With more than 25 years of experience in agriculture and allied sectors comes Dr D P Singh who has also used his expertise to invent many machines for the betterment of the agricultural sector. Excerpts of a recent conversation with us.
The Asparagus Racemosus
There are so many medicinal and aromatic crops that are cultivated in India and abroad. To keep the focus, I will speak about Asparagas Racemosus, also known as Shatavari Satavar. This is a high-return crop. In 1 acre, a farmer can get more than 5-6 lakhs. In India, people don't have the technology to process the root of this crop. Here, this crop is cultivated in Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Rajasthan, Gujarat, and Maharashtra, some parts of Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, West Bengal, Haryana and Punjab as well. Besides being a high-return crop, you don't have to deal with insects or pests when growing this crop. Hence, there is no need to spray insecticides, pesticides, etc. It is an 18-month crop; however, one or two crops like Green chilly or capsicum can be cultivated as an intercrop along with this crop. That can prove to be of an extra benefit to the farmer. There are so many farmers cultivating this crop. I cultivate it in about 15 - 16 acres. Fresh root production is about 150 quintal on an average. 1 quintal is 15 tonnes. This is the fresh root yield. After processing the fresh root, you can again get another 20 - 25 quintal per acre from the dry roots. So, you can get a max to 200 quintal. The nominal rate is Rs. 30,000/- per quintal and the maximum rate is Rs. 60,500/- (sometimes 70,000) per quintal in the Indian market. The average rate is Rs 40,000/- per quintal. The rates I mentioned is per acre. To process this crop, first, the farmer has to dig out the root of the plant, after which he has to separate the roots, wash it, boil it, peel it and dry it. The problem with this crop is that processing the root of this crop is expensive. But, with the aid of technology to assist in this process, quite an amount of much money can be saved. Hence technology can boost profits. Asparagus has many advantages as a crop. There are thorns on the plants because of which it is safe from the attack of wild animals and small scale natural calamities. The asparagus is not an aromatic plant but a medicinal plant. Also, this plant doesn't get spoilt just because it doesn't get water on time. There are many varieties of asparagus. In India, you find two kinds - the Indian white asparagus and the yellow Nepal asparagus. It is best to go with the yellow one. The white one is not profitable at all. It can be sold at the rate of Rs 3000-Rs 7000/- per kilo, whereas the white asparagus gets sold at the rate of Rs 70 - Rs 1000/- per kilo. You can find buyers in Karnataka, Mumbai, Delhi, Lucknow etc. You can sort out the transport arrangements with them - either you drop your produce to their place or they will come pick it up. I can give proper guidance and support from A-Z when it comes to these crops. It is essential to cultivate the yellow variety for profits.
The Dos and Don’ts
If you need to start a cultivation, you need asparagus seeds not roots. I can connect farmers to people who deal with good seeds. Also, the cultivation should be done very systematically. You can get in touch with me, if needed, at any point in time. This does not call for traditional farming but technical farming and this is a commercial crop. The place that is chosen to grow the asparagus needs good irrigation facility. You will need 10,500 seedlings for one acre of land. That will come up to about Rs 50,000/- per acre. Asparagus, Safed Musli, Agarkara should be adopted during the initial cultivation. Don't go for more than three crops at first cultivation. Work on it for the first 5-6 years. During the course of time, understand the commercially viable. People don't analyse, they just cultivate anything and everything. Then, they struggle to sell and even if they sell, they don't make any profit. Soya bean, cotton etc. are traditional crops, for instance. For profit, aim at commercial crops.
Aloe Vera
Aloe Vera is not a profitable crop because there is no buyer for aloe vera. There are so many farmers cultivating aloe vera but, sadly there is no one to buy and because of that farmers cultivating this plant is suffering huge losses at this point in time. Patanjali used to buy this crop about 2-3 years back; but not anymore. So, in terms of profit making, it is not advisable to cultivate aloe vera at the moment.
Stevia
Stevia also is difficult to sell because there are no buyers. In India, you don't get people who use Stevia a lot. People have refrained from using sugar-free products and hence, Stevia is off demand. In the next 15-20 years, we probably will have consumers for Stevia, but not now. Farmers should cultivate those crops, which will fetch buyers in India. They should cultivate crops that have a good market. It is very essential. New farmers should always start with rough and tough crops. They shouldn't go for crops that is sensitive by nature.
The Profitable Crops
Asparagus, Safed Musli, Akarkara, Ashwagandha, Sarpagandha are profitable crops.
In my opinion, first time farmers, who are interested in cultivating aromatic and medicinal commercial crops, should start with Asparagus, Safed Musli and Akarkara.
It is best for first timers to stay away from aromatic plants as well. People tend to go for Lemon grass, Geranium, Vetiver. These plants need experienced hands and you get the experience from the crops like Asparagus etc. Start with aromatic crops, gain experience for 5-6 years and then venture forward.
The Technology
During processing, after boiling of the crop, we have to peel the root. This peeling process is very expensive. Having said that, all the steps involved in the processing is pretty expensive - washing, boiling, peeling, etc. When you pull out the roots from the soil, they will all be attached to one another. So, the first step is to separate the roots from each other. Then we have to wash, boil, peel and dry. I have invented a peeling machine, by which one can save approximately Rs 1 lakh per acre. This machine will complete the washing and peeling steps. The production capacity of this machine is 10 - 15 quintals per day. I mean 10-15 quintals can be peeled and washed by the machine per day. So, you will need about 15 processing days for one acre of land. Having said that, you can use the machine for about 6-7 hours. You can operate it in two shifts to fasten the process. By doing two shifts you can wash and peel about 30 quintals per day. Start your machine in the morning at about 5:30-6:00 and stop it by about 9:30 -10:00, likewise you can gets 30 quintals washed and peeled in a day. This machine costs Rs 2 Lakh. I have invented a finger cutting machine as well, which costs Rs 25,000/-. I have invented a weeding machine as well, which doesn't require petrol, diesel, etc. because it runs on solar energy. Thus, it is eco-friendly, maintenance free and free of labour requirement. The weeding machine can be used for all kinds of crops that are cultivated in a line. For example, cotton, soya bean, asparagus, sugar cane etc. It adjusts itself to the width between the lines of crops. It has the flexibility to adjust from 4 inch width to 22 inch width between lines of crops. It is an extremely useful device. These machines saves processing and labor cost which in turn leads to marginal profit increase. I have got a green signal from the Government of India as well to go ahead and manufacture more of the machines I have developed. I have been told that the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) will grant me Rs. 25-50 lakhs. I was contacted by IIT Banaras also offering to give me grants. I keep getting such calls from different organisations. I have travelled to different lands to research and develop these machines. I have travelled to almost all cities within India, but all in vain. I was successful when I depended on myself. It was developed in necessity.
The Adviser
If you have a good adviser who is knowledgeable about the crops you cultivate, the likeliness to face problems is frugal. If the adviser is not good enough, it can mean trouble. So, getting a good advisor is worth the effort, time and money. I have also developed an agricultural model which is highly profitable. Using this model you save at least Rs 10 Lakh in a period of 18 months.
On Organic Farming
Don't get hassled by organic farming concepts. Your plans will get shattered with organic concepts. Frankly speaking, we can't be successful with organic farming in India. Also, people who claim to be doing a lot in the organic world is not doing organic either. It is just false advertisement. It takes about 4 harvests to convert a farm into truly organic one. There is so much of chemicals mixed into our soil that it takes about 4-5 years for it to be flushed out. People advertise from the first harvest that their crop is organic, which is not true. I feel one should focus on yield and profit. Every 15 days feed the crop with Jeevamrith along with water. If one harvest gets readied in 6 months, you need to feed the crop with Jeevamrith 15 times at the rate of 200 litres. Your crop will turn fully organic in about 4 years.
Excerpts of a conversation in AgricultureInformation.com. To listen to the full audio of the meeting visit https://bit.ly/31ohn10
Contact :
Dr.D.P.Singh
President,
Krishi Evam Herbal Garden Kalyan Trust (Regd)
HeadOffice : Sudharma Complex,
Mahatma Gandhi Inter College Road, Baraut,
Dist: Baghpat, UP – 250611
Email : dpsinghduhoon@gmail.com
Web : krishievamherbalgarden.com
The Asparagus Racemosus
There are so many medicinal and aromatic crops that are cultivated in India and abroad. To keep the focus, I will speak about Asparagas Racemosus, also known as Shatavari Satavar. This is a high-return crop. In 1 acre, a farmer can get more than 5-6 lakhs. In India, people don't have the technology to process the root of this crop. Here, this crop is cultivated in Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Rajasthan, Gujarat, and Maharashtra, some parts of Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, West Bengal, Haryana and Punjab as well. Besides being a high-return crop, you don't have to deal with insects or pests when growing this crop. Hence, there is no need to spray insecticides, pesticides, etc. It is an 18-month crop; however, one or two crops like Green chilly or capsicum can be cultivated as an intercrop along with this crop. That can prove to be of an extra benefit to the farmer. There are so many farmers cultivating this crop. I cultivate it in about 15 - 16 acres. Fresh root production is about 150 quintal on an average. 1 quintal is 15 tonnes. This is the fresh root yield. After processing the fresh root, you can again get another 20 - 25 quintal per acre from the dry roots. So, you can get a max to 200 quintal. The nominal rate is Rs. 30,000/- per quintal and the maximum rate is Rs. 60,500/- (sometimes 70,000) per quintal in the Indian market. The average rate is Rs 40,000/- per quintal. The rates I mentioned is per acre. To process this crop, first, the farmer has to dig out the root of the plant, after which he has to separate the roots, wash it, boil it, peel it and dry it. The problem with this crop is that processing the root of this crop is expensive. But, with the aid of technology to assist in this process, quite an amount of much money can be saved. Hence technology can boost profits. Asparagus has many advantages as a crop. There are thorns on the plants because of which it is safe from the attack of wild animals and small scale natural calamities. The asparagus is not an aromatic plant but a medicinal plant. Also, this plant doesn't get spoilt just because it doesn't get water on time. There are many varieties of asparagus. In India, you find two kinds - the Indian white asparagus and the yellow Nepal asparagus. It is best to go with the yellow one. The white one is not profitable at all. It can be sold at the rate of Rs 3000-Rs 7000/- per kilo, whereas the white asparagus gets sold at the rate of Rs 70 - Rs 1000/- per kilo. You can find buyers in Karnataka, Mumbai, Delhi, Lucknow etc. You can sort out the transport arrangements with them - either you drop your produce to their place or they will come pick it up. I can give proper guidance and support from A-Z when it comes to these crops. It is essential to cultivate the yellow variety for profits.
The Dos and Don’ts
If you need to start a cultivation, you need asparagus seeds not roots. I can connect farmers to people who deal with good seeds. Also, the cultivation should be done very systematically. You can get in touch with me, if needed, at any point in time. This does not call for traditional farming but technical farming and this is a commercial crop. The place that is chosen to grow the asparagus needs good irrigation facility. You will need 10,500 seedlings for one acre of land. That will come up to about Rs 50,000/- per acre. Asparagus, Safed Musli, Agarkara should be adopted during the initial cultivation. Don't go for more than three crops at first cultivation. Work on it for the first 5-6 years. During the course of time, understand the commercially viable. People don't analyse, they just cultivate anything and everything. Then, they struggle to sell and even if they sell, they don't make any profit. Soya bean, cotton etc. are traditional crops, for instance. For profit, aim at commercial crops.
Aloe Vera
Aloe Vera is not a profitable crop because there is no buyer for aloe vera. There are so many farmers cultivating aloe vera but, sadly there is no one to buy and because of that farmers cultivating this plant is suffering huge losses at this point in time. Patanjali used to buy this crop about 2-3 years back; but not anymore. So, in terms of profit making, it is not advisable to cultivate aloe vera at the moment.
Stevia
Stevia also is difficult to sell because there are no buyers. In India, you don't get people who use Stevia a lot. People have refrained from using sugar-free products and hence, Stevia is off demand. In the next 15-20 years, we probably will have consumers for Stevia, but not now. Farmers should cultivate those crops, which will fetch buyers in India. They should cultivate crops that have a good market. It is very essential. New farmers should always start with rough and tough crops. They shouldn't go for crops that is sensitive by nature.
The Profitable Crops
Asparagus, Safed Musli, Akarkara, Ashwagandha, Sarpagandha are profitable crops.
In my opinion, first time farmers, who are interested in cultivating aromatic and medicinal commercial crops, should start with Asparagus, Safed Musli and Akarkara.
It is best for first timers to stay away from aromatic plants as well. People tend to go for Lemon grass, Geranium, Vetiver. These plants need experienced hands and you get the experience from the crops like Asparagus etc. Start with aromatic crops, gain experience for 5-6 years and then venture forward.
The Technology
During processing, after boiling of the crop, we have to peel the root. This peeling process is very expensive. Having said that, all the steps involved in the processing is pretty expensive - washing, boiling, peeling, etc. When you pull out the roots from the soil, they will all be attached to one another. So, the first step is to separate the roots from each other. Then we have to wash, boil, peel and dry. I have invented a peeling machine, by which one can save approximately Rs 1 lakh per acre. This machine will complete the washing and peeling steps. The production capacity of this machine is 10 - 15 quintals per day. I mean 10-15 quintals can be peeled and washed by the machine per day. So, you will need about 15 processing days for one acre of land. Having said that, you can use the machine for about 6-7 hours. You can operate it in two shifts to fasten the process. By doing two shifts you can wash and peel about 30 quintals per day. Start your machine in the morning at about 5:30-6:00 and stop it by about 9:30 -10:00, likewise you can gets 30 quintals washed and peeled in a day. This machine costs Rs 2 Lakh. I have invented a finger cutting machine as well, which costs Rs 25,000/-. I have invented a weeding machine as well, which doesn't require petrol, diesel, etc. because it runs on solar energy. Thus, it is eco-friendly, maintenance free and free of labour requirement. The weeding machine can be used for all kinds of crops that are cultivated in a line. For example, cotton, soya bean, asparagus, sugar cane etc. It adjusts itself to the width between the lines of crops. It has the flexibility to adjust from 4 inch width to 22 inch width between lines of crops. It is an extremely useful device. These machines saves processing and labor cost which in turn leads to marginal profit increase. I have got a green signal from the Government of India as well to go ahead and manufacture more of the machines I have developed. I have been told that the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) will grant me Rs. 25-50 lakhs. I was contacted by IIT Banaras also offering to give me grants. I keep getting such calls from different organisations. I have travelled to different lands to research and develop these machines. I have travelled to almost all cities within India, but all in vain. I was successful when I depended on myself. It was developed in necessity.
The Adviser
If you have a good adviser who is knowledgeable about the crops you cultivate, the likeliness to face problems is frugal. If the adviser is not good enough, it can mean trouble. So, getting a good advisor is worth the effort, time and money. I have also developed an agricultural model which is highly profitable. Using this model you save at least Rs 10 Lakh in a period of 18 months.
On Organic Farming
Don't get hassled by organic farming concepts. Your plans will get shattered with organic concepts. Frankly speaking, we can't be successful with organic farming in India. Also, people who claim to be doing a lot in the organic world is not doing organic either. It is just false advertisement. It takes about 4 harvests to convert a farm into truly organic one. There is so much of chemicals mixed into our soil that it takes about 4-5 years for it to be flushed out. People advertise from the first harvest that their crop is organic, which is not true. I feel one should focus on yield and profit. Every 15 days feed the crop with Jeevamrith along with water. If one harvest gets readied in 6 months, you need to feed the crop with Jeevamrith 15 times at the rate of 200 litres. Your crop will turn fully organic in about 4 years.
Excerpts of a conversation in AgricultureInformation.com. To listen to the full audio of the meeting visit https://bit.ly/31ohn10
Contact :
Dr.D.P.Singh
President,
Krishi Evam Herbal Garden Kalyan Trust (Regd)
HeadOffice : Sudharma Complex,
Mahatma Gandhi Inter College Road, Baraut,
Dist: Baghpat, UP – 250611
Email : dpsinghduhoon@gmail.com
Web : krishievamherbalgarden.com