Visakhapatnam: At the age of 10 when most of the children spend their leisure time watching cartoons or playing with friends, E.V.V. Rajith spends his time working on a 280-yard field near his house at Payakaraopeta town in the district.
Rajith, a class-VI student of Sri Prakash Vidyaniketan, has always been curious about farming and recently he managed to convince the owner of an open plot of 280 square yards near his house to let him do farming on the land where he is now growing organically a host of vegetables including tomato, beans, bottle gourd, bitter gourd and a few other varieties.
“Initially, I planned to grow Ashwagandha (winter cheery) in the open plot as the roots of Ashwagandha plant are traditionally used in Indian medicines such as Ayurveda and Unani and I approached officials of the agriculture and horticulture departments. But, I decided to grow vegetables organically as per the suggestions of the officials and now the yield is also good,” said Rajith.
“Being a student of a top corporate school and involved in farming is a little difficult for me. But, I have been managing both studies and farming effectively. I spend at least 30 minutes a day (morning and evening) in the farm field and on Sunday I spend at least four hours for better results,” said Rajith. “Cyclone Hudhud destroyed the crops and fence of my farmland. Then I realised that farmer is an ultimate victim. Despite the damage, I again started growing the vegetables in the same place,” he added.
Speaking on his future plans, Rajith says that he wants to purchase land for growing herbal plants and also to set up a laboratory for manufacturing herbal medicines. Apart from farming, Rajith is also an environmental activist and educates and sensitises people to undertake eco-friendly measures for sustainable development. His parents E. Bangaru Raju and E. Vijya Bhanu are also encouraging Rajith.
“My style of work would definitely bring positive impact in the society in near future,” Rajith says confidently.
