Koksara: A saying goes – – willpower, self-confidence, and hard work will ultimately pay off. Romanchal Pujari, 45, of Koksara block in Kalahandi district has proved this saying by becoming a successful mushroom farmer. While scores of youths looking for jobs, Romanchal has made mushroom farming a successful business venture, though in a small manner.
Romanchal, a native of Bangemunda village under Gambahriguda panchayat, has been farming mushrooms for the last eight years and eking out a living. The idea of earning from mushroom farming struck him in 2013 and he received training for it from OUAT in Bhubaneswar.
After returning to his village, Romanchal started mushroom farming. He was helped by his wife Kamalini (40) and younger daughter Minati (22). He is now earning enough to pay for the education expenses of his elder daughter Rekha (24) who is studying Plus-II in a government college in Bhawanipatana, his younger daughter, and two sons. “At least 20kg to 30kg of mushrooms are produced in my farm. Importantly, I needn’t go anywhere to sell it. Traders from various parts of Odisha come to buy mushrooms from my doorsteps.
A kilogram of mushroom is sold for `160,” Romanchal informed. Romanchal said that before taking up mushroom farming, he was going through a lot of difficulties and was leading a miserable life as he did not have a proper job. Many people in his locality have migrated to other states for work, but he wanted to stay back in the village. And mushroom farming turned out to be the most viable option. Romanchal lamented that he has not yet received any support from the government. He stated that if he gets some financial help, he can increase his business manifold.
