Reaping machine invented locally
Source: The Sangai Express
Imphal, November 19 2020:
An easy to use and effective reaper machine (crop cutter) has been invented, said 49-year-old Yumlembam Basudev, a resident of Uchekon Takhok Mapal.
His machine can harvest more than half an acre of paddies in just about half an hour.
The machine consumes only about a litre of fuel (petrol) when harvesting a little more than an acre of paddies (rice), said Basudev when this reporter visited him at his residence.
This reporter followed him to the field and watched his machine at work.
The reaper machine with him in the driver seat cut the crops (paddies) with ease and fast.
He charged about Rs 2,500 per Sangam (a little less than an acre) .
Y Basudev, who did BSc Metaphysics at Manipur College, is the fourth child among six of late Y Bhadra and Y Ongbi Indrajani.
"Our family once had a Tata truck and a power tiller.
Watching my family work with the machines, I got inspired and began to work on this machine in 2000," Basudev said.
Due to lack of money and other preoccupation with family affairs, he said he wasn't able to continue working on the project for some years.
He procured some of the parts including the engine, reaper machine from Guwahati and Kolkata and assembled them using other spare parts he had at home.
The engine costs about Rs 15,000 while the reaper machine costs him about Rs 35,000.When the project was finished he had spent a total of about Rs 80,000, Basudev said.
He started taking harvesting orders in 2018, he said.
Seeing the success of the project and how the machine functions efficiently, he said he has so far received about 10 orders to build the machine.
"I have received orders to assemble about 10 reaper machines.
But, due to financial problems, I am not able to build them.
If only I get some loans and start-up schemes, I would be able to build the machines and take more orders," Basudev said and appealed the Government for aid.
Basudev has a son and a daughter.