“Even though I do not know how to calculate my earnings on paper, I know that my income has gone up. There is enough food at home, I can send my grandchildren to school with my money and look after their clothing and other needs” says Shri Phool Singh, a 65-year old farmer from Umerda village, Kannuj District, Uttar Pradesh.
Phool Singh’s life took a ‘U’ turn after he joined Gram Development Producer Company Ltd (GDPCL) in 2012. “It all started when MuddasirBhaiya of BASIX came to my village with the idea of Producer Company. We all (villagers) thought that it wasyet another shop to be managed by big farmers. However, after few days Muddasir and Anoop Sharma (chairman of GDPCL) came to my house and asked me to join the producer group. I joined as a member in September 2012 and started saving 100 Rupees per month”.BASIX, among other things, provides technical support in promotion and strengthening of Producer Company. As regards GDPCL, BASIX facilitated in community mobilisation, registration, obtaining business licences, market and financial linkages .
The ride was rough for Phool Singh initially. “Sometimes, saving 100 Rupees per month was very painful. I used to deposit a little amount from my daily wage after spending for my family requirements.” Phool Singh owns 1 acre of land in which he used to cultivate Paddy and Wheat as major crop. He used to purchase seeds from government administrative unit at Tirwa Block and also from local shops. At times, he also used to take land on lease for cultivation. But the income from farm was not enough to meet the requirements of his family of seven people.
The breakthrough came in a GDPCL meeting he attended in March 2013. “I learnt from the villagers that the company was supplying good quality seeds, fertilisers and pesticides at a cheaper rate to its shareholders at the village itself. They also helped farmers sellthe produce for a better price. At once, I became a shareholder and purchased a small quantity of DAP, Urea and Pesticides.”
“I am surrounded by 550 farmer friends who are small farmers like me and that we are moving together for a better life in the village.” -PHOOL SINGH, FARMER
Phool Singh refers to his new-found success to a couple of incidents that happened in 2015. During Kharif 2015, he cultivated paddy in 4 acres of land – 1 acre of his own and 3 acres on lease. He procured 20 kg of seeds: 10 kg from the Block (27P31, Pioneer company) at Rs.270/- per kg with backend subsidy and another 10 kg seeds from GDPCL (6444, Bayers) at Rs.240/- per kg. He had expected a harvest of around 75 quintals of paddy from them. However, 27P31 failed him as it produced just 10 quintals. The saving grace was that the land with GDPCL seeds produced 38 quintals. Total cost of cultivation in 2 acre of land was around Rs.18,000. Overall Phoolsingh incurred a loss of Rs.6,000 from 27P31. As regards 6444, even after returning 50% of the produce towards lease, Phool Singh got 19 quintals. He sold 10 quintals to procure agricultural inputs for the next season and secured the remaining nine quintals for household consumption and eventual cash requirements.
In the following Rabi season, Phool Singh bought 4 kg of maize from GDPCL that he cultivated in 20 decimal (1/5 of an acre)and harvested 8 quintals of maize. GDPCL helped him sell them at Rs.1,200/- per quintal which was Rs.100/- more than the market rate per quintal. In the same season, Phool Singh also took up wheat seed production on the advice of Muddasir and Anoop. GDPCL procured for him Wheat seeds from CS Agriculture University, Kanpur and rendered technical support.Total 17.70 qt. of wheat seed produced and this has helped him to get an additional income of Rs.2,800/-.
Phool Singh recalls, “The paddy from the second field (seeds provided by GDPCL) helped me fulfil food requirements of my large family. Otherwise, the only option was to migrate to cities for daily wage as I used to do earlier.”
Phool Singh is proud to be part of the Producer Company. “This is our company, owned and managed by small farmers like me. Earlier, when GDPCL was started in my village, we thought it was another Primary Agriculture Credit Society that do not function well. Gradually, Producer Company has become very integral part of our day-to-day life. Now I am doing most of my agriculture related transactionsmyself.”
The producer company has given Phool Singh a new sense of belonging and security. “The biggest advantage is that Iam surrounded by 550 farmer friends who are small& marginal farmers like me and that we are moving together for a better life in the village.”