It is said that ours is a land of great followers but great followers are often led by great leaders. Barely few kms away from Ranchi there is a man who changed his life and instigated change in the lives of more than 300 farmers who earlier had to live on income that usually fall prey to problems typical to traditional form of agriculture.
Shankar Bedia, a 25 year old man hailing from rural hinterland of Ranchi district, was a nomad and often migrated for works to maintain his family. Bedia, who hails from tribal community by the same name, started his life as daily wager in 1998 finally turning to lac cultivation in 2005. Bedia came in contact with few trainers who were imparting lac cultivation skills in Sarjamdih village in West Singhbum and subsequently at his village Jeradih in Angara block which turned him towards lac cultivation.
“I used to wander in search of jobs, however, once during the course of migration I attended a training programme aimed at imparting knowledge about lac cultivation. That was the turning point in my life,” said Bedia. The 25-year-old farmer’s success journey began in 2005 from the large tract of land that he inherited from his father. Bedia influenced by the training programme and commercial viability of lac started cultivating the commodity in 2005 and tasted success one year later when he harvested first crop. The man now owns a tractor and sends his children to a private school at Jonha.
“I borrowed Rs 500 from a self-help group and invested Rs 350 from my pocket. The crop made me earn Rs 4500,” continued Bedia. However, the journey continued further and in 2012 Bedia’s earnings from lac cultivation reached Rs 10 lakh by adjusting the cost that he incurred in cultivating the commodity. Bedia’s contribution won him the award of “Outstanding lac Farmer” of 2014 at a function organized by Indian Institute of Natural Resins and Gums (IINRG) at Ranchi on February 6.
The man who made wonders for himself inspired several others to shun the age old practice of single crop cultivation brining smile to dreary faces of farmers in Angara and Gumla. The farmer turned trainer, Bedia, now imparts knowledge and lac cultivation skills to farmers living in adjoining villages. He has trained over 300 farmers in seven villages of Angara block besides five villages of Gumla who jointly produce around 200 quintals of lac with a market value of Rs 1.05 crore.
“People in my village were driven to lac cultivation because of my success. They now understand the potential of lac cultivation. Today we produce so much that we don’t have market for the commodity,”concluded Bedia. Meanwhile, speaking at the function Chief Secretary R S Sharma stressed on bringing more people in the trade of lac cultivation and assured institutional help to farmers interested in cultivating lac. “If we want sustainable development then activities like lac cultivation and allied agricultural activities could considered as an option,” pointed out Sharma.