Unnati
As India’s demand for mangos grows, so does the need to increase per acre yield on a long-term and sustainable basis. This project addresses the need through creating farmer training programs to enable adoption of the Ultra-High Density Plantation (UHDP) technique.
Project Unnati is a unique partnership with farmers to demonstrate and enable adoption of Ultra-High Density Plantation (UHDP) practice for mangoes. The Project will encourage sustainable, modern agricultural practices and help double the mango yield, thereby increasing the income of farmers. UHDP is a farming practice that leads to mango orchards attaining their full potential in 3-4 years and also allows nearly 700 trees to be planted in an acre instead of the conventional method of planting 60 trees in an acre. This will improve per acre productivity and also increase the annual income of farmers and simultaneously decrease the quantity of water used per kilogram of mango produced
The program will use specialized buses with in-built classrooms to provide training regarding UHDP techniques in mango farming right at the farmers’ doorstep which can help them double their mango yields and thus significantly improve their livelihood. The project has an investment outlay of more than 50 crore rupees. This project is operational in 3 southern states of India – Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu & Karnataka.
Ultra High density Plantation of Mango
Ultra high density plantation farming technique has been developed by JISL with the help of its scientists and agronomists. This technology was first demonstrated on our own farm in Jalgaon and Udumalpet. The results were very promising and after being successful there, we decided to do the plantation on the farmer’s field.
UHDP process requires mango grafts of commercial varieties planted close to each other. Special techniques of pruning, fertigation, irrigation and growth promotion leads to the well-rounded growth of mango orchards with sufficient number of branches and shoots. Special care for nutrition management and pest control are also undertaken. Together, these modern techniques are expected to enhance the produce by as high as 200%, as compared to traditional plantation methods.
Major objectives of the initiative were:
- To raise farmers income and help alleviate poverty
- To the extent possible, de-risk traditional farming by augmenting commercial viability
- To demonstrate innovative methods of cultivation which lead to higher productivity, lower operating costs & increased utilization of inputs including water and nutrients
- To improve agricultural, economical, social & environmental sustainability by promoting good agricultural practices
- Enhance productivity by 2-3 times
- Establish mechanism to buy back fruits
- Provide training to farmers about new hi-tech agricultural practices
Major components of the project are:
- Ultra High Density mango plantation
- Farmer trainings with the help of audio-video aids inside Unnati training buses
- Implementation of Jain farm Fresh Food Ltd. G.A.P
- Soil and water testing for the farmers
- Good quality planting material
- Free agronomical guidance by our extension team
- Trainings imparted on rejuvenation of old and senile orchards; top working and other improved practices
How project Maha Unnati is helping Farmers
Application of Jain Farm Fresh Food Ltd. G.A.P (Good agricultural practice) on farmer’s field
With the application of Jain Farm Fresh Foods Ltd. G.A.P, we are trying to help farmers increase their productivity, lower operating costs and minimize wastage of pesticide/ insecticide. Agronomical support is being provided to the farmers with the help of agronomist appointed by us.
Total 13840 farmers will be covered under this project and UHDP mango will be planted in 25000 acres in next 10 years. To help farmers in UHDP mango production, we provide soil water analysis to the farmers at our Chittoor laboratory. Better planting of disease free material is also provided.
Farmers Training by Mobile training bus
Application of Jain Farm Fresh Foods Ltd. GAP (Good agricultural practices) on farmer’s field
Training is given to farmers with the help of mobile training buses which mainly educate them about increasing productivity with the help of rejuvenation techniques like pruning, grafting and top working.
Rejuvenation of old orchards
Project Unnati not only focuses on UHDP implementation on new fields but also tries to revive old orchards with help of rejuvenation techniques. This project will provide the technical advice through mobile trainings, field extensions & demo plot visits. All this support will be free of charge to the farmers.
Mechanism of buy back of produce
With the application of all these processes and procedures, Jain Farm Fresh Foods Ltd.(JFFFL) is trying to help farmers increase their productivity and raise their income levels. At the same time we are trying to protect the farmers from price fluctuations. We establish a mechanism of buy back of produce at a certain price so that the farmers are secured against market fluctuation of prices. We also try to achieve inclusive growth by providing higher employment and simultaneously achieve greater “food security”. This results in optimization of operating costs and a higher use efficiency per unit of input applied
Successful Journey of Project Unnati
- Over 2200 farmer have been trained by the Unnati Bus in the last 5 years in Chittor/ Kuppam district of Andhra Pradesh only
- Over 1000 new UHDP mango orchards have been established in 3 states
- Procurement of traceable and sustainable fruit directly from the farmers started in Andhra Pradesh
- Trust & Loyalty building measures were initiated by our Extension team by providing free crop guidance and training on good agricultural practices (Jain Farm Fresh Foods Ltd., GAP)
We envision a future which brings back the golden years of agrarian productivity. We are working towards this by increasing our contribution to the economic and social welfare of farmers and promoting environmental inclusive practices. Unnati is one such small initiative to kick-start this revolution.