Submission of proposal for award under HP State

Innovation Award Scheme for Agriculture /

Horticulture sector

360° Productive Farms

Holistic Approach to Food Sufficiency, Market Orientation and
Responsible farming practices

Submitted by

Mandeep Verma
www.swaastikfarms.com
1 Applicant / Mandeep Verma
Organization
Name ( SWAASTIK FARMS )
www.swaastikfarms.com

2 Address with Email

& Village Shilli , Post Office Damakari
Telephone Number ,Thesil/Distt Solan . 173212 H.P

Email: swaastikfarms@gmail.com

Ph : 7018516200,9857890002,9418023951
3 Title of the 360° Productive Farms
Innovation Holistic Approach to Food
Sufficiency, Market Orientation and
Responsible farming practices

4 Innovation Details
i. Background/Conceptualization of the Innovation

ii. Objective of the Innovation/Problem Analysis

iii. Functioning of the Innovation-How it works?
iv. Socio-Economic and Technological relevance/ applicability of
the Innovation
v. Cost-effectiveness, efficiency and cost benefits of the
Innovation
vi. Impact of the Innovation in specific field/ Improvement in
functioning of existing system
vii. Practicability- compatibility with the existing system and its
practicability in implementation
viii. Additional benefits and future strategy
ix. Recognition/Award/Appreciation/Presentation or Publication
etc. of the Innovation
x. Relevant photographs
Background/Objective of the Innovation

There has been a decline in the proportion of people engaged in the

agricultural pursuits in the past few decades. This indicates movement of
people from the agriculture sector to the secondary and tertiary sector.
Furthermore, erratic climatic conditions, monkey and other animals
menace, high input and cultivation cost, below production sale price and
many other factors have posed challenges to the economic viability of
farming in the state. Farmers have switched over from the agricultural
profession leaving the land uncultivated.
As a consequence, a significant portion of farm land gets abandoned.
This has led to land degradation. In some of the niches of the state
farmers have opted for cash crops like off-season vegetable crops and
fruit cultivation and they are growing these crops over a period of time
mainly because of its profitability. The monoculture of high value cash
crops (cultivation of same crop over a period of time) along with
extensive unbalanced fertilizer use and high doses of plant protection
measures for a long time have seriously threatened the land quality and
have led to decrease in per unit of land productivity. Overexploitation
and degradation of land has become a major threat to sustainable
agricultural development in general and production in particular.

Keeping in mind the aforementioned concerns the idea of 360°

Productive Farms evolved keeping in view the Holistic Approach to
Food Sufficiency, Responsible farming practices and Market Orientation
Function of the Innovation –How it Works.

The concept of 360 degree productive farms is based on the idea of

holistic approach of the Agricultural/Horticultural practices which not
only provides round the year food sufficiency to the farmer but also
reduces the input cost on day to day farm management activities, it also
increases the farm fertility by using natural farming methods and extra
income generation through innovative selling of the farm produce and
diversifying the existing resources.

In a nutshell it’s a blend of modern farming inputs (HDP, drip irrigation,

solar fencing etc) with natural farming practices (SPNF concepts) and
using current Era platforms like Websites, Social media, agricultural
Tourism etc for selling the poison free produce on the price decided by
the farmer and not Mandi’s /Market.

The objective is to make the farmer self reliant to meet his/her family
needs and focus on efficient farm management to generate source of
income through diversification.

Responsible
cultivation

Food Market
Sufficiency orientation

360°
Productive
Farms
Our Farm Tour!!

Swaastik Farms, located at village Shilli, 5kms from Solan City is a

benchmark and learning center for many individuals who either wish to
venture into farming sector or revamp their existing farms and practices.

Established in the year 2014 - 2015, we have paved our path on concept
of “Responsible growing “without causing any harm to the nature with
our cultivation practices. A land which was abandoned by our elders due
to monkey menace and lack of irrigation facilities is now a well
established KIWI FRUIT orchard (500 plants) and Kiwi plant
nursery, producing tons of fruits and thousands of kiwi plants for
selling.

Another plot, with a declining yield and high input cost due to
monoculture of Tomato crop and increasing price of Hybrid seeds and
chemical inputs from last 20 years is now a naturally cultivated apple
orchard with around (1100 plants on M9 rootstock )with SPNF
practices. From our orchards we are not only generating good income
but also innovating new package and practices for sustainable
agriculture.

Below is the glimpse of our package and practices which not only lead
to our economic well being but also acted as a torch bearer for our
village and other individuals in a state at large.

Food Sufficiency for self/others and farm animals

We don’t practise monoculture at our farm. A diversification of legume

crops along with main crop not only provides necessary Nitrogen to the
plants but also provides us with fresh green vegetable/pulses for kitchen
use and for selling.
Along with the legumes, we also cultivate wheat, corn, Onion, ginger,
garlic, turmeric, potato, coriander, radish, turnip, spinach etc for our end
use and market.

The grass in the basins and other areas is used as green manure and
mulching for plants. Surplus is used as an animal fodder for our cows
and other families with no pasture lands. Currently almost 6 families
benefit from our farm grass. This mutual tie up helps us in keeping our
farm clean and in return the apatite of many cows/other animals is met.

Natural farming Practices :

Our farming is based on the Natural methodology of cultivation. We use

indigenous knowledge of village elders / Bahadur (Nepal people) and
imply traditional practices in our cultivation. The results of the same our
worth mentioning and blending this valuable wisdom with modern farm
practices creates wonders.

SPNF ( The Subhash Palekar Natural Farming) methods are

extensively practiced at our farm. Jeevamrit , Saptdhanaynkur , khatti
Lassi , Neemastra etc is used at our farm for soil conditioning , plant
growth and diseases management.

Our Natural Farm Practices keeps us, our produce and our environment
in a well being state. A lot of Money is saved on farm inputs as most
of the combinations are prepared from locally available resorces. “A
penny Saved is Penny Earned “.

We have also created a watts app Group and verbally preach the natural
farming methods and its benefits to the villagers. As a result we have
been able to mould few farmers to practice SPNF in their farms.
Creation of Cluster under HPHDP Project.

We acted as a torch bearer for Kiwi and Apple cultivation in the area.
The concept of HDP in apple, kiwi fruit farming was unheard and people
were reluctant to adopt these modern horticulture crops.

We set an example in HDP (High Density Plantation ) and after seeing

the success and scope of apple cultivation in the area people were
interested to adopt this concept . With the Help of Horticulture
Department we were able to establish the Cluster in our area
(SHILLI CLUSTER) and formed SHILLI WATER USER
ASSOCIATION under World Bank funded HPHDP Project. Almost 7
water tanks will be built under this scheme which will enable villagers
to effectively store and utilize water.

Use of Modern farming technique/Equipments:

We try and use modern farming techniques and equipments at our farms.
Solar Fencing, Drip Irrigation System, Sprinkler system, Power tillers,
brush cutters, farm lighting for late hour working during summers are
few examples that can be seen at our farm.

People practice what they see, today most of our villagers are using the
modern farming equipment and practices which earlier they were
unaware of. This has made their work easier and resources are utilized
efficiently.

Our Farms are secured by Solar Fencing which gives us an easy option
to cultivate any crop without the fear of monkey’s or other animals
which cause damage to the crops.
Water conservation and harvesting :“More crop per
Drop “
The demand for irrigation in the village rises considerably during the
months of May –June; this puts a lot of pressure on the local water
source. To cater our water requirement we extensively use the mulching
practice under the plants and use drip irrigation system to conserve
water.
We have also built 2 Ponds with PVC lining (capacity around 2lakh
Ltr) in which rain water and water from other natural sources is stored.

This is a very cost effective method of water storage and can be easily
replicated by a farmer .No mason is required for the construction of the
same.

Waste land utilization and development :

In most of the cases “Toda” (slanting land across the fields) is left
uncultivated which gradually gets eroded with due course of time. At
our farm, we have made small steps out of them and plantation of fruit
crop has been done. This would not only save the land from erosion but
also add to the income generation.

Farm Diversification Through Nursery establishment

Though, the farm generates good income through crop diversification,

however the nursery establishment also adds up to the farm income. We
have a Govt approved and registered nursery for Kiwi plants with an
annual production of 8000 to 10000 plants. The kiwi pruning
generates a lot of hard wood, which, if not utilized is a waste, this can
be utilized for nursery propagation or for creating a bud bank.
This establishment adds a feather to our cap in farm income.
 Agriculture Tourism.
Bringing the customers to your farm and selling the end produce, at your
place and at your price is the best thing a farmer can do with his
produce.
Most of the farms in Himachal are scenically located and ours is no
exception. We are shaping our farms in the same fashion and soon there
would be organized agriculture tourism at our farms. Currently we do
cater to local clients from in and around areas but soon we shall expand
to cater tourist from other states as well.
There are scenic points that are being developed with sitting
arrangements. In the near future we shall also have recreational outdoor
activities for our guest.

Product Marketing through Online Media

Our Products are marketed through various platforms of Social Media.

Our farm has its own website with the URL www.swaastikfarms.com on
which clients from PAN India can order their produce. Post advance
payment through Internet banking, Debit/Credit Cards, the order is then
dispatched to the client with an online tracking option available to the
end user. We call it “Farm to Fork model “

We also market/Sell our produce through Watts App Groups and

Facebook etc with the help of our friends and relatives.

Attractive Gift Pack options are also available for our produce
(Especially Kiwi) during the festive seasons like Dipawali.
Socio Economic & Technical relevance:
The farm Model is designed in such a manner that it covers all spheres
of the Farm owner. The income from farm not only boosts the economic
status of the farmer but also makes the farmer more socially acceptable
and respected in the society.
The interdependence of the farm activities such as involvement of the
local labor to manage the day to day activities, giving away the extra
grass as fodder to the people with no pasture lands, availability of poison
free grain and vegetables at reasonable price locally adds a lot to the
social sphere.

The model is easily replicable in small to large farms to meet the

individual /community needs while working in complete harmony with
the nature.

Technically also, the model is easy to adopt and practice. With the help
of Govt Schemes the farmer can easily set up Solar fencing, Drip
Irrigation, Anti Hail net coverage, SPNF model of cultivation at a
minimum share from the farmers pocket.

Cost Effectiveness, efficiency and cost benefit.

The 360 degree Productive farm model is easy to adopt and practice on
all farm sizes to meet the individual or community needs. The practices
involve in the model gives the boost to the farmers’ income, saves time
by adopting better means of irrigation and enable the farmer to sell his
produce from the farm itself. The SPNF model of cultivation reduces the
input cost and improves the soil fertility. By cultivating a poison free
produce the farmer can sell it on a premium and diversification of the
farm into agricultural tourism, nursery establishment give a boost to his
income.
Compatibility with the existing system
This model can be easily replicated on the existing farm system. The
farmer needs to be educated about the concepts of Multi cropping,
intelligent crop rotation and compatibility of different plant species
which mutually benefit each other.
The focus should be on the production of poison free crop and
improving soil/water/air health by adopting natural farming practices.
Farm modernization can be easily adopted by taking the help of
Agriculture/Horticulture departments for solar fencing, drip irrigation
system etc.
Effective utilization of space (slant areas –TODA ) can be easily done
by building terraces or planting outdoor species of flowers/herbs /spices
like marigold/coriander etc.
Water management and harvesting can be easily practiced building
ponds /tank on the waste land individually or on the community basis.
Digital revolution and lower data tariffs also enable the farmers to
market their produce locally and across state/international boundaries.

Future strategy :
If the farm topography and time with the farmer permits, the farms can
further be utilized for various other activities like solar power
generation by installing panels on the periphery of the farm. Te energy
harvested can be put to farm/household use or for reselling to govt.

Species of animals like dogs, cats, rabbits, birds etc can be breeded and
extra income can be generated.

Skill based trainings like grafting, pruning, nursery management;

organic cultivation can be given to people on payment basis.
An A2 milk base dairy farm can also be opened on any scale depending
on the farm space and fodder availability.

To fetch better pricing of the produce the processing unit can also be
opened on individual or community basis.

Relevant Photographs of the Farm:

The photographs below showcase the day to day innovations and
practices at our farm which in totality makes our farm a 360°
Productive Farm.

Picture 1 – Apple farm during dormancy. Fodder is cultivated in

Empty space during winters to ensure green fodder to the animals.
Picture 2 – Legume crop between every plant. This ensures
adequate nitrogen supply and provide us with green beans and
pulses for end use.

Picture 3 – Drip System is installed for irrigation. This saves lot of

water and time.
Picture 4 – Apple orchard on M9 Rootstock during Fruiting.

Picture 5 – Inter cropping. Showcasing intercropping of corn

Picture 6- Intercropping of ginger /turmeric/potato etc.
Picture 7 – Jeevamrit Preparation and Foliar application
Picture 8 – Pond preparation with PVC lining – a cost effective
water storage solution
Picture 9 – Kiwi fruit orchard during fruiting.
Picture 10 – Concrete walking path and sitting area with a scenic
view.
Picture 11- efficient utilization of slanting area ( Toda ) by step
formation and planting the kiwi fruit wines.

Picture 12 – Kiwi Plant Nursery

Picture 13 – a glimpse of our website www.swaastikfarms.com
Picture 14 – our Media coverage – Apart from social media our
presence can be seen on leading newspapers like Amar Ujala,
Himachal Dastak, Dainik Jagran, Divya Himachal , Other state
regional newspapers , Doordarshan , Zee Hindustaan , city channel
etc.
Thank You