In Deorali Gaon, Bong Busty (A rural village 5kms from Kalimpong town), more than half of the village practices the cultivation of ginger at least once a year. They have been doing this agricultural practice ever since they started to cultivate crops. However, they are still practicing the traditional method that gives low yield and due to lack of knowledge about new techniques, they have not been able to improve this yield.  

Therefore, on 13th March 2020, much needed training on Ginger Cultivation for the farmers of Bong Busty was held in Sir Owen G Glenn Learning & Information Centre, Bong Busty in collaboration with Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK). KVK is an agriculture extension center in India that is associated with a local agricultural university that creates a linkage between the Indian Council of Agricultural Research, and local farmers. The organization aims to apply agricultural research in a practical, localized setting. So, the training aimed to give the local farmers ideas from professionals that will help them to learn about new farming practices, while also giving KVK an opportunity to conduct research.  

There was a total of 24 participants out of which 15 were female and 9 were male. From KVK there were 3 staff who came to deliver the training, namely Ms. Snehalata Lama, Mr. Saran Khawas and Dr. Ranajit Panda. The session was interactive with many questions coming from the farmers’ side. Soil samples were taken for testing from four different places of the village in order to know about the problem in the soil and find solutions for it. The KVK staff also invited the farmers for soil testing of their individual farms in the upcoming days. The farmers were interested and responded positively. One of the participants Mr. Uttam Subba said that “they had been doing ginger cultivation for many years but they got to know new techniques and methods that day”. 

The KVK team said that they were glad that the training was organized by GFF HELPS in those villages where they had never received any training before. They also said that they learnt many things from the farmers about the village and its agricultural practices. GFF HELPS India hope to create more projects for farmers that will improve their livelihood, especially at this time of crisis. We hope that these new skills and knowledge will be imparted to the future generations of Bong Busty.

Horticulture specialist Ms. Snehalata Lama explaining a different process for ginger cultivation

Participants listening to the presentation