Kaup: Two farmers, Shekhar Salian of Kaup west village and APMC Udupi member from Mallur village, Sudhama Shetty are privileged to be selected in a team of 120 agriculturists picked by Karnataka Governments Agriculture department to visit China for a week from March 28(today) to April 3. The two local farmers representing Coastal region, are in the first batch of 40 farmers going on a study tour of agricultural China. They go by air from Bangalore on Wednesday. They go to Beijing and Shanghai sectors to observe irrigation methods, retail markets, fruits and crops, modern tech farms etc in these places.

Having seen agricultural areas of the two mega cities for 3 days from April one, the team of 40 farmers from India reach Beijing Emerald Museum, China’s Great wall and Hongkong, before returning on April 3 to Bangalore, after spending 5 days and 4 nights in 3-star hotels, spending Rs 49,000 each on every farmer in the team, as arranged by the state Government.

The two West Coast farmers raise rice crops at home, various other cereals and grains, vegetables and diary cattle.

Salian also grows water melon fruits since 10 years and is engaged in introducing hill crops to plains now. They both use animal-compost to agriculture. He has about 5 acres of land of his own, and also under takes farming on other people land on lease.

Sudhama is a GP member, local Bank director and a social leader, while conducting dairying, rice cultivation, and raising other alternate crops as a progressive farmer.

It may me noted that in early years, farmers under a 4-H programme, were sent to America on a study tour for two weeks. After Yeddyurapp’s China tours when he was CM, attention is turned to china.