Rourkela: Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in the 131st episode of his Mann Ki Baat radio programme on Sunday, lauded 35-year-old Hirod Patel, a farmer of Sundargarh, for shifting from conventional paddy cultivation to a smart, integrated vertical farming system.Three years ago, this farmer drew all attention to his integrated farming system to cultivate climbers and practise pisciculture in his farm pond. He thus won ‘Successful Young Progressive Farmer Award’. Hirod was happy at having won the PM’s praise. “The story of a young farmer named Hirod Patel in Odisha is truly inspiring,” said PM Modi. Till around eight years ago, he cultivated paddy in the traditional way with his father, Shiv Shankar Patel, but then, he began to approach farming from a new perspective,” said PM Modi.Modi detailed the innovation in which Hirod built bamboo trellis over a pond on his farm, grew vegetable creepers on it, planted bananas, guavas and coconuts around the pond besides starting pisciculture in the water. “In other words, traditional farming, vegetables, fruits and fish are all being undertaken in one place. This has led to better land use, water savings and additional income. Today, farmers from far and wide come over to see his model,” Modi added.
