Kulgam’s ‘Vegetable Village’ produces 360 quintals of cucumbers

Wanigund (Kulgam), July 14: Wanigund, a hamlet in south Kashmir’s Kulgam district produced 360 quintals of cucumber in a season, earning a living for local farmers and providing fresh veggies to Kashmir, besides earning the name, ‘ Vegetable Village’ of Kulgam.
The vegetable cluster is forging a new trend and providing inspiration for other farmers to follow.
Every day, some 200 residents transport 3,000 cucumbers from the community to other locations. The vegetable cluster contains around 30 Kanals of land dedicated to the growth of various vegetables.
According to Abdul Rehman Wani, a farmer, they have been doing this farming for ages.
“Our forebears were likewise engaged in this profession.”
“We grow Cucumbers, Brinjal, and other vegetables in Wanigund village. We have no notion how much land is under such farming. The vegetables we grow in this village reach almost every nook and corner of Kashmir,” Wani said.
He said that this year’s continuous rainfall ruined several of their crops. Some of the crops were almost ready to be picked, but rain ruined everything. Later, the farmers cultivated the crops afresh.
“Unfortunately, no one from the agriculture department came to the area when the vegetables were destroyed by rain. The department came here a couple of times last year, but we didn’t see them this year,” he said.
He said that the farmers grew more veggies last year than this year.
“The rain had a significant influence on the crops this year,” he added.
The hamlet is well-known for growing high-quality vegetables like carrots, cucumbers, tomatoes, potatoes, onions, green peas, brinjal, capsicum, cauliflower, garlic, and maize.
All of these veggies are easily grown in the Wanigund settlement, whose land appears to be ideal for vegetation.
According to another farmer, the constant rains harmed cucumbers and chili plants. Later, they were able to rescue the remaining crops by using pesticides.
“The villagers engage in this practice and are all earning a decent living. I just have two kanals of land under vegetables, but I earn a comfortable living and my children are educated with the money we get from veggies,” he said.
He said that they are not obtaining proper pesticides, and are willing to pay whatever price to receive them, but these pesticides should not be substandard.
According to an official from the Agricultural Department in Kulgam, 360 quintals of cucumber are grown on a 12-hectare plot of land in the Wanigund hamlet alone.
“Knol Khol and Saag produce 250 quintals of vegetables each on a one-hectare plot of land.Brinjal and Chilli (Green), both grown on 4 hectares of land, yield 80 quintals each. Bottle Gourd Squash production is about 180 quintals; Beans (Green), 20 quintals; Exotics, 30 quintals; and Coriander, 5 quintals,” he said.