A lush green farm greets visitors to the sprawling campus housing the office of the Director of Public Instruction (DPI) in the city. Swaying banana palms share space with neatly planted rows of amaranthus and lady's finger.
Employees in the office are preparing for a bountiful harvest. They are proud of the farm they have created. It was in October last year that the project to develop a vegetable garden on the four-acre campus was taken up under the Clean Kerala Mission with encouragement from DPI A.P.M. Mohammed Hanish.
“We shared all the work among ourselves. No outsiders were engaged,” says superintendent Remadevi. “Initially, we were apprehensive about staying back every day after work to tend to the plants. But our effort paid off well. It brings us immense satisfaction.”
The 362 employees from lower grade to senior levels joined hands in the venture. The farm has been divided into sections for different crops. “We have named the sections Chandragiri, Nila, Pamba and Periyar, after the rivers of Kerala,” says Prema, an officer.
The seeds were supplied by the Department of Agriculture and the planting was supervised by Thomas Mammen, a retired agriculture officer. Only bio fertilizers and organic pesticides were used in the farm.
The vegetables harvested from the farm are sold at a reasonable price among the employees through their cooperative society.
The employees are planning a harvest festival in August.
