Instead of securing a corporate job during her final year at Hindu College in Delhi, Anushka Jaiswal returned to her roots, in Lucknow, to pursue impact driven work.

Inspired by a simple terrace gardening experiment, she embraced agriculture despite having no background in farming.

With in-depth research and specialised training, Anushka launched a polyhouse farm on an acre of land in 2020.

Her innovative approach to protected cultivation allowed her to produce high-quality, stable yields of vegetables, shielded from adverse climate conditions.

Over four years, she expanded her farm to six acres and became renowned in Lucknow for her exotic vegetables such as lettuce, bok choy, zucchini, kale, and red cabbage.

Her yield, including bell peppers, generated a turnover of over Rs 1 crore, with products sold through platforms like Blinkit and Big Basket, and in wholesale markets of Delhi and Varanasi.

“Most farmers in this area are men. They weren’t used to a woman practising this new form of cultivation. They doubted me in the beginning as I was just 24 when I started,” she says.

Anushka employs 25-30 workers, predominantly women. She wants to encourage women to broaden their agricultural endeavours by starting small and building expertise.

“I hope that more women, who are currently engaged in terrace gardening, look at ways to expand their efforts. The knowledge they gain over the years can be applied on a larger scale. Start small, and you can achieve great things,” says Anushka.