Ram Krishnan also plans to build a warehouse to store the grains produced by the farmers.
"On the day of the harvest, farmers don't get anything for themselves. The entire grain is under debt to the bank. So, a plentiful harvest is bad news for them because the price goes down. We city dwellers are happy with a plentiful harvest but they are not. They can store half of their harvest in the godowns, so that they can reap the benefits," he explained.
Ram Krishnan has also started a community centre -- the Bharatiyar Community Centre -- for the villagers, where farmers are taught various things including organising health camps, Self Help Groups, improving agricultural production etc. IIT engineer-turned-farmer R Madhavan is helping him in this endeavour. At the centre, farmers also try out the methods adopted by Madhavan for first-hand knowledge of new agricultural methods.
Image: A Japota sapling at the Vilathikulam nursery.
Also see: An engineer from IIT, now a farmer
Advertisement
