Son of a bonded labourer, progressive farmer Puttaiah — the first-ever non-celebrity to inaugurate the Mysuru Dasara or the Nada Habba here — has observably turned into a role model for his kind of farming.
The 67-year-old, who spoke at ease after giving start to the festivities atop the Chamundi hills on Tuesday, argued that farmers should look at constant income, adopting inclusive farming by cultivating short-term, medium-term and long-term crops, besides venturing into dairy farming for daily income. The success behind Mr. Puttaiah’s successful and inspiring story is the continuous income — daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly, half-yearly and yearly — which he earns.
“I get income daily by selling milk; weekly by selling vegetables, and quarterly by harvesting coconut. Half-yearly, I get returns from pulses (legumes) and after one year, I earn by harvesting sugarcane, turmeric and several other crops. By this, I have ensured non-stop income to my family,” he told the gathering.
Mr. Puttaiah, who is also into sheep and goat farming, earns about Rs. 5 lakh to 6 lakh a year by selling them.
He didn’t borrow even onceInterestingly, Mr. Puttaiah, a resident of Malar colony in H.D. Kote, has never taken a loan for farming.
“I did not borrow even while sinking eight borewells (one every year),” he said.
Mr. Puttaiah started farming with just four acres and now owns about 40 acres of farmland.
The inspiring story of Mr. Puttaiah, a Dalit, came to light only during ‘Baduku-Besaya,’ a programme organised by the ZP here recently in the light of farmers’ suicides.
His message to fellow farmers — “Adopt inclusive farming, don’t lose hope and be brave to face the uncertainties. Suicide is not the solution to your problems.”
