Young Farmers Scripting Success in Panjab

While the Indian Union Budget 2026–27 has stressed the need for digital agriculture, early-warning systems and localized advisories to shield farmers from climate risks, in Panjab that future is already unfolding. A 30-year-old farmer from Bathinda, Baljinder Singh Mann, founder of the Panjabi-language digital platform Mausam Punjab Da (Panjab’s weather), has built a grassroots weather-intelligence system tailored to Panjab’s farms, powered by a smartphone, self-funded weather stations, and local knowledge. A farmer predicting for farmers, Baljinder himself cultivates seven acres of land. Without government backing, Baljinder has created a Panjab-specific digital weather and risk advisory network, issuing alerts in simple Panjabi via Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube. His platform reaches 225K followers on Facebook, 178K on Instagram, and a rapidly growing YouTube audience. Meanwhile, in Barnala’s Sehna village, 18-year-old Sohalpreet Singh Sidhu is earning USD 60K monthly from his dairy farm and reinvesting to scale up his enterprise. Sohalpreet’s journey began at the age of 15, when instead of studying to go abroad as his family wished, he convinced them to buy him his first buffalo. Within three years, Sohalpreet now owns 55 buffaloes, 15 cows, and about 50 young cattle and calves, totalling nearly 120 livestock. His herd includes premium breeds such as 53 Murrah buffaloes, two Neeli Ravi buffaloes, 12 Holstein Friesian cows, and two Jersey cows. He says, ‘My dream is to reach 500–550 buffaloes.’ Currently, the farm produces 650–700 litres of milk every day and sells to a private company that has its collection centre in Barnala. Additionally, Ramandeep Singh, a small farmer from Maur Khurd village in Bathinda district is quietly scripting a high-tech success story by growing seed potatoes in the air instead of conventional soil-based methods. The 30-year-old farmer has achieved a turnover of over USD 110K in the very first year of cultivation through aeroponic potato seed production. Ramandeep’s father, Sarabjit Singh, owns only four acres of land, devoted to wheat and paddy cycle. Of which, Ramandeep has converted less than one-third of an acre into a technology-driven venture. He holds a BSc in Agriculture from Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana and is currently pursuing an MSc in Plant Breeding (earlier coverage).