NEW DELHI: After investing time and money in engineering, Abhishek Dhama, 28, realised that he didn’t want to end up like a corporate ‘slave’. He took over his family occupation of farming but with a modern approach. The benefits were plenty — decent earning, healthy living and fulfilment of his long-pending dream of starting a fitness venture.
Dressed in black joggers, T-shirt and sports shoes, Abhishek is not the usual run-of-the-mill farmers family, he says, also had a “stereotypical” idea about a farmer. But, he never wanted to be a farmer who labours for hours without getting dues.
“There is a general perception that a farmer is despondent, that he works hard, wears white clothes, and lives poorly. I studied engineering because that’s what all my friends were doing. There was a craze about engineering but I realised that I didn’t want to do a 9 to 5 job,” says Abhishek, who graduated in electronics engineering in 2014 from Maharishi Dayanand University.
An interest in health, sports and fitness drove him to online research for organic farming, but his family wasn’t convinced.
“I was always inclined towards sports and fitness. Somehow, I could not pursue a career in cricket. I was a fast bowler but due to a tragedy in the family, I couldn’t pursue it,” he says. “My family objected as they felt I was wasting my degree. They still don’t seem to be convinced even as I earn Rs 40,000 to 60,000 daily depending on crop schedule.”
“Had I taken up an engineer’s job, I would have earned that much too. But by the age of 40-45, they (corporates) are dealing with diseases due to unhealthy lifestyle. I didn’t want that for myself. I don’t want that for others either, thus I encourage organic farming.”
Being a vegetarian, Abhishek felt it was “significant” to make it up for the absence of animal protein in his diet. “I began with a kitchen garden in one acre. The produce was distributed to our relatives and friends. There was a difference in taste and quality.”
Today, Abhishek uses 14 acre of the family’s 25-acre land for organic farming. “The remaining plot is usually flooded by the Yamuna.”
A tie-up with the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) provides him the farming expertise, while vendors help him to sell his produce. “I researched extensively on YouTube and workers.”
From C Map Lucknow, he took training in cultivation and processing of medicinal and aromatic plants. “There is a perception that organic farming is an elite venture. This myth needs to be changed. That’s why I sell organic produce at the same rate as greens that are produced using chemicals.”
“Farmers either keep growing the same vegetable for years or grow only one variety in their plot. That’s why they fail to get what they deserve despite all their hard work,” says Abhishek as he advocates changes in farming to bring about change in fortunes of farmers across the country.