Ranjan Kumar Mahto, 25 years old, a Ranchi University graduate who preferred farming as a profession, was unable to sell his bumper watermelon harvest of 5 tonnes due to the coronavirus lockdown. Well, he offered it to soldiers of the Sikh Regimental Centre (SRC) at Ramgarh for free who rather purchased it at the market price.
He was fondled by the gesture SRC officers including commandant Brigadier M Sri Kumar visited his farm in bordering Bokaro district and bought the produce. They also took gifts, groceries, and food packets for farm laborers with them.
Brigadier Kumar, also the president of the Ramgarh Cantonment Board, told PTI that, “It was heartening to see drip irrigation on 25 acres of land but unfortunately, the poor farmer could not sell the produce. We saw women workers too.”
Further added, “We came to know that he had launched the venture two years ago but suffered losses due to the COVID-19 pandemic and cyclone Yaas.”