From Struggle to Success: How a woman farmer in Daringbadi earned lakhs from grafted brinjal cultivation

By Arun Kumar Sahoo

Phulbani: 15: Success in farming rarely comes overnight—it is the result of perseverance, innovation, and timely support. In Kandhamal district’s picturesque Daringbadi block, a woman farmer has become the talk of the region by proving just that.

Banita Sahu of Dandima village under Shraniketa panchayat has emerged as a role model for the farming community by adopting grafted vegetable cultivation for the first time in her area. With sheer determination and the courage to experiment, she has turned her small acre of land into a source of prosperity, earning over Rs 2 lakh since July through brinjal farming.

Banita had earlier experimented with various vegetables, but this time she decided to try grafted brinjal seedlings—an initiative introduced by the block administration under the Odisha Livelihood Mission. She purchased 2,000 seedlings at a subsidized price of just Rs 8 each and planted them on one acre. With an investment of about Rs 65,000 in mulching, fertilizers, and other inputs, she soon began to see encouraging results.

So far, Banita has harvested and sold more than 5,000 kg of brinjal, fetching her handsome profits. On an average, she sells around 500 kg of brinjal daily in the local markets, where the demand for the crop is high due to its superior quality and taste. Encouraged by this success, she now plans to scale up her production to earn several more lakhs in the coming months.

Her achievement has drawn attention from both government officials and private stakeholders. The plantation was closely monitored by BDO Prithi Ranjan Rath and Odisha Livelihood Mission Program Officer Pintu Nayak, who confirmed that the block administration has distributed nearly 10,000 grafted seedlings in the region. According to them, the two grafted varieties introduced are not only yielding higher produce but also fetching better prices because of their quality.

What makes Banita’s success story even more significant is its impact on the local economy. Daringbadi has long depended on vegetables supplied from Ganjam districts such as Soro, Hinjilikatu, and Sheragada, particularly outside the rainy season. Farmers like Banita have the potential to reduce this dependency by cultivating high-yield crops locally, ensuring both self-reliance and year-round supply.

Inspired by her success, many women farmers in the block are now considering shifting to grafted vegetable cultivation, combining traditional agro-horticulture with modern practices. If replicated widely, such initiatives can usher in a silent agricultural revolution in Kandhamal, transforming the district into a hub for quality vegetable production.

For Banita, the journey has just begun. From being a small farmer experimenting with different crops to becoming a beacon of change in her community, she has shown that with innovation, persistence, and institutional support, farming can indeed be both sustainable and profitable.

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Photograph:

Reaping Fruits of Success: Banita Sahoo along with her fellow villagers in her vegetable farm.