Dream of betel leaf farming comes true for this youngster in Yadgir village

An M.Com graduate has set an example of how a farmer can earn several thousand rupees in a month, using modern technologies with the help of government schemes in the agriculture sector. Vishwashankar Santoshkumar Shivaray, 26, from Yelheri village in Gurmitkal taluk of Yadgir district, decided to become an agriculturist instead of looking for a job in any company after getting his Masters degree in commerce.

An M.Com graduate has set an example of how a farmer can earn several thousand rupees in a month, using modern technologies with the help of government schemes in the agriculture sector.

Vishwashankar Santoshkumar Shivaray, 26, from Yelheri village in Gurmitkal taluk of Yadgir district, decided to become an agriculturist instead of looking for a job in any company after getting his Masters degree in commerce.

He started cultivating betel crop on one acre of his own land in Yelheri village with a subsidy of ₹18 lakh under the National Horticulture Mission (NHM) scheme from the Horticulture Department eight months ago. He spent a total of ₹36 lakh to get all rights for the process of betel farming.

Mr. Vishwashankar erected a polyhouse on a whole one-acre of land and cultivated the crop. Now, he gets around three lakh individual leaves on a half acre of land. He earns around ₹70,000 a month by selling betel leaves. His income will increase during the summer season, which is a good time to sell betel leaves.

“Around six lakh leaves are produced on an area of one acre. We harvest the leaves once every 15 days and transport them to open markets in Kalaburagi, Shahapur, Shorapur, Yadgir, and also Narayanapet in Telangana State by way of goods vehicles or government buses,” Mr. Vishwashankar said. 

After fencing the particular land for betel crops, he installed three pumpsets for irrigation. Furthermore, the land is covered by drip irrigation.

“We require skilled labour for planting saplings and harvesting leaves. Therefore, we are hiring labourers from Chincholi in Kalaburagi district. Each labourer will get ₹500 as a wage, in addition to ₹200 for meals per day. The labourers stay at the farmhouse until the completion of harvesting,” he explained.