Last Updated on March 5, 2022 at 8:49 pm
A soldier never accepts defeat, after a glorious tenure in Indian Navy, Dheeraj Kumar began with second innings as Agriprenuer. Besides making handsome income, he has become talk of the town because of his progressive vision to tap Horticulture potential which is a deviation from what people usually prefer.
Many farmers are quitting agriculture nowadays and moving to cities in search of better livelihood. Under these challenging circumstances, Dheeraj Kumar coming from an entirely different background has become a role model for many aspiring Agripreneurs especially the youth who are looking forward to make fortunes in Agriculture and Allied sectors.
Crediting his success to the District Administration, Dheeraj Kumar expresses his gratitude to the Department of Horticulture Kathua for providing Financial as well as technical assistance & support besides acquainting him about the tailor made schemes.
According to Horticulture Office Kathua, the Progressive farmer Dheeraj Kumar hailing from Haripur Village of Border Sub Division Hiranagar has cultivated strawberries on a field measuring 22 Kanal. With the handholding of the department, he has cultivated 3 different varieties viz. Camarosa, Winter Dawn and Nubila.
Regarding the support extended by the department, an official said that out of the total investment of Rs.6 Lakhs by the farmer, the department has provided subsidy to the tune of Rs. 2.86 Lakh which is nearly 50% of the total investment and it is expected to produce a yield of Rs. 15-20 Lakhs which is in line with the PM’s vision of Doubling the farmers’ income.
In addition to this, the department has also provided the subsidy to the farmer on purchase of power tillers and installation of the drip irrigation system.
Hailing the efforts of the govt, Dheeraj Kumar said that the enhancement of the amount of subsidy to Rs. 13000/kanal from the earlier ceiling of Rs. 3125/Kanal has come as a shot in arm for new comers like him. This is a huge relief for the farming community as it will make the sector more lucrative for the aspiring agripreneurs.
Sharing his success story, Dheeraj Kumar said that he has engaged around 10 people for levelling, picking, packaging and transport purposes, which he termed as a gratifying experience as offering the avenues of employment to the locals has given him great happiness.
Full of confidence, Kumar said that he is supplying his produce to the Big Malls and Business houses viz. Jammu Basket, Easy Day, Big Bazar, Markets in and around Pathankot and areas in the periphery of Punjab adjoining Kathua.
“I am also exploring the option of Online selling of the produce and is in talks with a few e-commerce platforms as well” he said .
A winner of Horticulture Expo Jammu Award, Dheeraj Kumar said that there was no looking back for him after he opted for the State of the Art technology viz drip irrigation which besides lowering the water dependency ensures More Crop Per Drop.
