If there's one thing, after fresh and juicy tomatoes, that disappears almost instantly, it's ICAR-Directorate of Mushroom Research's training slots in Solan. This is the ground zero of India's mushroom revolution.
Mushrooms in Solan, Himachal Pradesh, were once just a pre-Independence experiment. Today, the town is home to the ICAR-Directorate of Mushroom Research (DMR), India's only institute dedicated to mushroom research and development. The 43-year-old institute conserves germplasm, studies health benefits, and trains farmers from states such as Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, and Odisha on popular varieties like button or oyster mushrooms, as well as specialised strains like shiitake and milky mushrooms. The institute's work has given Solan the tag of Mushroom City of India since 1997.
Ramnath Shinde first visited Solan in 2006 from Maharashtra and underwent training at ICAR-DMR for a few days. That trip changed his fortunes from being a failed grocery store owner earning Rs 10,000 a month to the head of a mushroom empire with a Rs 75 crore annual turnover. His garage today boasts Range Rovers and Audis, and he donates Rs 3-4 crore to charity every year.
Spread across 45 acres, his farms produce 400-500 tonnes of button mushrooms every month. Under the Tirupati Balaji brand, they reach kitchens across India.
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