Jajpur: Two siblings have brought a turnaround in their lives by making use of groundwater for irrigation which has helped them raise a bounty on government land, a report said.
Sridhar Sahu and his younger brother Mahendra Sahu of Chitri in Danagadi block have become an example of sorts for other youngsters.
Earlier, the siblings used to work in different industrial units in Kalinganagar on meagre salaries. They did not feel safe while returning home from their workplaces at night.
However, things took a turn for better after the Tata Steel Rural Development Society (TSRDS) selected six villages in and around Kalinganagar and drilled 11 wells on unused government land to help farmers.
TSRDS members motivated the local youths and asked them to take up agriculture by using the water from these wells. The wells were drilled in Chitri, Salijanga, Khandra, Kaitha, Ranaguni and Baghuapal villages. The programme helped over 40 young farmers in the area.
The Sahu siblings were initially doubtful whether water will come out of the wells. However, all their doubts vanished after an expert team identified the locations and dug out the wells adopting both modern and traditional methods which helped water to come out of the wells.
This encouraged the siblings who took up cultivation of beans, moong, tomato, dhania, okra and pumpkins on the government land which had remained unused for many years. The harvest motivated other youths to take up farming.
The Sahu siblings said they took up cultivation seven months after the wells were dug out and have earned over Rs 2 lakh from the crops till now. Their income could rise to Rs 3 lakh if they expand their cultivation.
Another youth Sindhu Purty has also taken up cultivation on government land. He has shifted with his family and livestock near the land.
Purty said the well is a surprise gift for him and other youths of the area.
PNN