BENGALURU: Villagers in the tiny village of Mayaganahalli in Ramanagara district, instinctively swell up with pride whenever someone mentions the name of Kamalamma, fondly known as ‘Capsicum Kamalamma’, a name which over the past decade, has become synonymous with success and fame. But life was not always this smooth for 38-year-old Kamalamma, a Class 10 passout, who used to struggle to make a living by growing basic crops in a 14 acre plot. All that changed when she took the decision to opt for controlled farming, a method in which farming is carried out inside a structure with controlled climatic conditions.
In 2005, Kamalamma managed to convince her family members and start a ‘polyhouse’ on a half-acre plot and today, she earns Rs 15 lakh annually, just by growing and selling capsicum from this plot. “I was an ordinary homemaker and would struggle to make ends meet with whatever my husband would earn. We would grow Ragi in our field. Today, many people come and talk to me and ask me how I started earning this much money,” says a proud and confident Kamalamma.
With no academic background in agriculture, her interest in farming was supplemented by short term courses at the Gandhi Krishi Vidya Kendra (GKVK) campus of the University of Agricultural Sciences. Armed with this knowledge, she also started mixed farming in the rest of her farmland where she has a mango farm, a dairy farm, a poultry farm and a sericulture setup.
This supplements her income by another Rs 10 lakh every year making her the richest woman of her village. “I had heard of controlled farming and took up sessions at GKVK. After this I approached the state government for a subsidy and banks for loans to set up a polyhouse. My children initially refused to sign on the bank guarantee documents. We were in a financial crunch and the situation looked quite bleak,” Kamalamma explains. Her children, pursuing Engineering courses, were eventually convinced by her arguments and the family signed up to get her the bank loan.
The polyhouse came up in 2005. “Setting up a polyhouse may seem like an expensive investment at the start. But over time, it not only helps you recover your initial investment but also earn good profits,” Kamalamma says. “Ideally once you plant the saplings, they have a life cycle of nearly a year and can bear around 40 tonnes of produce. I am hopeful of getting 10 more tonnes of capsicum this year,” she adds.
Once she had the setup in place, Kamalamma started with market research. “Mentors helped me understand the demand and I learnt that coloured capsicums fetch better rates. I opted to grow the yellow and red varieties which are more exotic.” Her first harvest, in mid-April of 2005, fetched her a price of Rs 200 per kg and in just 6 month’s time, she managed to clear a bank loan of Rs 6 lakh.
Kamalamma’s success story has reached far and wide and has even won her recognition and awards at the state and national level. Visitors from neighbouring villages now try and emulate her methods and are welcomed warmly by Kamalamma and her husband as well. She even got a chance to brief Prime Minister Narendra Modi once about her efforts during one of his visits to the GKVK campus.
Protected farming
Polyhouse farming, or greenhouse farming, refers to a controlled and protected method of farming inside a structure. It differs from traditional farming in that there are no crops left open to the vagaries of nature. Crops grow in steady weather conditions which are artificially controlled with motorised screens and ventilators to facilitate crop growth. The polyfilm which coats the structure, does not let even a drop of rain enter.
It’s worth it
Polyhouse farming can be expensive to set up, but as Kamalamma explains, the returns are more than worth the investment as it extends the life cycle of the crop, produces better yield and is water-efficient since it mostly uses drip irrigation methods. Polyhouses can be used to cultivate vegetables like cucumbers, tomatoes, strawberries, bottle gourd, cabbages, and capsicum. High-demand decorative flowers like chrysanthemums, roses and carnations can also be cultivated.