Watermelon cultivation and a women’s farmers’ company script success in Bankura , West Bengal
Bankura district in West Bengal is mostly a mono-crop area with farmers relying on paddy during the kharif season. The area is characterised by undulating topography and comes under agro-climatic zone VII with an annual rainfall of 1,200-1,400 millimetre (mm). Due to the climate conditions and less investment in natural resources, farmers have only been cultivating the traditional crops.
However, for the past two years, some farmers in two blocks of the district – Hirbandh comprising five gram panchayats, and Indpur comprising seven gram panchayats – have taken up watermelon cultivation and are earning huge profits.
A women-based and women-led farmer producer company, Dalmadal Farmer Producer Company Limited, has also been set up which is helping with marketing of the produce and further strengthening the network of these watermelon farmers.