Last Updated:
It is planted in the month of November and it is harvested in July. If you see in 2024-25, farmers are getting ₹ 600 per kg in wholesale price. If bought retail, it is being sold at Rs 1000 to Rs 1400-1500 per kg. If we go to Araria Purnia market, we are getting Rs 2500-3500 per kg.
Dilkhush Kumar Jha/Araria: Earlier, makhana was cultivated in ponds, but under the new methods developed by the National Makhana Research Centre, farmers have now started growing makhana in the fields instead of ponds. This is a matter of benefit for the farmers. Giving specific information on this, farmer Lalit Kumar Chaudhary of Araria district told in a conversation with Local 18 that the nursery of Makhana is first planted in the month of February. After that it is planted between March and April and it is harvested in November. The entire process takes 8 months. Makhana farmers today plant crops in two ways. Firstly, it is cultivated in ponds and secondly, it is also being cultivated in paddy fields by raising the ridges by two feet.
It requires one and a half feet of water. Just as the fields are plowed for the paddy crop and manure is applied in it, in the same way the fields are also prepared for Makhana. If you sprinkle seeds in the pond for the first time, one third of the makhana remains in the pond. The seed comes out again. It is easy to cultivate it in ponds and can be cultivated easily in fields also. Under the Makhana Development Scheme, per hectare subsidy is also given to the farmers cultivating Makhana by the Bihar government.
It is planted in the month of November and it is harvested in July. If you see in 2024–25, farmers are getting ₹ 600 per kg in wholesale price. If bought retail, it is being sold at Rs 1000 to Rs 1400-1500 per kg. If we go to Araria Purnia market, we are getting Rs 2500-3500 per kg. If you go out of Bihar to another state then it is ₹ 3000 per kg. If we talk about abroad, it is being sold in America at Rs 8000 to Rs 11000 per kg.
Farmer Dhanshyam of Bhatgama South village under Bhargama block of Araria district, who says that he cultivates Makhana on about 2.5 acres of land, said that at present Makhana is coming out from 2 acres of land. He said that it costs Rs 15-25 thousand per acre of land, whereas it has good yield and good price, hence, he earns up to one lakh rupees per acre of land. He said that from the cultivation of Makhana, he earns Rs 2-3 lakhs. While leaving, he told that Makhana cultivation is proving to be very beneficial for the farmers here.
Dhanshyam, a young farmer from Araria district, while talking to Local 18, said that if there is one irrigation on your land, then this crop proves to be beneficial for you. He told that now the government is also running various schemes for the cultivation of Makhana. He told that his father has been doing this crop for about 45 years. He told that in the beginning, one had to face many problems in the cultivation of Makhana, but the present government has Many types of awareness campaigns are being run in the area regarding Makhana cultivation, hence now we are earning good income from Makhana cultivation.
