Pushkarnath Banjande’s agricultural success story

By Ganesh Khanal,Arghakhanchi,Dec.1: A farmer in Arghakhanchi has demonstrated that agriculture can be a highly profitable profession. 

Pushkarnath Banjande, a local of Sandhikharka Municipality-8, has amassed a wealth of over Rs. 130 million through three decades of continuous professional farming. Having briefly worked in the education sector, in 2015 Banjande realised that real income lay in agriculture and decided to dedicate himself entirely to the profession. 

Today, he owns a house in Kathmandu, several farms in Butwal, Kathmandu, and Sandhikharka, and has built considerable wealth while improving his family’s standard of living. 

“Through farming, I was able to educate my son as a Chartered Accountant and buy 44 tolas of gold to my wife,” he said. Banjande has transformed his 25-ropani vegetable farm and five-ropani farmland into an exemplary agricultural operation. 

He uses semi-permanent tunnels and high-tech equipment to produce both seasonal and off-season vegetables, including cauliflower, cabbage, tomatoes, cucumbers and bitter gourds. His farm provides permanent employment to 10–12 workers. Not limited to vegetables, Banjande has also succeeded in coffee cultivation and processing. 

He has registered facilities for roasting, hulling, grinding, packaging and lab testing. He has been operating them systematically with support from government agencies, agricultural knowledge centres, and the Prime Minister’s Agriculture Modernisation Project. 

He has also constructed ponds and RCC tanks to ensure year-round irrigation. Banjande’s coffee reaches international markets in the United States, Japan, Korea, and Australia, with foreign buyers directly contacting him. 

Although international demand is high, exporting large quantities remains a challenge, he said adding, to inspire local farmers, he has been producing and distributing coffee seedlings.

About four kilometres west of Sandhikharka market, Banjande’s farm is a lush green space featuring vegetable plots, fruit gardens, coffee plants, and livestock. 

He produces and sells milk from his farm, with an estimated annual income of over Rs. 10 million, according to the municipal agriculture branch.

Ram Bahadur Thapa, head of the agriculture unit, said, “Banjande is one of the district’s most successful entrepreneurs in coffee and vegetable farming.” “Many local farmers could learn from his methods to transform agriculture in the region, added Thapa. 

Having gained skills through agricultural studies and training, Banjande exemplifies how hard work, skill, and technical knowledge can turn farming into a lucrative career. 

Krishna Prasad Shrestha, municipality’s mayor, added, “Banjande is not only successful but also an exemplary farmer. We plan to share his knowledge collectively with other farmers.”

Banjande is now recognised as one of Arghakhanchi’s most successful farmers, proving that agriculture can generate wealth in millions.