Rajesh Naik is a BSc graduate and owner of Oddoor Farms. He come from a family of agriculturalists and his land was ancestral land . He was determined to do something about it and that is how he gradually came upon the idea to work on developing the water resources in the area”.
He had a strong belief that “If an individual can succeed in converting barren land into a self-sufficient organic farm, why can’t the government replicate this in every village,”.
• Oddoor farms, is around 25 kilometres away from Mangalore city is a great example of a very successful effort made by Rajesh Naik.
• Rajesh Naik ji transformed 120 acres of barren land into a self sufficient organic farm by developing a 50 feet lake on two acres of land. His journey has been a long one and not without its share of challenges, but persistence and constant optimism and hard work to overcome challenge.
• He managed to convert 100 acres adjacent to the Export Promotion Industrial Park at Gajimat Post.
• He started the dairy farm with a few cows. But now, there are about 200 cows supplying an approximate 800-1,000 litres of milk to the KMF every day.It’s also one of the largest organic farms in the coastal region, with areca plantations spread across 10 acres and coconut palms across 20-25 acres.
• He had a 60 KV generator that runs on biogas takes care of the entire farm’s requirement.
• His 120 acres of barren land ,a lush green farm made a persistent effort for creating a two acre and fifty feet deep lake, which has not only transformed the surrounding area, but has also helped in improving the water table in the surrounding village, besides helping in the development of a self sufficient organic farm and a dairy.
Future plans
- To start a cattle farm for calves so that farmers can get the best breeds.
- to start with about 500-1000 calves and build sheds where they can freely graze.
- He wants to develop plantations on five-acre plots.
“If this model can be replicated in every part of the country, the whole country will be able to take care of its water problems and will have agriculture totally based on organic farming. If I could do this on this piece of land, it can be replicated anywhere, what is important is the will of the people and the support from the government to do so”.
