How Did a Tribal Woman Farmer Raise Her Income With Poultry and a Hatchery?

For years, Phool Kumari’s family in Borang village of Gumla district, Jharkhand, depended mainly on rainfed farming. Their five acres produced an annual agricultural income of about ₹50,000 to ₹60,000. A poultry intervention later helped her build a separate enterprise earning ₹2,23,400 in 2025-26.

Phool Kumari came in contact with Krishi Vigyan Kendra, Gumla, in 2016. Two years later, KVK scientists encouraged her to take up improved poultry farming and provided 100 Divyayan Red chicks under the Tribal Sub-Plan. The intervention gave her an alternative income source alongside her existing farm activities.

How did she start poultry farming?

The initial poultry unit was designed around backyard conditions and focused on both meat and egg production. Phool Kumari received training in housing, feeding, drinking water, disease prevention and bird management before expanding the activity.

The birds reached an average body weight of about 1.5 kg within three months. Egg production started at around 22 weeks, giving the family two potential sources of revenue from the same poultry unit.

The results encouraged her to move beyond simply rearing birds. KVK Gumla later supported her Self-Help Group with a hatchery machine and 112 eggs. This allowed her to produce chicks and create another income stream instead of depending only on the sale of mature birds.

The hatchery changed the business model. Phool Kumari could sell chicks as well as mature birds and eggs. This gave the enterprise more than one source of revenue and also helped meet local demand for improved poultry chicks.

By 2025-26, she sold about 1,000 adult birds at ₹400 each. The sales generated ₹4 lakh in gross income against an input cost of about ₹2.25 lakh, leaving ₹1.75 lakh from bird sales.

The enterprise also generated money through chick and egg sales. About 960 chicks were sold at ₹40 each, bringing ₹38,400. Another 1,000 eggs sold at ₹10 each generated ₹10,000 during the same period.

Together, these activities produced a net annual income of approximately ₹2,23,400 in 2025-26. That was several times the family’s earlier annual agricultural income of ₹50,000 to ₹60,000, according to the ICAR case study.

What did the additional income change?

The extra income helped the family invest in another livelihood activity. They purchased an auto-rickshaw, which Phool Kumari’s husband now operates. The vehicle created another household income source instead of leaving the family dependent on farming and poultry alone.

The family also reported that improved earnings reduced the financial pressure associated with their children’s education. For Phool Kumari, poultry shifted from a supplementary activity into a small enterprise that required planning, production management and sales.

Phool Kumari’s poultry unit also became a local example for other women in Borang village. ICAR reports that around 30 tribal women subsequently adopted improved backyard poultry farming after seeing her results.

These women also purchase eggs from her unit and have adopted improved breeds such as Sonali and Divyayan Red. Each participating woman reportedly earns an additional ₹35,000 to ₹45,000 a year from poultry farming.

This created a local poultry network around the original enterprise. Phool Kumari’s unit became a source of chicks and eggs while other women began producing poultry within their own households.

The intervention did not depend on chicks alone. Training, improved breeds, scientific management and continued technical support were added at different stages. The hatchery came later, after the initial poultry activity had shown that the farmer could manage the enterprise.

This gradual approach allowed the enterprise to expand from bird rearing to chick production. It also linked production with local demand rather than requiring the farmer to immediately build a large commercial poultry operation.

The case also shows why livelihood diversification can matter for rainfed farm households. When crop income remains limited, poultry can provide a separate source of cash through birds, eggs and chicks.

What can other farmers learn?

Farmers considering backyard poultry should first assess local demand for birds, eggs and chicks. They also need suitable housing, clean drinking water, feed, disease prevention and access to veterinary support.

The size of the enterprise should match the farmer’s available labour and capital. Starting with a manageable flock can help farmers learn production and marketing before investing in equipment such as a hatchery.

Phool Kumari’s case also shows the value of working with a KVK. Training and technical guidance helped her adopt improved poultry management instead of relying only on traditional practices.

The experience of Phool Kumari does not mean every farmer will earn ₹2,23,400 from poultry. Her results came from a specific combination of training, improved birds, hatchery support, local demand and continued management.

For farmers, the more useful lesson is the business model. Start with a manageable poultry unit, learn the production system, identify buyers and then consider value addition such as chick production.

Phool Kumari began with 100 improved chicks and gradually built a poultry and hatchery enterprise. By 2025-26, it had become a major source of household income and encouraged around 30 other tribal women in her village to adopt improved poultry farming.