Udaipur’s ‘Phunsukh Wangdu’? This Man Helps Farmers Yield Crops

He has now been invited to Japan to test the product.

Narayan Lal Gurjar, founder of EF Polymer.

(Photo: Kamran Akhter/The Quint)

Video Editor: Rahul Sanpui
Producer: Aastha Gulati

Do you remember the stellar performance of Aamir Khan as Good Samaritan Phunsukh Wangdu in the super hit Three Idiots? In the film, one is told that Japanese scientists are out looking for Phunsukh Wangdu to harness his genius. Well, it’s possible that Rajasthan’s Udaipur has a similar story.

Narayan Lal Gurjar, an agricultural science student, has impressed the Japanese government so much that it wants to collaborate on a project made by him and four partners, and apply it to their own country too!

This Phunsukh Wangdu of Lake City Udaipur studies in Maharana Pratap University of Agriculture and Technology. In water-starved Udaipur, these five students have created an eco-friendly natural polymer to help farmers preserve the moisture of the soil.

What is This Incredible Technology About?

Narayan Lal Gurjar, Founder and CEO of EF Polymer explains,

“What we have done is used waste material, like vegetable waste, sugarcane scraps, banana peel, to make a water retention product. Usually, water either gets absorbed in the soil or evaporates. What our product does is, for example, if we have watered a plant with two litres of water whose requirement is one litre, the product will retain the excess.”

Ankit Jain, the co-founder, says,

“Our product is a super absorbent polymer. How it works is basically, by retaining the excess water, and releasing it into the soil, as and when required by the plant.”

Their polymer has won them many accolades from the Rajasthan government and now, the Japanese government has invited them to test the product in their country.
Dr SM Mathur, a professor at College of Technology and Engineering who has been closely monitoring the project, says that their product is revolutionary for a state like Rajasthan that suffers severe water shortage.

“I thought these students must be supported. We told the Rajasthan government about this project. The government gave Narayan Lal Gurjar a work order worth Rs 25 lakh.” 

Dr SM Mathur

Indeed, their product has received great response from farmers themselves.

“Wherever we have used this product, the results have been very good. Like in Nagpur, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, and in hilly areas of Rajasthan, the results are great. Even in nurseries. The farmers have given repeated orders. If someone initially ordered 50 kilos, they have asked again for 500 kilos. The response has been great.”

Narayan Lal Gurjar

Given that drought is a major problem in the state, through this project, Narayan and his collaborators have made their professor and even the country proud. In a dry state like Rajasthan, there are now new possibilities of getting good yield of crops in areas facing water crisis.

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