How orange farming is boosting grower incomes in Odisha’s ‘Nagpur’

Prasanna Pradhan of village Khilaberini under Reamal block of Deoghar district in Odisha cultivates paddy on two acres and oranges on 2.5 acres. But when it comes to income and labour efficiency, his preference is clear: oranges outperform paddy.

From just 250 orange plants, Prasanna clocks a turnover of more than Rs 5 lakh between November and January. In contrast, his paddy cultivation during the Kharif season (July to October) fetches less than Rs 95,000 and over 60 per cent of that goes back into cultivation expenses.

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“The difference lies not just in revenue, but in farming costs and labour expenses. Orange is the profit engine now,” Prasanna tells 30Stades.

Prasanna employs one permanent worker for orchard irrigation and engages five to six labourers temporarily for harvesting and fertiliser application. 

Cost economics

“For most orchard operations like fertiliser application in January-February, weeding in July, and pest control against ‘Chakada’ and ‘Pakhia’ in September-October, I need just five or six workers at a time. This keeps costs low,” he says.

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Paddy, however, demands heavy labour throughout its crop cycle. Nearly 50 workers are required during sapling transplantation (‘Rua’) in July, land preparation in late June-early July, and harvesting in October-November.

“Each labourer gets Rs. 350 per working day. If we calculate the labour cost of paddy cultivation, it will be far more than the labour cost of orange farming,” he says. 

With economics in favour of orange farming, 250 farmers in seven villages under the Reamal block, including Khilabereni, Gurusang and Kundheigola, have started cultivating oranges alongside paddy. “We all give more importance to orange farming than to paddy cultivation,” says Prasanna.

Utilising unused uplands

Orange cultivation has also converted previously underutilised uplands into productive assets. While paddy can only be grown on lowland, oranges thrive on upland. Today, over 700 acres in the Reamal block are under orange cultivation, including 200 acres added recently with support from the horticulture department.

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Under the Special Fruit Specific Scheme (SFSS) of the state government, farmers receive phased assistance for three years — crucial because orange plants take three to four years to bear fruit.

“Under SFSS, we provide assistance of Rs 80,460 per hectare in the first year when orange seedlings are planted. In the second year, the assistance is reduced to Rs 32,600, while Rs 21,900 is provided in the third year. The assistance is provided for 275 saplings per hectare,” says Antaryami Sahoo, the Assistant Director (Horticulture), Deoghar.

“We supply a seedling at Rs 48 (current price). We deduct the price amount from the assistance of the first year of plantation. The deducted amount is based on the number of seedlings supplied,” he adds. 

This structured support reduces initial risk and improves return timelines for new growers.

Expanding markets

The red, yellow and black upland soils of Reamal are slightly acidic, making them favourable for citrus crops. A mature plant requires 60 to 65 litres of water daily during peak dry phases. “With the Tikera River nearby, irrigation is manageable,” Prasanna says.

Farmers grow ‘Sweet orange’, ‘Nagpuri’ and ‘Mandarin’ varieties, with Mandarin being the most preferred.

“If a favourable climate prevails, each mature plant yields 2.5 quintals to 4 quintals of oranges on average. We sell them to traders for Rs. 40 per kg, while retail buyers purchase at Rs 60. However, the price varies depending on the output and market demand,” says farmer Fakira Majhi of Khilabereni, who grows oranges on 3.5 acres.

Reamal’s oranges are sold not only locally but also in Bargarh, Bolangir, Sambalpur, Dhenkanal, Cuttack, Khurdha and Angul. They also reach markets in Kolkata and Jamshedpur.

The scale of production has earned Deoghar the reputation of being the ‘Orange District’ and ‘Nagpur’ of Odisha.

Improved practices, reduced losses

Orange farming began here in the late 1980s. Earlier, farmers planted saplings just 15 to 18 feet apart, leading to poor aeration and water stagnation, causing nearly 60 per cent fruit loss.

Guidance from Kendriya Vigyan Kendra (KVK) since 2015-16 has transformed the farming landscape. Farmers now maintain 30 to 35 feet spacing, reducing losses to just 10 to 15 per cent due to climate vagaries.

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Integrated Pest Management (IPM), pruning of diseased parts, pheromone traps for fruit fly and neem kernel extract for leaf miners have further improved productivity, according to Dr Sabyasachi Sahoo, Subject Matter Specialist (Agronomy), KVK, Deoghar.

Value addition

To enhance farmer margins, the Odisha Rural Development and Marketing Society (ORMAS) has set up an orange processing unit in Budhapal village at a cost of about Rs 1 lakh. A producer company, Regional Orange Producers Enterprises (ROPE), with 172 farmers, has been formed to make value-added products.

“We are now making orange juice on behalf of ROPE. It sells 180 ml of orange juice for Rs 15. When the marketing of the juice picks up momentum, we will start making products like jam and squash,” says Pratik Mohapatra, Business Manager of ORMAS, Deoghar.

Processing and branding could further insulate farmers from price fluctuations and increase per-kg realisation.

Though slight tanginess remains a quality concern, officials advise soil testing and application of two kg of lime per plant to improve taste. In Reamal, oranges are not just a crop. They represent a strategic shift from paddy to a market-linked, higher-margin horticulture model that turns land into a compounding income source.

(Niroj Ranjan Misra is a Cuttack-based freelance writer. He writes on rural and tribal life, social issues, art and culture, and sports.)

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