Agricultural Producer Clusters (APC) empowering farmers

• World Bank Team praised Maa Kalijai APC after reviewing their performance

Bhubaneswar, Sept 2025 : Today, the World Bank Team with Project Director, OIIPCRA and other officers visited the APC Cluster at Maa Kalijai PG in Harichandanpur Block. The world Bank team enquired about the cultivation practices, marketing and economic status of the women farmers prior to the APC project and the current status.

The producer group members explained that the Bitter gourd is the winner crop cultivated in cluster approach by 110 numbers of women farmers over 70 acres by adopting improved technologies such as low-cost single-line trellis, saplings from soilless nursery entrepreneurs, mulching, and solar borewell with drip. For input and output market linkages, the farmers receive support from the Farmer Producer Company promoted under the APC project.

The produce is marketed directly from the farm to Cuttack, Jajpur, and Bhadrak through the FPC. Earlier their income was Rs. 6000 to Rs. 10000 annually from farming of vegetable crops, but presently maximum members of their PG are earning more than 1 lakhs from vegetable cultivation. The World Bank Team expressed their happiness after seeing the performance of the APC. Advised other clusters to follow the above model to get more output with low input cost.

Susree Sangita Maharana
PRO, AG&FE