When people think of agriculture in the country, they often picture an old farmer toiling away in the sun. This widely held perception discourages young people from getting into agriculture. However, in Phuntshothang Gewog’s Tshokhorling village in Samdrup Jongkhar, a 27-year-old decided to stay back in the village after completing high school in 2016 and try his hand at agriculture. Today, his bean farm is thriving, turning it into a profitable mass bean cultivation venture.
For the past four years, Kamal Prasad Pakwal has been cultivating beans for commercial purposes. This year, he expanded his cultivation to over an acre of land.
“If I go to urban areas, getting a job will be difficult for me. So, I decided to stay back in the village and cultivate beans on a commercial scale to earn income.”
Kamal makes over Nu 100,000 a year by selling beans. He cultivates beans in December and begins harvesting in March.
However, amid fewer marketing opportunities, Kamal emphasised the need for government support to help farmers like him increase income and reach wider markets.
After harvesting beans, Kamal begins cultivating paddy in the same field in June.
“Currently, we are facing marketing challenges locally due to low population. Selling in larger towns such as Samdrup Jongkhar, Gelephu or Thimphu could help us fetch better prices.”
Following Kamal’s lead, other villagers have also started cultivating beans.
“Compared to other vegetables, growing beans is more profitable for us, So far, I have earned around Nu 30,000 from selling beans and I still have more to sell,” said Dambar Bahadur Gurung, a farmer.
“So far, I have sold around 900 kilogrammes of beans and I still have another 900 kilograms to harvest. When I took them to Samdrup Jongkhar for sale last time, I got Nu 110 per kilogramme but now the price has dropped to Nu 80 to 90 per kilogramme,” said Tez Bahadur Tiwari, also a farmer.
According to the district agriculture office, they have been providing technical support whenever needed and helping farmers in marketing their produce through relevant agencies.
Kinley Wangchuk, Samdrup Jongkhar
Edited by Sonam Pem
