What began as a struggle to make farming work became a journey from farmer to mentor.

For 42-year-old Hemalini Mohanta of Sudium village in Odisha's Mayurbhanj, farming has always been central to her family’s life. She lives with her husband, mother-in-law, sister-in-law and two children. The family owns six acres of land, of which they cultivate three acres themselves and have leased out the remaining three.

But owning land did not always mean earning enough from it. Traditional farming, rising input costs and limited productivity often left little behind for a family of six.

Hemalini knew she needed to make the land work differently.

Her turning point came when she was selected as a Community Cadre and Climate Champion under the SOOVA climate-resilient agriculture initiative. Through training supported by the Green Ag Project and KVK, she learned about seed treatment, organic farming, vermicomposting and bio-inputs such as Jeevamrut and Nimastra.

She did not leave the learning in the training room. She took it to her three acres.

Hemalini began treating seeds, preparing bio-inputs, using vermicompost and yellow sticky traps, and reducing her dependence on purchased inputs. She diversified her farm with potato, cucumber, mustard, green gram, turmeric and marigold, along with organic mushroom cultivation.

The change was gradual, but it began to change the economics of her farm.

The vermicompost unit she initially created for her own fields started producing enough for her to sell the surplus. Soon, vermicompost and vermi-worms became an additional source of income.

What began as a way to reduce farm expenses became a way to earn from the farm.

Her income from these activities has grown to around ₹2.1 lakh, while cultivation costs have reduced significantly. The improved income has also helped the family invest in their children’s future. Her son is now pursuing his education in Ranchi, Jharkhand.

But the biggest change came when other farmers started coming to her.

They came to learn how she prepared vermicompost. Then they began buying it. Gradually, farmers started seeking her advice on organic farming and bio-inputs.

Today, around 40 farmers in her village and 14 from nearby areas seek her guidance, while farmers from nearly 12 villages visit her to purchase vermicompost. She is also a trainer for KVK Samakhunta, sharing her knowledge on preparing and using bio-inputs.

Her work has earned recognition as a Best Woman Farmer, as a progressive farmer at the Krushi Mela at IMAGE, Bhubaneswar, and through felicitation by the Agriculture Department, Odisha.

The farmer who once went to training sessions to learn from others is now invited to teach others.

Hemalini started with a simple goal: to make farming more productive and affordable for her family. In the process, her own farm became a source of learning for others.

A training became a farming practice.

A farming practice became an income opportunity.

And one farmer’s learning became a lesson for many others.

Today, Hemalini is not only growing crops on her three acres. She is growing confidence, knowledge and new possibilities for the farmers around her.