Organic farmer Sanil Kumar hopes his son Parthiv chooses farming as his career

Not many farmers today ask their children to take up farming as a career.

N. Sanil Kumar, a farmer hailing from Cheruthana, near Haripad, is an exception.

He has encouraged his 15-year-old son Parthiv S. to follow in his footsteps.

Today, the father-son duo is scripting a success story in the field by growing as many as 70 varieties of vegetables, along with fruits and medicinal plants, in their 1.5 acres of organic farmland.

Parthiv, who recently made his father proud by bagging the best student vegetable farmer award instituted by the Agriculture Department in the district, says: “In agriculture, my father is my guiding light. It was he who introduced me to farming two years ago. It is a nice experience and I want to continue my tryst with it.” He finds time for farming while preparing for the Class X examination.

He also owns an exclusive space within the plot, where he grows a wide varieties of spinach and beans. Earnings from these are meant for him.

Exotic varieties

Besides, Chinese cabbage, stevia (a sweetener and sugar substitute), winged bean, cauliflower, beetroot, carrot, pumpkin, brinjal, chilli, tomato, potato, tuber crops along with fruits such as grapes, mandarin orange, mangosteen, citrus, and sweet corn are some of the exotic and local varieties in the farm.

The abundant yield ends up on the dinner tables of Government Higher Secondary School, Ayaparambu, where Parthiv is a student, and the rest is sold to nearby shops.

Son of the soil

Mr. Kumar believes there is a farmer in Parthiv and would like to see him as son of the soil.

“Farming is more than a passion for me and I am happy to see my son showing interest in agriculture. I want to give him quality education. After his studies, I wish he becomes a successful farmer,” says Mr. Kumar, who also runs a textile shop.

Mr. Kumar possesses a wide variety of vegetable seeds and is engaged in propagating organic farming methods in the region. He was recently honoured by the Sarojini-Damodaran Foundation for his contributions to the field of organic farming.

His wife Geetha Krishnan and daughter Parvathy G. provide ample support to the duo.