Maa Kalijai APC Empowers Women Farmers in Odisha | World Bank Applauds Sustainable Farming Success
Harichandanpur, September 19. In a remarkable stride toward rural empowerment, the Maa Kalijai Agricultural Producer Cluster (APC) in Harichandanpur Block has transformed the lives of 110 women farmers through sustainable and innovative farming practices.
Their success story recently drew praise from a visiting World Bank delegation, which lauded the cluster’s low-input, high-output model as a blueprint for agricultural development.
The women farmers, organized under a Farmer Producer Company (FPC), have cultivated bitter gourd across 70 acres using modern techniques such as single-line trellising, soilless nursery saplings, mulching, and solar-powered drip irrigation. These methods have not only boosted productivity but also ensured environmental sustainability.
Before joining the APC initiative, most farmers earned between Rs 6,000 and Rs 10,000 annually. Today, many report incomes exceeding Rs 1 lakh, thanks to direct market linkages with cities like Cuttack, Jajpur, and Bhadrak.
The World Bank team, accompanied by officials from the Odisha Integrated Irrigation Project for Climate Resilient Agriculture (OIIPCRA), commended the cluster’s achievements and encouraged replication across other APCs in the state.
Maa Kalijai APC now stands as a beacon of hope, demonstrating how collective farming, technological innovation, and women-led entrepreneurship can reshape rural economies and empower communities.
