Instead of hitching his fate to the fortunes of the unpredictable -- and overcrowded -- tourism sector, he now drives on the less beaten track. "I could have bought a tourist taxi. But even if I had earned two hundred rupees a day, half of that would have gone to the driver, leaving me with only a hundred (to cover for maintenance, fuel too). So I went in for a tractor," says he. Politicians and policy-makers give us dozens of reasons why agriculture is dying, not worth investing in, and why Goan youth are turning their backs to their fields. Difficulties are there no doubt -- including perhaps factors like the use of centuries-old technology, the over-use of chemicals, the lack of options reaching the farmer, and the flooding of the Goan market by cheaper rice. But perhaps we're just missing the point, as Natha's story suggests. Today, riding his red Massey Ferguesson fifty horsepower tractor, the 45-year-old former Monte Guirim alumni ploughs fields for farmers in Bardez, at a price many find affordable and minus all that red tape. "It's hard work. I may recover (my investment) after three years. But I want to do a good job, and not spoil my name and my village's name," says a confident Natha, who spent most of his life in Saligao. "They (local farmers) are very happy with my work. Some days I work from 6.30 am till 7.30 pm, as long as there is daylight. I've been ploughing fields in Saligao, Sangolda, Porvorim, Calangute, Moira. Nerul, and Pilerne. I've even been as far as Divar," says he, proudly. On a good day, he can plough upto 4-5 'khandis', he says, explaining that under the age-old system of defining fields, a 'khandi' is about 4000 square metres. He bought his vehicle for Rs 340,000, with a small Rs 50,000 government subsidy, in July 2002. He makes it clear that the argument that agriculture is "unviable" in Goa didn't bother him too much. His tractor is of a larger size than the few others used in this small state which has largely retained its centuries-old model of agriculture, except for heavy infusions of chemical fertilizers after the sixties, and the introduction of higher-promise crops even as some voiced concern over the loss of traditional varieties. Next, he would like to get in a threshing machine, paddy cutting devices and a trolley to take the crop home. "It may be available in Kolhapur, Chennai or Hubli," he says, groping for solutions and adding, "in Goa it's sometimes even difficult to get spare parts." "But some don't like the tractor entering their (tiny and excessively subdivided) fields as, they say, it breaks their 'mers' (field boundaries). I offered to repair any damage caused," he says. Natha points out that if he had gone in for a tourist taxi, there would have been "zero returns", thanks due to the large off-season that extends in some cases to upto six months. "I take my mobile phone (9822 152054) with me to the field, so people can call me there too," he says. Natha believes the problem in Goa is not that local youth don't have a dignity of labour, but the fact that rice cultivation is becoming difficult economically. "(Cheaper) rice is coming in from outside the state. We're not getting a good rate for our crops. The farmer is not getting profits. Fertilizer prices are high while paddy prices are low," says he. He sees enhanced supplies of suitable paddy seed and better soil testing facilities as the way to go if the state wants to help the farmers. Goa's state agriculture department has some 40 tractors in working condition, which makes it approximately four tractors per taluka. Given the seasonal requirement for tractors, this puts pressures. "The service (of the agriculture department) is as efficient as the local zonal officer or mechanical cultivation officer is. It varies from place to place," said sources who understand the working of the department. The government itself hires out its tractors at two rates -- Rs 180 for agricultural work, and a higher rate for the rarely-used non-agricultural work. Experts suggest it is best that a tractor is bought by a person who can drive and maintain it himself. Some have already done so. There is a government subsidy on purchase of tractors and tillers. Details of the scheme are available in the citizens charter available at all ZAOs and at the agriculture department head off at Vidyut Bhavan in Panjim. Technologists suggest that the other areas awaiting investment include green houses (specially for orchids and anthuriums), drip irrigation, and the plantations of mango or cashew grafts. The sky-rocketing prices of land along the central coast has cut into the potential of agriculture in a fertile area though. Some also believe that rice cultivation is not the best option today. If one has upland area -- which is not flooded in the rains -- then the options include coconut, fruit crops, vegetables and flowers which could have a ready market. Farmers need a good marketing strategy too, as is hard work and consistency badly needed. Yet, given that most of Goa's farmers are small and marginal and often lack the education or access to timely information, shifting away from rice might be easier said than done. Former assistant engineer at the Gulf Hotel in Muscat, Natha's tractor is a 'Mahan'. He hopes his work will earn the "Mahan ashirwaad" (great blessing) of the farmers who's tough lives he might be making a bit easier. Incidentally, Natha's dad worked for three decades driving the tractor of the agriculture department. After his death three years back, Natha says he once dreamt of his dad driving a tractor and hence got the inspiration.(ENDS) ------- FOOTNOTE: This story was written a couple of years ago. Natha still works as hard. You can find two tractors parked in the fields before his ancestral home near Lourdes Convent. Saligaonet wishes him all the best.