Empowering rural youth through horticulture based integrated farming: A case study of commercial IFS from the Kumaon Hills of Uttarakhand

Agriculture in the hills of Uttarakhand is critically constrained and repressed by fragmented farms, dependency on rains, wild animal menace and high input costs, driving distress migration among rural youth for employment. This case study assesses the economic viability and sustainability of a Horticulture-based Integrated Farming System (IFS) in Village Palaribagar, District Bageshwar. The study focuses on the transition of a 3-acre traditional fragmented farm into a diversified commercial enterprise led by a rural youth, with aids of technical interventions from Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK), Bageshwar. The present model integrated high income generating components including orchards (Apple, Kiwi, Stone fruits), off-season vegetables, apiculture (Apis cerana indica), fisheries, and dairy, thus utilizing a "waste-to-wealth" approach of nutrient cycling and maximising the net income. Economic analysis over a seven-year period (2018-2024) shows a significant trajectory of growth. The adoption of IFS model has resulted in income increase by four times, from ₹1.15 lakh in 2018 to ₹5.20 lakh in 2024, and improvement in Benefit-Cost (B:C) ratio from 1.33 to 2.46, indicating efficacy in resource utilization. The study demonstrates and supports the fact that that IFS cause income stability and is climate resilient, therefore, serve as replicable model for rural youth and fortify hill economy.