A farm set in a four-ground plot in Meenambakkam is reported to have several rare herbs. There is also a Siddha clinic attached to it.
This facility, located on Meenambakkam station road and not too far away from the BMW showroom on GST Road, is a brainchild of Karthikeyan, physically-challenged, and his brother P. Ravichandran, a fitness enthusiast who holds an M.Phil in exercise physiology. The brothers are assisted by friends and practising Siddha doctors, which include Esther Pari. The idea of setting up such a farm was triggered by a study of the herbal product market, which, they believe, largely functions through the Internet and is beyond the means of the common man. They set up the farm, taking the four-ground plot on lease for five years.
As a preparatory measure, they carried out a survey, spanning nearly a year, which included a study of the availability of the crops and their suitability to the local conditions. Following the survey, they got crops from Chengalpattu and Kancheepuram. Later, to their surprise, they found most of these crops near city roads. “We are providing treatment for diseases free of cost and charge only for saplings and medicines,” says Karthikeyan. They have found help in running the farm.
“The Thamizhnadu Matruthiranaligal Sangam is helping us by supplying additional manpower. Now, the two people – a man and a woman – are working regularly,” he says.
The farm has around 50 regular customers. The saplings are sold and customers are also trained on how to grow, maintain and use them. They are also educated on the medicinal value of herbs and how the crops could be used to cure diseases.
He says, “We also educate people and make them understand that this system of treatment is not magical and a disease cannot be treated in a day. Those who go in for treatment have to be patient. They need to realise that for any treatment to be effective, they should take the medicine for at least two months.”
The farm is said to have 101 varieties of herbal plants. It takes two months to grow these plants. “Only organic manure is used,” they say.
