Vegetable Growers Double their Income

To increase the income of small farmers, vegetable cultivation was promoted in Damaragidda mandal of Mahaboobnagar district, Telangana, covering 1173 farmers. Major interventions included supply of superior quality vegetables seeds at subsidised cost, guiding farmers to raise vegetable seedlings under shade net, promotion of good agronomic practices, renting of efficient farm equipment, guiding on erection of stakes, trellises and pandals for providing support to vegetable creepers and grading and packing of vegetables in plastic crates for transportation. These farmers formed groups for procurement of inputs, exchange of information and transportation of produce to the market.  The average area covered under tomato, brinjal, chilly, bitter gourd, okra, ridge gourd and beans was 0.48 ha (1.22 acre) per family. The post-harvest activities included establishment of five vegetable collection centres for grading, weighing and packaging. Seeds of superior variety vegetables increased the crop yield by 30-50%.  Wastage reduced from 15-20% to less than 5%. With grading and choice of better markets, farmers received 15-20% higher price. On an average, the net income per ha was Rs. 2.62 lakhs/year, a 100% increase over farmers cultivating these vegetables traditionally. These farmers have become role models for wider adoption of this method.