Over the past decade, many farmers have changed their fortunes for the better by growing an assortment of horticulture crops and by trying alternative methods of agriculture farmers are catching the road to prosperity. The success story of Satbir Poonia, who lives in Jind, Haryana, exemplified this statement very well and truly inspired many people to opt the same path for a better and Sustainable Income.
Satbir earns a good amount of money in comparison to traditional agriculture. His annual earnings have reached Rs 45 lakh and he is providing employment to about 20 people.
Three years ago Satbir Poonia started cultivating Thai apple (plum), guava and organic vegetables.
The 60-year-old Satbir owns 16 acres of land. In the vicinity of his village he is now known as ‘Ber Uncle’. He has also been honored by the Agriculture minister for his extraordinary work.
Satbir earned his Bachelor’s degree in Agriculture. After this, he started farming. He says, ‘Earlier I used to do traditional farming. But it was not profitable. After this I started business and continued it for 20 years. I was earning decent profit but was not satisfied. So I always used to think that now I should do something else that gives me immense pleasure along with monetary benefits.
“I am a nomad. I roam in different states. During this time I came to know about Thai Apple Plum at one place. Then in 2017, I procure its saplings from Raipur. Which I got for 70 rupees per plant. That year, I have invested 25 thousand rupees on cultivating Thai apple. Along with this I also planted guava and lemon,” Satbir explained.
While throwing light on his journey Satbir said, when he started planting the plum orchard, then his family and the people around him said what would happen with this tree, what did this wild plant bring? People made fun of him for his decision in regard to cultivating Thai apple. But, in the very first year he got better response and the production was good. This boosted Satbir’s confidence and inspired him to take concrete steps to be successful in his plans. Today, there are more than 10 thousand plants in his garden. Farmers from nearby villages visits regularly to understand the farming model.
Satbir also stalls five-six places in the city along with Mandi to sell fruits.
About the challenges, Satbir said that groundwater levels are far below in Jind. Satbir devised an idea about this. He planned to store the canal water and built a tank of 21 lakh liters capacity and saved water in it. Now with the help of this, he irrigate the entire crop.
Thai apple plum is cultivated twice a year. One from February to March and the other from July to December. It does not require any special type of soil. You can cultivate it on any land. Also, there is less need for water in it. Irrigation is needed two or three times in a season.
Satbir says that cultivating Thai apple on one acre of land costs one and a half lakh rupees. It takes about 170 plants which takes a year to grow. Gradually the production starts increasing. A plant gives fruit for 20 years. Even if we sell these plum in the market for 30-35 rupees per kg, then three to four lakh rupees can be easily earned in a year.