People busy with the first harvest of their produce

Groups of people of Samtenling have reaped the fruits of their hard labor with their first harvest of vegetables. The vegetables were planted three months back on 35 acres of land.

Vegetables grown by the people of Samtenling are Cabbages and Carrots while other kinds of vegetables are grown in other gewogs. Similar practices of growing specilaized vegetables were  seen in other gewogs as well.

In the past, people who owned a piece wetland, cultivated for self-consumption and leaft their land barren during the off seasons.

Now people feel that vegetable production would generate income by way of selling them. They also believe that their land will gain fertility with such practices instead of it fallow.

Right after their paddy plantation, people had to gear up with the vegetable plantation work but they are happy to work hard. They want to continue with such initiatives in the coming future too.

Gup Karma Galey, said,

“following the rupee crunch in the country as well as strikes, it is difficult for our country to always depend upon India’s produce”.

He said, “If there is any order from other Dzongkhags, we are ready to supply”. However, he said, if there isn’t any order as such, it would be sold locally.

While, it is said some of the people have already contacted people to-do their business with.

Seedlings, infrastructures are being provided from the agriculture ministry. People have been coordinated by agriculture extension officers and supported by Renewable Natural Resources (RNR) and Agriculture Machinery Centre (AMC) which have been providing power tiller and fuel as well.

Above all, people are pretty excited to go about selling their vegetable produce. People are also excited as this is their first time , producing vegetables in a huge quantity.

Cultivation is being done by almost all the people, especially those who have got wetland.

The gewog has about 290 plus households.