grape

Dattaraya N Kale of Solapur, Maharashtra, has developed five new varieties of grapes over the years. His latest called the 'King Berry' grows up to 20 mm (2 cm) in length with a 25 mm (2.5 cm) diameter.

The farmer earned Rs 3 Lakh by selling his 10-ton yield in the first harvest season. "With all the investment and expenses gone, I still earned a profit of Rs 1.5 lakh in 14 months and that too from just two acres,"

Developed by Pune’s National Research Centre for Grapes (NRCG) and christened Manjri Medika, the hybrid variety not only has a very high concentration of anthocyanin but also rich in antioxidant properties.

Supported by KVK and ICAR, the residents of Kadwanchi embraced the spirit of the community conservation to transform their severely drought-prone hamlet into one of the most prosperous villages in the region.