Defying All Odds, This Single Mom Is Managing Her Apple Farms To Fulfil Her Husband’s Dream

Nisha Sharma, 44, was completely shattered when she lost her husband in 2011 in a road accident, but that didn’t stop this 10+2 pass-out from making it big. Along with her 13-year-old son, Sharma is achieving all that her late husband had imagined – She is an independent, self-made and successful apple orchardist at a village Nagri in Shimla’s popular fruit-belt of Jubbal-Kotkhai.

“I produce 500 to 700 box of apples every year, which I market myself at the State Agriculture Produce Marketing Committee (APMC) regulated wholesale multi-purpose Market at Para la, located next to Adani‘s CA storage –cum-market yard in Shimla district. The market has the most reliable and trustworthy system," she explains.

She also sends the product to the government manned procurement entity – Himachal Pradesh Horticulture Produce Marketing and Processing (HPMC) Corporation, which has a Market Intervention Scheme (MIS).

Nisha says she has no trust in the private wholesale buyers, who often approach her for purchase of apples. These buyers usually don’t pay on time and it gets difficult to chase them for payments.

Commenting on the same, Rakesh Singha, a CPM MLA from Theog revealed that in the areas like Jubbal-Kotkhai and Rohru, many people have been fooled by these small-time apple buyers and agents from Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Pune and Chennai. Many have just disappeared after the season leaving the farmers in the lurch with post-dated unpaid cheques and court ligations.

However, keeping all this in mind, Nisha has chosen to play safe - She sells the produce to the Para la market only.

She established her orchard with almost1000-odd plants in 1960-65 but after her husband’s death, she supplemented the existing traditional varieties – Royal, delicious and golden with hybrid high-density plantation of imported spur and Granny Smith varieties.

Nisha proudly says, “I have learned driving and now I own a private car. I can handle all my orchard operations through-out the year. I do pruning myself, handle sprays, grading and packaging. Nepali labourers who turn-up during the season also provide a lot of support.”

She gets all input materials viz pesticide, insecticides used in the orchard from two-three local dealers

Though admitting that taking care of the home, and teenage son has been a tough job along with farm operations, she says that she is now used to it.

She feels, “Woman in the mountains are otherwise strong, aware and know how to handle the life and family matters, braving social challenges. It’s all due to high literacy and empowerment in Himachal Pradesh.”