In two different villages, in two different states, two women quietly changed the direction of their lives, and the lives of many farmers around them. They did not wait for big support or easy money. They did not ask for permission, they simply began. Today, their farms are not just fields of crops, but examples of confidence, organic success, and community leadership.
These are stories of Hitesh Choudhary from Uttar Pradesh and Savita J Yelne from Maharashtra, two entrepreneurs who proved that organic farming can be a real career, not just a dream.
From traditional farming to new beginning in Amroha
Hitesh Choudhary lives in Chak Chaavi village in Amroha district, Uttar Pradesh. Her main goal was simple but strong; to increase farmers’ income through agriculture. In the beginning, she practiced traditional farming methods. She grew wheat, lemon grass, sugarcane, turmeric, mustard.
But she was always ready to learn something new. She believed farming could be improved with better ideas and techniques. Over time, she focused her energy on organic lemon grass cultivation. She also started maintaining nutritional kitchen gardens and learned how to prepare organic inputs. She did not keep this knowledge to herself. And, she began motivating and training other farmers about organic farming methods.
A major turning point came in 2018 when she attended Training of Trainers program organised by Patanjali Organic Research Institute in Haridwar. After this training, she fully shifted to organic and natural farming methods.
Today, Hitesh cultivates mustard, vegetables, lemon grass, wheat, sugarcane, turmeric, and guava on two acres of land. She has also converted large portions of land to organic cultivation. Her kitchen garden is not small or simple. It is filled with onion, potato, carrot, radish, spinach, coriander, cabbage, fenugreek, banana plants, papaya, brinjal, sweet potato, turnip, guava plants, arbi, bottle gourd, and luffa. The garden helps improve family nutrition and also shows other farmers how to grow diverse crops at home.
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Hitesh uses natural fertilizers and manures such as Beejamrut, Panchagavya, Jeevamrut, and Ghanjeevamrut. She prepares compost using cow dung and collects cow urine to make farming inputs. These natural methods have reduced her farming costs significantly. Because she prepares her own inputs, she saves a large amount of money on crop production.
She sells lemon grass oil, wheat, sugarcane, mustard, sorghum, and turmeric directly to customers and also in the mandi. The vegetables, cereals, and mustard grown in her farm are used for home consumption as well. By shifting to organic farming, she has doubled her income. Her financial growth is one of the strongest results of her efforts.
Her journey was not easy. At the beginning, she faced resistance from family and society. She did not receive financial support. She started her work with self-belief. Slowly, her results spoke louder than criticism. Today, she supports several self-help groups and farmer producer organizations in Amroha district.
Savita J Yelne: From one acre to a growing organic network
In Maharashtra, Savita J Yelne from Kanhapur village in Wardha district began her organic journey in 2008. She started on just one acre of land. Her training came from the Centre for Sustainable Agriculture based in Secunderabad, Telangana. Later, she also attended training programs conducted by the State Agriculture Department of Maharashtra. During an exposure visit, she saw the organic farm of Subhash Sharma, known as a “smart farmer” in Maharashtra. That visit inspired her further.
In 2012, she expanded her organic farming to six acres. Later, she purchased three more acres under organic cultivation. Over time, she converted about fifteen acres into fully organic farming and around fifty acres into fifty percent organic farming.
Savita is associated with the “Maharashtra Rajya Jeevan Unnati Abhiyan,” through which she trains women in Wardha district about organic farming. She is also a member of the Yogahaar programme of the Patanjali Organic Research Institute, a dedicated initiative for organic farming. She has been selected as a trainer farmer by the institute. And, she regularly shares her experience with new and interested farmers.
Because of her work, more than thirty nearby farmers have started growing organic food. Many of them grow for their own consumption, and some sell their surplus produce. Her influence has created a local shift toward healthier farming practices.
Savita began selling her produce outside her farm along the Wardha-Nagpur road. Her organic shop is located on the Wardha-Nagpur national highway. She sells seasonal vegetables, wheat flour, pulses, mustard, coriander and fenugreek seeds, and sugarcane juice.
She also does processing and value addition for wheat, sugarcane, mustard, and pigeon pea. During the summer months, especially May and June, she sells sugarcane juice from her outlet. She sells vegetables, processed chickpea, pigeon pea, turmeric powder, and papaya. Soybean and remaining pigeon pea are sold in the mandi at market rates. She does not charge extra prices for organic products. Customers appreciate this approach and prefer buying from her shop.
Savita has been honoured by taluka and district authorities for her innovative farming practices. These include compost use, vermicompost, nutrient management, mulching, and crop rotation. She runs her farm as an individual entrepreneur and manages operations with dedication.
During early stages, she also faced criticism. People questioned her decisions and mocked her efforts. She shared that society once considered her work unusual. However, as results improved, opinions changed. Now the same people are adopting organic farming methods. She has trained and motivated nearby farmers to follow organic practices.