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BUSINESS STANDARD [DELHI] – 12-07-2006

Himalaya, IDEI sign pact for contract farming

Our Bureau / Chennai/ Bangalore July 12, 2006

Bangalore-based Himalaya Drug Company and International Development Enterprises

India (IDEI), a New Delhi-based NGO, have entered into an alliance to explore ways to
help small farmers through the contract farming route.

Addressing reporters here on Tuesday, Ravi Prasad, CEO, Himalaya Drug Company said
that as part of the initiative, small farmers are to be linked-up as suppliers of raw
materials to the company and IDEI will act as a catalyst in helping farmers with a know-
how of micro-drip irrigation technology.

After the introduction of contract farming to small farmers, the company in later phases
may transfer technology related to herbal production cultivation and processing to these
farmers, he added.

Himalaya Drug Company all these years was active in contract farming in and around
Dehra Dun hills. Now due to rapid urbanisation, cultivable areas are shrinking and the
company is exploring other areas for herbal cultivation.

In Dehra Dun, the company has about 1,000 acres under contract farming cultivating rare
Himalayan herbs. Now, Himalaya Drug Company plans to exploit Indian agro-climatic
regions by taking up herbal cultivation in a few south Indian states, north east and
Maharashtra.

To begin contract farming operations in south India, the company has begun the contract
farming operations on 600 acres that have been identified in Karnataka. Nelamangala,
Dobbespet and Bidadi taluks around Bangalore city have been identified to source rare
varieties of herbs by involving 40 farmers.

Explaining IDEI's approach to poverty alleviation, Amitabh Sadangi, chief executive

officer, IDEI said the approach aims at transferring income generating technologies to
rural poor families.

Traditionally, poor farmers have been ill-served or ignored as a market segment by

technology dissemination efforts on the assumption that they have poor spending
capacity.
Since 1991, IDEI has been waging a war against poverty and hunger, providing over 7
lakh farmers with affordable technologies that are aimed at enhancing farm productivity
and income, he added.