‘NMDC, to increase the income of farmers, is making gardens of fruit plants’

Central Chronicle News
Bacheli, Sep 10: NMDC, Bacheli has started a garden building program under CSR in Dantewada district of Chhattisgarh from the year 2020, with the goal of providing 2.5 lakh saplings in five years to build gardens in the fields of farmers who have fencing and water facilities.
The purpose of the garden is to improve the living standards of the farmers by increasing the income of the tribal communities of villages like Benpal, Padhapur, Pena Bacheli, Dugeli, Bade kameli, Nerli, Bhansi, Dhurli, Gamawada etc. because traditionally the farmers here cultivate only paddy.
Which is not very profitable, the reason behind it is that the cultivation of paddy in this area is completely dependent on rain, due to which there is no rain on time or due to less rainfall, and the crop also gets spoiled.
The process of garden construction is started every year from the month of November, in which first of all such farmers are selected who have fencing and irrigated fields. After that, the above farmers are given training in scientific method with the help of the state government for garden construction.
In the training, information is given about soil and climatic conditions, spacing between plants, pit making, quality/quantity of organic manure to be applied in it, precautions to be taken in plant care etc.
After the training, the NMDC Bacheli CSR team ensures that the farmers who have been trained have prepared pits in their fields as per the information given during the training. The farmers who are left behind in digging the pits are motivated again.
After the above process, hybrid plants of Guava, Jackfruit, Mango, Lime, Litchi, Moringa, Papaya, Coconut, Cashew etc. are given to all the farmers on demand and it is also ensured that the farmers to whom the plants have been given are given at that time.
The above plants being supplied to the farmers are of hybrid and good species, out of which maximum plants will start giving good quality fruits in three to four years.
Under this five year plan, about fifty thousand saplings were planted last year. Like last year, this year also about thirty thousand improved varieties of fruit plants have been planted by NMDC Bacheli and District Administration, D.W.D.
The plantation work of the supplied fruit plants has been completed by the farmers. These plants will start bearing fruit in the next three to four years, which farmers will be able to get profit by selling them in the local market and outside markets. Some of the saplings that were supplied last year have started bearing fruit.