The discovery of agriculture was the biggest step towards a civilized society. India is blessed with many agricultural lands but it also has its own share of barren lands. These are naturally barren land or those which have become non-arable over years.
Small-scale farmers usually are skeptical of tilling & sowing barren lands if their livelihood depends on the yearly output of these farms.
However, there are some determined individuals who can turn the soil into gold by toiling hard till they succeed.
This particular story is about one such person in Karnataka who with his vision & foresightedness was able to convert 120 acres of barren lands into a thriving organic farm. What is even more commendable is that the farm is completely self-sustaining & even generates its own electricity!
The extraordinary efforts of past 20 years by Mr Rajesh Naik are inspirational to all farmers & Oddoor farms can easily be voted as an ideal organic farm. Despite hearing many negative opinions from villagers, friends & family about the arability of his ancestral lands, Mr Rajesh took it upon himself to convert the property into lush green pastures.
He started out with developing a 2-acre lake in the middle of the property so as to provide a water resource for the agriculture to sustain. Although initially fought with hurdles, today the lake is full of water, has generated its own natural springs & has also been instrumental in increasing the water table of the surrounding lands.
He started with a small cattle herd but is now a proud owner of 200 cows which supply about 1000 litres of milk every day. The grass for the cattle is grown & harvested from Oddoor farms itself, thus ensuring the health of the cattle & availability of green grass all year round. The 120 acres land also allows plenty of room for the cattle to graze around.
The daily waste from the farm & the cattle dung is used on Oddoor farms to generate bio-gas. The farm has its own large capacity bio-gas plant which not only helps in generation of electricity from the bio-gas to light up the farm but also provides fuel for a 600 KV generator. The bio-gas is further used for cooking too.
The slurry is a rich source of bio compost & is used extensively in the farm to keep the soil organically enriched & fertilized. It is a rich source of minerals & calcium for the fruits & vegetables. The farm also uses organic manure from natural wastes like cow dung & sprays organic pesticides mixed with this manure to ensure that the crops are completely organic.
The lake which started out as a huge pit now holds & supplies 40,000 liters of water which is enough to irrigate the whole farm. Mr Rajesh is also developing another lake adjacent to this one for future use. Oddoor farms is now able to produce a vast variety of crops like areca, coconut, mangoes, haldi, pepper, bananas, cashew nuts, fruits and vegetables because of the ample availability of water from the lake & two large wells.
It is truly a success when the fruits of your hard work start taking shape & literally so in the case of Mr Rajesh who not only believed but also implemented all strategies to build the complete ecosystem for a sustainable Eco-farm.
It is hardtop believe that what were once laterite quarries have now been transformed into a lush green Organic farm. This is a lesson for all that no matter how hard challenges appear to be, donating your sweat for the cause you believe in, constant hard work & perseverance does pave the way towards success eventually!
