Youth takes to mushroom farming

BY BIJAY KUMAR SHAH,Dhalkebar, Feb. 24: Lalit Kumar Mahato, 17, of Dhalkebar has started commercial mushroom farming from his house. Lalit, who took a gap for two years from his study due to poverty, is currently studying at grade nine of Agricultural Technical Level of Namuna Secondary School in Badhari. 

Lalit said that he had learned about mushroom farming by observing the practical classes delivered to the students of grade 10 and 11 at the school. "Though theoretical classes on mushroom farming were taught in my class, I acquired adequate knowledge about the farming from the practical classes," he said.  

Lalit had started mushroom cultivation with 20 packets as a test in November.   After being successful in the test, he started cultivation by adding 20 more packets in January and bought necessary materials like seed, cotton and rope from his teacher.  

So far, he has sold about 30 kilograms of mushroom in the market. 

He informed that due to poor economic condition he had been cultivating mushroom inside his bedroom and was planning to expand the farm according to the standards required for mushroom farming in the future.

Since he had been helping his parents in agriculture from a young age, it had been easy for him to do   farming, he added. His parents had been farming as a tiller since they don’t own any land. 

He had to drop out from school after his mother suffered from a long-term headache four years ago. Since, his father was not normal, the household responsibility had fallen upon him since he was the only child to his parents. 

Father Ramchandra Mahato and mother Giradevi Mahato are happy to see their son as a business entrepreneur at the young age.