From Struggle to Sustainable Livelihood: The Inspiring Journey of Babli Chaudhary

Babli Chaudhary, from Krishnapur Municipality–4, Kanchanpur, comes from a farming family with long struggled with financial hardship.. Before joining the Skill Up! project, she cultivated vegetables on just 1 to2 katha of land, however limited technical knowledge and inadequate access to quality agricultural inputs and resources constraints resulted in low productivity and income to adequately support her family livelihoods.

With support from the Skill Up! project, Babli who has passed SLC, participated in a 60-day Commercial Vegetable Production Training. The training equipped her with practical knowledge and skills in climate-smart techniques, organic farming practices, integrated pest management (IPM), marketing, and business planning. She further enhanced her technical capacity through a Vegetable Enterprise Incubation Program in Chitwan, where she received hands-on training in nursery management, irrigation, post-harvest handling, and preparation and use of organic fertilizer.

 Applying these newly acquired skills, Babli has begun adopting improved production techniques/practices on her farm.With the support of business starter kits provided by the project, she is successfully transitioning from traditional farming to a commercial vegetable enterprise.

Transformation and Achievements

Babli with her newly purchased auto for transporting vegetables to market. After completing the training, Babli applied her newly acquired knowledge and skills to expand her farming enterprise by leasing additional land, increasing her cultivated area to 16 katha. She now produces a diverse range of both seasonal and off-season vegetables such as snake gourd, pumpkin, long beans, cauliflower, cabbage, tomato, and okra year-round, making farming a reliable source of income.

Earlier, she earned around NPR 150,000 from paddy, pulses, and limited vegetable production. This has now increased to around NPR 400,000, significantly improving her family’s economic condition and access to nutritious food. Her success has also inspired other young women in the community to engage in commercial agriculture.

She has recently purchased an auto vehicle to transport her vegetables to local markets. She also supports other farmers by facilitating the  marketing of their produce, strengthening market linkages within the community

Her achievements have inspired many young women in the area to pursue commercial vegetable farming as a viable livelihood opportunity.

“With the support of the Skill Up! project, I received training and technical support that helped me improve my farming and turn it into a stable source of income. I am now financially independent, my family’s living conditions have improved, and I am also supporting other farmers in my community. This experience has shown me how practical skills can change rural livelihoods" she shares

Story Collection and Photo: Archana Gautam /Ram Kisan Chaudhary