to these, the other crucial advantages of Protected cultivation includes optimization of water usage, controlled microclimate, protection against diseases, production during off season, increased yield and protection from wind and rains. As per a survey conducted by Centre for Research in Rural and Industrial Development (CRRID), vegetable or flower yields under Protected Cultivation are 5-10 times higher than open cultivation depending on the crop.

However, Protected Cultivation in India is at a very nascent stage with only 0.2% penetration, which is very low as compared to markets like Netherlands, Turkey and Israel. Understanding the scope and possibilities of Protected Cultivation and its significant impact on employment generation, agricultural exports and increasing household income of rural India;the Government of India along with State Governments’ are promoting Protected Cultivation by providing subsidies through various bodies such asNational Horticulture Board (NHM), Mission for Integrated Development of Horticulture (MIDH), etc. and in the form of schemes such as PradhanMantriKrishiSinchaiYojana, MagelTyalaShetTala, etc.

As a leading brand in the Protected Cultivation Space, Garware Technical Fibres Ltd. has also added to the efforts of the subsidy programmes by synergizing with competent statutory bodies to improve and upgrade the standards of Agrotextiles used in Protected Cultivation. In addition to providing technically advanced Monofilament nets for Protected Cultivation, Garware, as part of increasing the penetration of protected cultivation in India, started an initiative named ‘Project Tarakki’. The objective of the project is to educate farmers on the benefits of protected cultivation through customer testimonials of the Margdarshaks’ (farmers’) who are reaping the rewards of protected cultivation. Various Farmer meetings are conducted at demo plots wherein Garware Agronomists educate the farmers on Protected Cultivation encompassing various aspects such as good agricultural practices, crops to be cultivated, disease &pest management, return on investment, & also about the marketing of the produce. “Project Tarakki”is now spreading its wings to various districts across India.The direct benefits reaped by some of the Margadarshaks’ in various regions are cited below: