Women pluck capsicums at a farm. Picture by M. Ganguly

Ranchi, April 26: Amid the agricultural fields on the southeastern side of Piska station that are lying barren under the scorching April sun, a farmhouse comprising a cluster of greenhouses draws attention.

Inside, preparations are on to send baskets of full-grown capsicums to the market. “Harvest has been good this time,” said a proud Jayant Ghosh, one of the partners of the farm.

Ghosh is a farmer by choice. Armed with a management diploma, he had been working with an advertising firm in Delhi until he visited a farm in Holland. “There, I saw that people were using heaters to keep greenhouses warm. It struck me that the climate of Ranchi was more congenial to farming and I decided to try it out,” he said.

Back in India, he toured the farms of Bangalore and Ahmedabad, met people, read books, surfed the Internet and at last approached scientists at the Indian Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhi, who were of immense help to him. They gave important tips on how to start a farm and install a greenhouse. He then turned to friends for finance. Some of them agreed to become partners. Finally, local partner Ayush Khemka convinced his grandfather, who had a plot of about 20 acres, to lease out the land for farming.

It was then time for developing infrastructure. Greenhouses complete with insect nets, shade nets, flaps and drip irrigation facilities were installed along with pumps and a cold storage. A well was dug up too beside a nearby stream.

Now, seasonable vegetables such as tomatoes, capsicums, lady’s fingers and clustered beans and American honeydew (a kind of a melon) flood the fields. Roses of various colours are also grown.

“Ayush looks after the infrastructure while I take care of farming,” Ghosh said, adding that if they got another plot, they would like to start a floriculture farm. About 40 villagers, mostly women, who earlier had to go to the city in search of jobs, work at the farm.

Asked if he encouraged others to follow in his footsteps, he said that some people, who were trying to build up a farm at Ghatshila, contacted him recently.