If a person has strong willpower to perform then nothing can stop them, not even repeated failures. The current generation of our country need determination of steel as they are often seen to lose hope and succumb to frustration after a few initial failures.
One may not set water on fire but with determination they can harvest oysters in the water and sit atop a heap of pearls, and it is not a figurative expression anymore, to say the least.
Yes, you can, now, harvest pearls instead of cereals, fruits, and vegetables. A few have ventured into this area and the word has it that they are earning millions by pearl cultivation.
Sanjay Gandate is a third-generation farmer from Pardi Kupi village, in Gadchiroli district of Maharashtra, who has just done that. He is well known in Vidarbha for his pearls. Earlier, his family was solely dependent on traditional farming but Sanjay came along to change the usual course.
Sanjay, who loved playing with oysters in his childhood days, cannot pinpoint as to when he became engrossed in harvesting them. Today, he harvest oysters in an artificially prepared pond for pearls. He is not only earning millions through this out of the box occupation but is also helping others to learn the art.
In an exclusive conversation with KenFolios, Sanjay said, “I have seen oysters very closely since my childhood. The Wainganga river flows by around my village. The river was full of oysters and I used to play with them in my childhood. My father would give me some oysters whenever I was crying and they always brought make smile on my face. Gradually, when I grew up, I realized that these shells are alive and pearls can be generated inside them. Slowly, I gathered information about this process.
At that time, Sanjay was a school goer and his father was an ordinary farmer who depended on agriculture for his familial needs. Sanjay had no special interest in his studies, but when one of his close relatives secured a job he decided to study hard and scored 70 percent marks in STD 12. He later completed LLB and become a lawyer. But oysters always remained his primary interest.
Sanjay says, he prepares natural pearls, even though his method is artificial. First, he tried to make pearls by putting pebbles or mud inside the oysters according to suggestions given by the local villagers. But the oysters died after a few months. After a lot of research, now he prepares his own pearl seeds with 12 different natural ingredients. He never uses anything acquired from the market. This way the oysters remain healthy and also produce good quality pearls.
According to Sanjay, “My pearls are completely natural and they contain many medicinal properties and can treat several diseases. This is why pearls have high market value. My daughter weighed a mere 1.4 kg at birth but after I made her wear pearls things improved rapidly. Currently, she is 1.5-year-old and weighs 8.5 kg.”
Initially, Sanjay had to face great difficulties. When he first started to harvest oysters in his pond, someone stole his oysters. This made him face heavy losses. After that Sanjay decided to cultivate pearls by making a pond in his own backyard. At present, he is harvesting around 5,000 oysters in a 12×15 feet pond. He is now constructing two 15×15 feet ponds, after which he will be able to harvest 20,000 oysters in one go.
Sanjay removes the oysters from the water once a month and cleans them. Sanjay’s wife Seema also helps him in this work. As his pearls are of good quality, one pearl fetches him at least Rs 2,000. People come from distant places to learn the art of harvesting such good quality pearls.
Sanjay dared to do something new instead of carrying out the traditional farming. Today, he has presented an example in front of people looking to establish a career in farming.
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