Areca nut is a main source of income for many in Dakshina kannada. Now the farmers in the district are facing labour problems in order to pluck the Areca nut crop from the top of the tree. As both works of spraying pesticide and harvesting the crop happens simultaneously, farmers are having labour shortage.
Bhaskar, a young agriculturist of Charvaka in Kadaba taluk, as a solution to his problem has invented an equipment that helps him to climb the Areca nut tree by himself. The equipment is very simple and can be used by men as well as women. It is handy for spraying the pesticide to the crop as well as harvesting it from the tree.
This tree cycle is made of iron rods. One can climb the tree by locking the equipment to the Arecanut tree and can be used with both hands and legs.
Bhaskar gave up studies after fifth standard due to various reasons and took up agriculture. Usually the labourers prefer large scale farmers as they get more income and evade going to small farmers like Bhaskar. This results in loss of crop also for the small farmer as the pesticide is not sprayed on time.
Bhaskar began using this equipment three years ago, but did many modifications and now successfully using the same for spraying the pesticide and removing the crop from the tree.
Bhaskar is also selling and sold this equipment to many other farmers in need at a cost of Rs 6,500 per piece. He also trains the farmers to use the equipment at his field.
Bhaskar said that the present equipment can be used to climb only Areca nut and he will develop it so that it can be used for climbing coconut trees also.
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