Jharkhand Engineer Turns Farmer: YouTube-Taught Tricks Make Him A Rs 10 Lakh Agripreneur

By Mohammad Arbaaz

Chatra: Uday Kumar, an electrical engineer from Ambatand village in Chatra's Lawalaung block of Jharkhand, chose an untraded path when he took to farming, abandoning his profession as an electrical engineer in a multi-national company in Pune.

Uday returned to his village to start farming despite the uncertainties of agricultural farming and financial instability. After becoming an engineer and securing a well-paying position in a city like Pune, he felt the tremendous inner pull of returning to the tranquil environment of his ancestral village. The allure of a good salary and city life could not keep him there for long. After about six months, he decided to quit his corporate job and return to the village.

It was a sort of reverse migration for a multinational company official, comfortably settled in Pune, to leave his job and return to his village to start advanced farming methods with the help of YouTube tutorials.

His gamble worked, and it took just about four years for Uday’s transition from a B.Tech graduate to a prosperous farmer. Uday took to online resources, specifically learning advanced farming techniques from YouTube tutorials.

The story of Uday highlights that traditional professions are not the only avenues to prosperity. Innovating approaches to agriculture can still yield significant prosperity and wealth.

Today, Uday is cultivating crops on a total of 20 acres - five owned and 15 acres taken on lease. He produces chillies, tomatoes, peas, cabbage and pigeon peas. These agricultural products consistently yielded a daily income ranging from Rs 10,000 to Rs 15,000. His agricultural operations generated an income of nearly Rs 10 lakh in the past 12 months by way of selling 21 tons of chili peppers.

Uday said that even while living in the city, his heart remained rooted in the village. "I realised that an engineering degree wasn't just for a job, but also for something new. I started watching videos on advanced farming on YouTube. I learnt everything from drip irrigation, mulching, intercropping, and hybrid seeds—all of which I learnt. Initially, there were setbacks. Lack of technical knowledge resulted in crop loss of nearly Rs 100,000,” he said. Despite the loss, Uday was undeterred.

He received training from agricultural science centres, consulted experts, and began work again. This time, success came to him. He began cultivating chillies on three acres. He received a 90% subsidy for drip irrigation under the Prime Minister's Agricultural Irrigation Scheme. He had to invest only Rs 10,000-Rs 15,000. Planting began in July, and production began in September. Since July last year, 21 tons of chilies have been sold, fetching him sometimes Rs 40, sometimes Rs 80 per kg. The total turnover exceeds Rs 10 lakh.

Now, Uday's farm is a sight to behold. Four acres are flourishing with green and red chilies. One acre is ready for cabbage and half an acre for green peas. He is intercropping chilies with pigeon peas to double his profits from the same land. This year, he plans to plant chilies on six acres, tomatoes on six acres, and peas on three acres.

Uday's father said, “My son had a good job in Pune, but he didn't enjoy it. Now, he earns good money. We are very happy.” Meanwhile, mother Meera Devi said that initially she thought her son had made a mistake, but when success came, she realised his decision was right.

“Uday Kumar has utilised government schemes wisely. He received subsidies for drip irrigation, mulching paper and hybrid seeds. He worked hard to achieve his goal. He is an example for today's young generation. If educated youth turn to farming and use technology to become financially independent, villages will be no less prosperous than cities,” said Gautam Kumar, district agriculture officer.

Read more

1. From Chandrayaan-2 To Organic Farming: Coimbatore’s Young Engineer Harvests 25 Tonnes Produce A Month