A 42-year-old farmer from a remote village here in Jammu and Kashmir’s Doda district, Bharat Bhushan, has been selected for the prestigious ‘Innovative Farmer Award’ by the Indian Agricultural Research Institute.
Bhushan will receive the award in New Delhion the concluding day of the ‘Pusa Krishi Vigyan Mela 2020’ on Tuesday forinnovative farming by bringing 62 acres of land under aromatic plant (lavender)cultivation.
“We used to sow maize and vegetableson our two kanals (0.4 acres) land, earning a meagre Rs 15,000 annually. Butafter turning to aromatic plants, we took additional land on lease and startedgrowing lavender, and got a turnover of Rs three lakhs a year,” Bhushan, aresident of the inaccessible Lehrote-Khellani hamlet in Bhalla tehsil, toldPTI.
This is the first time that a farmer fromDoda has bagged the prestigious national award.