BERRY COOL
Life was already tough for 18-year-old Sikandar Mehta from Chilhaki Bigha village in Bihar’s Aurangabad district, but 2011 brought him fresh misery. Finishing schooling, Sikandar’s graduation dreams were shattered by his father’s poverty. Left with no option, he started working as a migrant worker in a strawberry farm in Hisar, Haryana. Offered Rs 3,500 a month, on the condition that he wouldn’t leave before six months, the job seemed harsh, but turned out to be a blessing in disguise. As he picked up the skills, Sikandar started considering replicating the idea back home. “I wondered why we shouldn’t be do such farming on our land. After all, there was not much difference in the climate,” recalls Sikandar.
When Sikandar returned home in 2013, he carried seven strawberry saplings. The entire village was sceptic. The only person to trust his instinct was his father, Brij Kishore Mehta. Together, they planted the saplings, which produced 50 daughter plants in 2014. Sikandar and his father went back to Hisar to get more strawberry saplings. This time, the yield surpassed their expectations. And at Rs 750 per kg of strawberry, so did the returns.
“We grow strawberry on three acres, using plastic mulching and deep irrigation technologies and soluble fertilisers. Drip irrigation helps cut water consumption by 75 per cent and adds to the sweetness of the fruit,” informs Sikandar. Brij Kishore says the fruit has to be protected from extreme heat and cold to avoid wilting.
The Mehtas have approximately 66,000 strawberry plants. The entire family oversees the farm. Saplings are now being imported from Italy and Israel to improve the quality of the fruit. Sikandar’s next plan is to dabble in marketing. “Buyers, including all strawberry traders from Kolkata, come to our doorstep,” he says.
With Aurangabad strawberries in big demand, more and more farmers are joining the trade. “Not only Bihar, there is a constant demand for Aurangabad strawberries from outside the state as well. As a result, farmers are looking to increase production,” says Raghupat Mehta, another farmer in Chilhaki Bigha. He started strawberry farming in 2016 and is pleased with the profits. Chilhaki Bigha already has 13 strawberry farmers. “More will join,” predicts Sikandar.
CHILHAKI BIGHA, AURANGABAD, BIHAR “There is a demand for our strawberries not only in Bihar, but from other states as well. As a result, we want to increase production, and more farmers are joining the party” Raghupat Mehta, Strawberry farmer, Chilhaki Bigha village