Norman neighed Namaste to
incredible India! Covering an area of 3,287,590 sq. km extending from the
snow-covered Himalayan heights to the tropical rain forests of the south, India has one of
the oldest civilizations in the world with a
kaleidoscopic variety and rich cultural heritage. He is excited to know
the different aspects of her personality – exotic, extravagant, elegant,
eclectic to each one who visits.
Alltech team shared with Norman that
history of horse in Indian Subcontinent dates to the early Swat culture (around
1600 BC) and to Indo-Aryan migration to India. The horses are part of country’s
history from Vedic period to Moguls to colonial rule and present modern India.
Two of the famous horses which are written in history are Kanthaka the horse on which Buddha rode
when he departed from his palace before enlightenment and the famous Marwari
Horse Chetak of Rana Pratap.
In
Bangalore office, the team explained him that India is
the world's largest producer of many fresh fruits and vegetables, milk, major
spices, select fresh meats, jute, millets and castor seeds. Second
largest producer of wheat, rice, tea, fisheries etc, Norman wondered knowing
that India ranks within the world's five largest producers of over 80% of
agricultural produce items and one of the world's five largest producers of
livestock and poultry meat, with one of the fastest growth rates.
Now Norman decided to travel
the road less travelled to rural India, to escape into a new unique world which
is real and natural, full of life , fields, bright colours , aromatic mud
fragrance in the country side unique in every sense of the world.
He began his On-farm journey
in food sovereign country up in the north in fetch of saffron the wonder spice
grown in valleys of Kashmir and took road to Punjab dairy farms where he had a
cooling Lassi to cool his soul and took the suggestion of farmers and visited
aromatic basmati fields and famous Shimla apple orchards. He was happy to
see long sugarcane crop grown in Indo gangetic plains which are known to have
the most fertile soil. He travelled on train to visit wheat fields in Sehora,
Soybeans in Indore , Jute in delta region of Bengal and he sipped the famous
Darjeeling tea. After the amazing trip he took a break to take part in the
inauguration of the new Kolkata office.
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| Norman on the way to Soyabean fields in Indore, India |
In the second league he
travelled to cotton fields in Saurastra, red hot chilli fields in Guntur,
shrimp farmers in Godavari delta, Coffee plantations in Coorg and poultry farms
in Nammakal. He was amazed by the folk songs sung by women in paddy
fields of Tamil Nadu and lastly went to coconuts orchards in Malabar coast,
Pepper plantations in Wayand and Cardamom plantations at Idduki made him
to fall in love with agriculture in India.
By the end of his journey he made trusted friends “Farmers”
across India and thanked Alltech India team for the extraordinary journey he
had and for the food full of infusing dishes with rich flavour.
