Grow your own food
Hyderabad: Learning how to grow your own food can improve your physical and mental health. However, despite a lot of information available online, farming is still a tricky business. And that’s where two young entrepreneurs from Hyderabad, Simhadri Prem Sathish and N Nagaraju, step in to help the common man grow their own food. With […]
Hyderabad: Learning how to grow your own food can improve your physical and mental health. However, despite a lot of information available online, farming is still a tricky business. And that’s where two young entrepreneurs from Hyderabad, Simhadri Prem Sathish and N Nagaraju, step in to help the common man grow their own food.
With an aim to promote terrace and indoor farming, these two agriculture graduates have started the Hyderabad-based venture Prerna Agri Nature Private Limited. “Everyone needs food, however most of our vegetables and fruits are transported from another place. Our venture promotes growing vegetables and fruits right on our clients’ terrace to help them with fresher food options,” says Prem, who completed his MSc in Agronomy from Hemvati Nandan Bahuguna Garhwal University, Dehradun.
The duo has worked on several terrace and indoor gardens in the city, and has also led two state government projects in Shadnagar and Adibatla. Giving more insight about their work, Prem says, “Once our client approaches us, we visit their home and suggest the terrace/indoor garden design. We also help them pick the right vegetable crops or fruits for their garden, and customise our plans according to their needs. Once the plan is finalised, we start our work, which takes about five days to two weeks, depending on the crops as well as the area of terrace.” Their fees for the entire project ranges from Rs 10,000 to Rs 1,00,000.
However, their work doesn’t end here. “From the time the terrace garden is ready, we take complete care of it for the next three months. This service is for free. We ensure that the plants have a healthy growth and keep visiting the place unless the first crop is ready. After three months, we offer the same services at Rs 400 per month.” The company also developed eco-friendly Ganesha during the festival with a seed in the idol.
For the last few years, young farmers are moving away from the art of cultivation, owing to several socio-economic reasons. Speaking about this issue, Prem shares, “I am a farmer’s son, and have seen my family’s struggles including low income and long hours of hard work on the field. As I grew up in this culture I chose to formally study the subject, to add value to our farming. However, I have seen that most children from farming families are moving away from this field. They are pursuing engineering or degrees in other fields and prefer to settle in cities. The future of farming is not looking good, as there are no farmers.”
He adds, “While some of us stick to this field, there aren’t many opportunities for us. So, we thought of starting a venture that can benefit the people as well as the young graduates, who haven’t given up on agriculture yet.”
Going forward, the duo plans on expanding the venture. “We have already finished working on eight terrace and indoor gardening ventures in Hyderabad and looking to get more government projects. We are also active members of Telangana Agriculture Students Association, and thus am in touch with all the young students. As we get more projects, we want to hire these students and help them build a bright future,” he concludes.
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