Olive cultivation takes firm root in Rajasthan
jaipur — Sahab Ram Saharan, a farmer in Rajasthan’s Sri Ganganagar district, some 15 kilometres from the India-Pakistan border, finds cultivating traditional crops unprofitable.
Now, encouraged by the government, he has turned a progressive farmer by growing olives — and hopes to reap a profit Rs10 lakh to Rs12 lakh this year.
“A few years ago, I came to know that the government is promoting olive cultivation in the state. We procured saplings from the government and planted 6,700 olive plants over 10 hectares of land in 2013. Fruiting takes place from the 4th year onwards,” Sahab Ram, who lives in a small hamlet of Maderan, told.
“We have entered the fourth year and are now expecting good yield,” he added. His nephew Deepak Saharan, who studied in Australia where he came to know about progressive farming, said that growth of the olive plants is good at his farm and he is expecting a good crop.
“We are hoping for 30 kg of fruit per plant. We have been told that the government will buy back olives from us. They will pay us according to the oil content in the fruits (13 to 17 per cent per fruit). Overall we are expecting around Rs10 to 12 lakh profit,” Deepak said.
Sahab Ram is not alone. Several farmers in Sri Ganganagar, Bikaner, Jaipur and Nagaur have diversified by moving from the conventional to cash crops like olives for good profit. Rajasthan Agriculture Minister Prabhu Lal Saini said that farmers were increasingly diversifying and opting for olive cultivation.
“Through olive cultivation, farmers are diversifying to get high value for their crops. Rajasthan is pioneering in progressive farming. We are also making successful efforts with cultivating pomegranates and date palms,” Saini said.
According to the officials of the state’s Horticulture Department, the Rajasthan government initiated the olive cultivation project with technical support from Israel in 2008. —