THEBUSINESSBYTES BUREAU
BALASORE, FEBRUARY 16, 2026
Farming has returned to Sorat village in Odisha’s Dhenkanal district
after nearly two decades, with Reliance Foundation’s solar fencing initiative
and community mobilisation helping villagers reclaim their fields and
livelihoods.
For years, repeated crop destruction by wild animals from the nearby
forests had forced farmers to abandon cultivation and depend on daily wage
labour, gradually eroding the village’s agrarian base and making homegrown
vegetables a thing of the past. The situation began to change in August 2025
when 28 villagers came together to revive 13 acres of fallow land through
collective farming.
A solar-powered fence installed around the fields became the turning
point. The technology, which safely deters animals without harming them,
restored farmers’ confidence to return to agriculture after a gap of almost 20
years. Supported by training and knowledge sessions from Reliance Foundation,
the group adopted multi-cropping practices to improve nutrition and income.
The reclaimed land is now producing black gram, horse gram and mustard,
along with vegetables such as cauliflower, radish, beans, coriander and leafy
greens. Fresh produce has re-entered local diets, reducing dependence on
outside markets and strengthening food security in the village.
The initiative followed a participatory model in which Reliance
Foundation provided technical guidance and contributed about 42 per cent of the
solar fencing cost, making the intervention accessible while ensuring community
ownership. Demonstrations helped farmers better understand crop planning, soil
preparation and collective management of the fields.
Encouraged by the early success, several individual farmers are now
preparing to restart cultivation on their own lands by investing in similar
fencing systems. “We are children of farmers and returning to farming after 20
years was made possible through our collective effort and the support we
received. I hope our success encourages others to take up agriculture again,”
said farmer Madhusudan Lenka.
The transformation has turned a landscape once marked by human–animal
conflict into a productive farming zone, raising hopes that migrant workers may
return to their ancestral lands. Through its Rural Transformation programme, Reliance
Foundation continues to promote sustainable agriculture, livelihood enhancement
and community resilience, reaching over 2.22 crore individuals across more than
90,000 villages in India.
