Agri Tourism Lifts Fortunes of Villages

Travelling along the Vagamon-Upputhara Road in Idukki, one would get to see many tourist vehicles turning onto a byroad that seems to be a kind of run-down muddy road leading to a quarry.

- ANU KURUVILLA @ Kochi

Travelling along the Vagamon-Upputhara Road in Idukki, one would get to see many tourist vehicles turning onto a byroad that seems to be a kind of run-down muddy road leading to a quarry. But why would these tourists go to a quarry? Well, this former quarry has now been turned into an agri-tourism spot by the enterprising owner. And if one is to count the people thronging the spot, it can be seen that the farm is doing quite well. KPM Farm has gained fame for its fish farm that has Japanese Koi, Tilapia, and Gold fish being reared in the huge reservoir created due to quarrying. If KPM Farm has turned a former quarry into an agri-tourism spot, Kabeer T's Kathir Biodiversity Park at Pookkottumpadam in Nilambur, has brought a big change by turning five barren acres into a thriving farming oasis.

His farm is a harmonious blend of flora and fauna. Another thriving example of agri-tourism is the Farm Pathayapura at Karakode in Kasaragod's Madikkai panchayat.