New Delhi, March 16 -- Gayatri Karma speaks with a confidence and a sense of pride, which is rare for a small farmer. Thirty-seven and a mother of three, Karma spends her days tending to her kitchen garden and growing a variety of crops from chana to maize, in Dewas, Madhya Pradesh. Karma is also part of a farmer-run company set up back in 2012. Last year, she joined the company's board and now actively takes part in reviewing its quarterly business plans. That's no small achievement for a farmer with a landholding of just three acres.

The farmer producer organization (FPO) that Karma has been a part of since its inception is Ram Rahim Pragati Producer Co. Ltd. In 2024-25, the 6,000-member strong FPO clocked a turnover of nearly Rs.16 cr...