India: Money grows at home – How Delhi is sowing seeds of urban farming

The government, say officials, has decided to rope in the Indian Agriculture Research Institute, which will help in imparting knowledge about vegetable and food farming in small spaces

By Atul Mathur
TNN
Apr 25, 2022

Excerpt:

Launching its first campaign to promote urban farming in the capital, the Delhi government will soon start distributing ‘Urban Farming DIY (Do It Yourself) kits’ to enable people, especially women, to grow vegetables and earn money.

Urban farming is one of the 20 sectors that the Delhi government has identified to create 20 lakh job opportunities in the Capital in the next five years. As per the Rozgar Budget presented by deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia last month, urban farming can provide 25,000 new jobs, especially to women, in five years.

According to officials, the government would initially distribute 10,000 DIY kits – 5,000 for the summer season and 5,000 for winters – consisting of 10 varieties of vegetable seeds, three types of biofertilizers, 1kg of organic manure and an information booklet on how to cultivate the seeds. These items, said officials, would be carefully packed in a kit, which would have the branding of the government scheme and the name of the environment and forest department, which run the initiative.

Sources added that environment and forest minister Gopal Rai was also likely to meet various stakeholders on Monday with the aim to promote urban farming and encourage the residents of Delhi to grow vegetables on their rooftops and verandahs. Officials added that residents would also be trained on how to grow vegetables in small spaces.

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