In the Itiyathok development block of Uttar Pradesh's Gonda district, a young student is proving that books and farmland can be managed side by side. Preeti Shastri is currently pursuing her MA, and alongside her studies she is earning a healthy income by growing bottle gourd in her field using the trellis, or machan, method. Her effort is fast becoming an example for nearby farmers and for young people in her village.
The advisor who picked up the spade herself
Preeti explains that she works as a CRP under the Pani Sansthan in Basantpur Raja gram panchayat of the Itiyathok block. Her job in this role is to share new farming techniques with local farmers. She believes that simply offering advice does not carry the same weight as adopting a technique yourself and setting a living example. With that thinking in mind, she began cultivating bottle gourd on roughly 1 bigha of land using the machan method.
Time for both studies and the field
Speaking to TrendKia, Preeti Shastri said she keeps to a regular study routine every day and looks after the field in whatever time is left over. It was her wish to try something new in farming that led her to the machan method. In this technique, instead of letting the bottle gourd vines spread across the ground, they are trained upward with the support of bamboo and wire. Because the plants stay elevated, they receive ample sunlight and air, which in turn improves the quality of the crop.
Why the trellis method works
According to Preeti, this method offers several advantages. With the vines held up high, the fruit grows to a better size and the chances of rot or disease drop sharply. The field also stays clean and tidy, and harvesting the fruit becomes much easier. For all these reasons, the method delivers higher yields than ordinary cultivation.
The cost, and the returns
On the economics, Preeti Shastri says cultivating bottle gourd on 1 bigha with the machan method cost her roughly 6 to 7 thousand rupees. Asked how much she expects to earn in return, she says a bottle gourd crop on 1 bigha can fetch an income of around 50 to 60 thousand rupees. In other words, a strong profit on a limited outlay, and all without stepping away from her studies.
