Agriculture

Retired banker S Venkateswara Reddy from Hyderabad has helped 30 farmers in his drought-hit ancestral village grow brinjal, onion, guava, okra, cotton, groundnut and more

EF Polymer is a Rajasthan-based agri-tech startup that has created the Fasal Amrit, an organic super absorbant polymer made of bio waste generated at juice shops.

Seven years ago, Jayanti Vaidyanathan (65), a resident of Chennai began growing plants on her terrace to eat healthy and to get some sunlight. Today, she grows over 250 plants, which includes a variety of vegetables, fruits, flowering and medicinal plants.

What started as a curiosity to grow plants during her childhood, has turned into an active hobby with encouragement from family and friends for Hyderabad-based Naina Sarda. She details how the often discarded mango seed has been used as a mouth freshener and also for high blood pressure patients while narrating a step-by-step guide on growing mango saplings at home.

Krushna Nag from Odisha grows season vegetables and fruits such as mangoes, pomegranates, and bananas using a variety of organic methods

Dr Salim Channiwala, a mechanical engineer and former director at Sardar Vallabhai National Institute of Technology in Surat, has developed a bio-organic liquid fertilizer made from slurry and 16 micronutrients.

S Sathyanarayanan is a French teacher in Chennai's Anna Gem Science Park School, and took up terrace gardening as a hobby in 2015. Today, he grows over 400 plants on his terrace and balcony, and cares for them with a wide variety of homemade fertilizers using waste.

Amrita Chengappa moved to a small village in Uttarakhand in 2002 in search of a simpler life. With her partner, she runs SOS Organics that sells all-natural soaps, candles, home care items, teas, seasonings and cold pressed oils, all made with indigenous produce.

Mavarum Mallikarjun Reddy from Telangana practices integrated farming on his ancestral land to cultivate paddy, vegetables, and medicinal plants

Want to grow organic vegetable on your terrace? Delhi's Irene Gupta shares the tips and tricks you'll need to get the perfect harvest from recycled containers.