Woman Farmer Rewrites Her Destiny; Sugarcane Supply Shortage for Sugar Mills

Gurpreet Kaur, a marginal farmer from Kalyan village in Patiala district, along with her husband Lakhwinder Singh, has scripted an inspiring story of grit, innovation, and entrepreneurship within just six years. From a hand-to-mouth existence on 2.5 acres of land, the couple have turned into agro-processing entrepreneurs handling nearly 200 tons of produce annually, employing several people and supplying products across various states. Initially relying on conventional farming, their existence was tough and the situation worsened during the Covid-19 lockdown. Facing difficulties in selling her small vegetable produce, Gurpreet started making traditional pickles and preserves. She began with processing just 10–15 kg vegetables grown in her own fields. Gurpreet says, ‘How kilogram-level processing turned into quintals and then into tonne-level processing today feels like a dream to me.’ The couple now runs KS Agro, a fast-growing food processing unit operating from their home, with plans to set up a full-fledged factory and their own retail stores. Their product range has expanded to around 100 types of items. Additionally, Punjab Agricultural Management and Extension Training Institute’s (PAMETI) Business Biba'z Project, aimed at empowering rural women by helping them transition from farm laborers to independent agri-preneurs, held a three-day entrepreneurship development program on mushroom cultivation at the Ludhiana campus. The program was designed to equip women with practical skills and entrepreneurial knowledge on mushroom cultivation. Dr. Kanwar Barjinder Singh, Director PAMETI said, ‘When women gain economic independence, they uplift entire communities. Empowerment is contagious.’ Meanwhile, Panjab’s sugar mills are grappling with a sharp shortfall in sugarcane supply this crushing season because of an acute shortage of harvesting labor, compounded by significantly lower cane yields. Industry officials estimate that labor availability has declined by 35–40%, severely disrupting harvesting operations and resulting in unusually low cane arrivals at mills during the peak crushing period. Additionally, Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann met with Indian Union Home Minister Amit Shah on 17 Jan to voice concerns over the proposed Seeds Bill 2025, which is expected to be introduced in the Indian Parliament during the upcoming Budget Session (earlier coverage).