Udupi: Raghavendra Nayak - Role Model for Agriculturists

Pundalika Marathe

Udupi, Oct 16: Raghavendra Nayak from Shirva in Udupi is an agriculturist with an extraordinary zeal for his profession. He holds a BA degree, but his passion lies in not only in cultivating crops but also creating awareness about cultivation.

Having lost his father at a young age, he developed a keen interest in agriculture in his childhood. For the past six years he has been following traditional practices in agriculture by bringing in certain changes.

In his 3.12 acres of land, Raghavendra cultivates paddy crops in two seasons (harvest and monsoon), grains (urad dal, jowar), vegetables, commercial crops like jasmine flowers, coconut, arecanut, plantain, pepper, mixed crops like ginger, pineapple, and medicinal plants in 10 cents land. He also engages in sheep farming, poultry, dairying and so on.

Other than cultivation, he also assists people by providing them training, and information on schemes and loans from government and banks.

He also guides people who have land to cultivate crops which yield high-income like coconut, arecanut, plantain, red spinach, pepper, sunflower, cucumber, pumpkin and others.

Raghavendra has also spread awareness on cultivating lady’s finger in jute bag and terrace garden.

For the benefit of society and for extending financial assistance, he has set up 'Anna Bramha Raitha Shakthi' self-help group and Shirva milk producers' association to encourage farmers.

Nayak has adopted various innovative techniques like line planting system, minimum water usage, pipe water supply to jasmine plants, drip irrigation, terrace cultivation, organic fertilizer, weed control, compost fertilizer and so on.

Truly, Raghavendra Nayak is a role model for every agriculturist.