Retired Employee Gives A Facelift To His Village In Tikamgarh Through Agriculture On Once Barren Land
Ramlal Prajapati has taken his vegetable farming enterprise to a point where he provides employment to around 1,000 people in his own district.
Published : February 28, 2026 at 5:18 PM IST
|Updated : February 28, 2026 at 5:24 PM IST
Tikamgarh (Madhya Pradesh): While a majority of the people prefer to slowly fade into oblivion after retirement, an employee from Badagaon Dhasaan in Tikamgarh district has set a new benchmark by making use of technology to give vegetable farming a new direction. Ramlal Prajapati has transformed his rocky land that was considered unusable into a fertile patch that now stands lush with greenery and produces vegetables.
Prajapati served with the Tribal Welfare Department for 40 years and resorted to vegetable farming after retirement to ward off boredom. He told ETV Bharat, “Everyone becomes lazy after retirement, but I wanted to avoid this.” He has taken his vegetable farming enterprise to a point where he provides employment to around 1,000 people in his own district.
His village, Baragaon Dhasaan, is around 30 km from Tikamgarh. He laid the foundations of a vegetable farm at a place 15 years ago, where it was believed to be impossible.
According to Prajapati, “One should not panic under any circumstances and also not worry about profits in the beginning." He has not looked back ever since he saw hope in the barren land. His successful journey has been supported by the guidance coming from the Agriculture and Horticulture Departments.
He related, "Earlier, this land was rocky. There used to be some traditional farming. I levelled it by removing every stone and adding soil on top. Many times, people sell the stones, but I did not do that. I used the stones to fill the pits. To improve the quality of the soil, I used organic manure and made better arrangements for irrigation. After continuous efforts, today, many types of vegetables are being grown here."
His Vasundhara Krishi Farm is cited as an example in the area. Starting with a few acres of his own land, he later began taking surrounding land on lease, becoming an inspiration for the farmers in Tikamgarh as well as the entire state. This farm has now become a platform for farmers who want to combine farming with modernity and entrepreneurship.
More than 25 tonnes of fresh vegetables are supplied daily from here to many major cities across the country. Prajapati owns 30 acres of land in Baragaon and has taken another 60 acres on lease. He cultivates chillies along with other vegetables like eggplant, tomatoes, and capsicum. He disclosed, "Apart from this, I have taken another 60 acres of land in Haidapur village, 90 acres in Barai Ghat, along with 40 acres and 12 acres in the nearby areas on lease. Vegetable farming is being done at all these places."
The quality and quantity of vegetables grown by him are so good that 10 vehicles are being sent daily to Lucknow, Delhi, Hyderabad, Kanpur, Jhansi and Andhra Pradesh.
Along with vegetables, he has also been developing a nursery for the last three years and has prepared lakhs of plants that have been made available to the farmers. at affordable rates.
"The monthly turnover of Vasundhara Krishi Farm has reached around Rs 25 lakh. Production is increasing continuously due to the use of drip irrigation, mulching and organic fertilizers,” he said while adding that farmers from his district, along with those from the other districts of Madhya Pradesh, keep coming to him for advice.
Besides making farming remunerative, this retired employee has created new employment opportunities for the hundreds of people around him.
"Around 950 employees are working on all five farms. This farming model has improved the economic condition of the local people by providing them with work in the fields. The livelihood of many families now depends on this cultivation. There was a time when people used to migrate to big cities to support their families, but today, hundreds of them have found livelihood here and have got a new direction in life," Prajapati said.
The locals are employed in vegetable harvesting, packaging and transportation. One of the employees, Dhanwati, said, "When there was no farming here, we had to go to cities for employment. But now we get employment here and earn a good living."
Prajapati is managing the operations with the help of his two sons. One of his sons, Manoj Prajapati holds a masters degree in Agriculture and works as a consultant with a private company while his other son, Neeraj Prajapati has completed his masters in pharmaceuticals and is working with his father.
