During the national lockdown to combat the COVID19 pandemic, small and marginal farmers of Jharkhand were finding it extremely difficult to sell their recently harvested vegetables. Jharkhand State Livelihood Promotion Society (JSLPS) assessed the situation around Ranchi and connected the farmers to the consumers using technology.
With several localities not getting fresh vegetables, the Ranchi district administration let JSLPS initiate online selling of the same. An app called ‘Aajevika Farm Fresh’ which was in the testing stage was moved ahead to supply vegetables based on online orders by consumers in Ranchi.
Jharkhand Horticulture Intensification by Micro Drip Irrigation (JHIMDI) Project which is financed by Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) is implemented by JSLPS and aims at improving the livelihood of small and marginal farmers. It also encourages social participation of women through promotion of micro drip irrigation (MDI) system sand intensive technical support for enhancement of productivity and marketability of horticulture products.
About 185 women farmers, who have adopted MDI have been at the forefront of supplying vegetables in the cities. In a span of 15 days, a customer base of 785 consumers has been created and 8 MT of vegetables for an amount of Rs 7.4 Lakh has been sold following all norms of personal hygiene and social distancing.
“Each day about 27 varieties of vegetables are supplied including cabbage, cauliflower, spinach cucumber, chilly, gourds, potatoes, tomatoes and others. The 185 farmers supply the vegetables on a rotation basis based on consumer demand. They belong to adjacent areas like Argora Block, Ormanjhi Block of Ranchi district as well as Khunti district. The initiative has been appreciated by Ministry of Rural Development, Government of India,” said Dr Praveen Kumar Singh, State Program Manager JSLPS and a key official for JHIMDI project.
The model has enabled farmers to directly sell to the consumers and city vendors fetching them a reasonable price for their produce. The urban consumers also have access to fresh vegetables at their doorstep. It has also provided JSLPS insights to improve and up scale the online selling model.
“COVID19 has thrown numerous challenges and JICA appreciated the efforts made by JSLPS to come up with innovative solutions which benefits both farmers and consumers. JICA is keen to support and promote innovations that improve the well being of people and help them tide over the crisis,” said Katsuo Matsumoto, Chief Representative JICA India.
The JHIMDI Project targets 30,000 farmers’ households across nine districts of Jharkhand. The farmers supported under the project are members of women Self Help Group (SHG) formed by JSLPS and small and marginal farmers who own or lease farmland over 0.1 ha. It provides agriculture infrastructure including MDI, technical training and also supports utilization of new technologies to benefit farmers.