According to the report, ‘farmers earn between Rs 60,000 and Rs 2 lakh per hectare from exotic vegetables, compared to Rs 8,000 to Rs 10,000 per hectare from traditional crops.’
Because of the high returns, farmers are shifting to off-season exotic vegetable farming. In 2020-21, the total area under vegetable cultivation is 87,485 hectares, with off-season and exotic vegetables accounting for 60% of the total (52,491 hectares). There is no supply of vegetables from the plains to the markets of Delhi, Chandigarh, Ambala, Karnal, Jalandhar, and Ludhiana from mid-June to mid-September. As a result, off-season crops in Himachal face less competition and command a higher price.
Growers selling vegetables earn between Rs 60,000 and Rs 2 lakh per hectare, compared to Rs 8,000 to Rs 10,000 per hectare for conventional crops, according to the Agriculture Department.
Roshi, who leased two hectares in Sainj to grow capsicum and peas in polyhouses, claims that profits per hectare range between Rs 60,000 and Rs 75,000.
According to Rajeev Minhas, a specialist, the area under such vegetables has increased from 42,320 hectares in 2016-17 to 52,491 hectares in 2020-21. He continues by stating that vegetable output has increased from 9,09,428 to 11,20,447 metric tonnes (MT).
Off-season veggies include tomato, capsicum, green peas, beans, cabbage, cauliflower, potato and cucumber while exotic vegetable comprise broccoli, lettuce, zucchini, cherry tomato, ‘bok choy’, Chinese cabbage, iceberg, celery, parsley, red cabbage and coloured capsicum.
According to BR Takhi, Director of Agriculture, the department has introduced grafted vegetable seedlings, exotic vegetables, and encouraged seed production through the seed village initiative to help diversify crops.
Vegetables are produced in Himachal in places ranging from the Shivalik foothills (elevation 400 metres) to the high Alpine zone (height 4,000 metres). In the production of off-season vegetables, the state can be described as a “Natural Glass House” of the country, he added.
The Amount Of Land Under Cultivation Is Growing:
- Vegetable farming covers 87,485 hectares.
- 52,491 hectares are planted with exotic crops in the off-season.
- Exotic vegetable growers may earn anywhere between Rs 60,000 and Rs 2 lakh per acre, compared to Rs 8,000 to Rs 10,000 for traditional crops.
- From 42,320 hectares in 2016-17 to 52,491 hectares in 2020-21, the area under such vegetables has increased.