Women and the machine: how gender-friendly equipment bring ease to farmwork in Odisha

Modifications in equipment to suit women millet farmers under the flagship Odisha Millet Mission reduce their drudgery, save timeKoraput, Odisha: Bati Bhumia (46) and her colleagues at Shree Maa Women’s Self-help Group (SHG) in Boipariguda block of Koraput now get some free time for themselves, thanks to the gender-friendly farm machinery and equipment introduced with an aim to reduce the drudgery of millet growing women farmers.Traditionally, women process millets and it is a labour-intensive job where they spend hours separating the grain from straws, removing the outer cover of the grain, cleaning, grading, polishing and pounding it into flour. The cultivation of millets also involves much work.A tribal woman standing on her farm where she has grown little millet in Kundra block under Koraput district in Odisha (Photo - Abhijit Mohanty, 101Reporters)“Every day, we used to spend five to six hours removing weeds from the farm. That has come down to three hours now as we use cycle weeders,’’ said Bhumia. What has made life easier for Bhumia is a crucial modification to include horizontal handlebars to cycle weeder, thereby enhancing its ergonomics. Under Odisha Millets Mission (OMM), ragi thresher-cum-pearler, cleaner-cum-grader and cycle weeder were provided to 10 women SHGs in Koraput. However, after operating them, SHG members and farmers reported several challenges.“Cleaning ragi thresher-cum-pearler used to be a hassle because the sieves were not removable,” said Malati Jani (42), a member of Maa Tarini women’s SHG in Koraput block. “Moving the thresher was also tough. The machine is very heavy. It required more hands to move it from one place to another,” added Parima Badnayak (23), another member. When such challenges came to the fore, the Department of Agriculture and Farmers’ Empowerment (DA&FE) formed a Gender Analysis Committee (GAC) by involving gender specialists in 2022. It observed that machinery used in agriculture catered only to male biological aspects. It consulted SHG members and women farmers to comprehensively document their operational challenges as well as suggested modifications to the machine. Based on this, the manufacturers made modifications to make the machines women friendly.Participatory machinery development (PMD) under OMM was one of the suggestions given by the GAC. The DA&FE has been promoting it under OMM since last year in Gajapati, Nuapada, Kendujhar, Koraput and Sundargarh districts, where it has reached out to 75 farmers in 15 villages in its first phase to create farm equipment that address their specific needs, preferences and challenges, with a special focus on women. In the subsequent phases, more farmers will be reached and the PMD initiative will be scaled up to all operational districts under OMM.Therefore, when horizontal handlebars were introduced in cycle weeder, it allowed for a more natural and comfortable grip that facilitated pushing and pulling and reduced physical strain during prolonged deweeding operations. The cycle weeder is operated in a standing posture, whereas women stay bent for hours to uproot weeds in the traditional approach. Besides the transition from one to three tyne configuration, the blades have enabled more effective soil penetration, ensuring thorough coverage and effective weed control. Similarly, the thresher has got wheels. “We can easily load it in a vehicle now and transport it to the farm and remote villages,” beamed Badnayak. Jani too said that things have improved. “The sieves are removable now. We can easily clean the machine in less time,” she said. A woman farmer using cycle weeder in her farm in Parvathipuram under Manyam district of Andhra Pradesh (Photo - Abhijit Mohanty, 101Reporters)Feminisation of agriculture India is the largest producer and second-largest exporter of millets in the world. According to the Economic Survey of India, 2023, India alone produced 80% of the millets in Asia and accounted for 20% of its global production. According to the Annual Periodic Labour Force Survey, 2021-22, agriculture has the highest estimated female labour force participation of 62.9%. “Rural men generally find it easy to operate most of the farm machines after receiving orientation and training,’’ said Usha Dharamraj, Principal Scientist, Central Food Technological Research Institute, Mysuru. She added that women farmers faced numerous challenges in operating farm machines as they are heavy and women unfriendly, often resulting in health hazards.“Increasing feminisation of agricultural operations and ageing farmers are two fundamental social transformations taking place in rural heartlands. While developing plans for increasing productivity through mechanisation, the government should acknowledge and integrate this major social transformation,” Arabinda Kumar Padhee, Principal Secretary, DA&FE, told 101Reporters. According to him, a pragmatic way of doing this is to promote customising suitability of technologies and tools through participatory approaches. “We will be gender and age testing every machinery that is used in the field, especially in millets and other crop operations.’’A recent study conducted by Mahila Kisan Adhikaar Manch (MAKAAM) in neighbouring Telangana revealed that majority of women farmers suffered from body aches, pains and musculoskeletal disorders due to intensive manual farm labour. “There is a need to explore new ways of design and development of machinery through participatory approach. Involving women farmers and elderly people, and incorporating their suggestions are the key,’’ said Dr V Rukmini Rao, a member of the national facilitation team of MAKAAM. Mini millet mixer used by local SHGs in Telangana (Photo - Abhijit Mohanty, 101Reporters)Private participation  The private sector can play a major role in delivering affordable and accessible farm solutions for women farmers. For instance, Farm Easy, a Hyderabad-based social enterprise founded by Watershed Support Services and Activities Network (WASSAN) is promoting innovative technology in farm implements to reduce manual workload of small and marginal farmers, especially women. “We aim to ensure accessibility and availability of farm machines without compromising scientific rigour at a reasonable price,” said Farm Easy director Gembali Goutham. They are easy to operate and suitable for both men and women. They are also environment friendly as we ensure integration of decentralised renewable energy (solar energy), he added. Farm Easy’s mini millet mixer efficiently removes husk from foxtail and little millets and processes them, including destoning and sieving. It is suitable for small-scale millet processing at household level. According to Goutham, several successful pilots to dehusk minor millets have been carried out. Azim Premji Foundation supported the research and development of the mixer.  Arika Ismeri (33) at Achapuvalasa village in Andhra Pradesh’s Manyam district is very happy with the mixer. “Earlier, we dehulled millets by pounding them in a wooden mortar.  It is an extremely tedious process. It usually took half a day to prepare 2 kg of grain. But now, with the help of this mixer, we could process 4 kg of little millet in an hour.” Similarly, combo sprayer designed ergonomically by Farm Easy reduces fatigue and back strain associated with the work. “As it is solar-powered, we can use it even when there is no power supply,’’ said Pallala Saraswati, a woman farmer at Thuruvada in Alluri Sitharamaraju district of Andhra Pradesh. Farm Easy has designed and improved several other farm equipment as well. “These include a motorised baby pulper for coffee, a comprehensive and automated solution of preparing bio-inputs through fermenter-controller, and solar energy mobile carts that enable access to irrigation in uneven terrains,” said Gijivisha Khattry, senior programme officer, WASSAN, Hyderabad. Women demonstrating cycle weeder in Bhubaneshwar (Photo - Abhijit Mohanty, 101Reporters)Policy concerns“Amidst the changing climate, men in large numbers are migrating to cities in search of jobs,’’ said Sabarmatee, a Padma Shri recipient and founding member of Sambhav, an NGO working in Odisha’s Nayagarh district on gender justice and regenerative agriculture. “Left behind, women in villages bear the burden of agriculture alone. They spend a lot of time in their farms, but very little effort has been made to design equipment based on women's ergonomics and gender perception,’’ she added. Sabarmatee said various factors, including the size of land holding, availability of replacement parts locally and power efficiency, should be kept in mind while agritech companies design farm machines, which are crop, operation and region specific.According to the Food and Agriculture Organization estimates, if women had the same access to productive resources as men, they could increase yields on their farms by 20 to 30%, potentially resulting in a fall in hungry people globally by 100 to 150 million. Peter Bakos has worked extensively with smallholders in India to develop appropriate technologies and multipurpose implements for agriculture and post-harvest mechanisation. “There should be a balance between men and women in agriculture to make it sustainable. The first step should be to involve men and initiate discussions on redefining masculinity and sharing agricultural responsibilities,” he said.Edited by Rekha PulinnoliCover Photo - Women farmers in Odiha using cycle weeder in their millet farm (Photo - Abhijit Mohanty, 101Reporters)  

Students in Odisha wield mobile cameras, pens to save village history from extinction

Under the pilot project funded by the agriculture department, children interview village elders to learn about the socio-cultural and agricultural practices of the past so as to document them in both written and video formats   Malkangiri, Odisha: With its lush green trees, gurgling streams and clear waters, Kudhariphasa in Paikmal block of Bargarh stands humble against the imposing background of the majestic Gandhamardan hills. A winding road takes one to the village that got its name from a story of the yesteryears.“In Odia, kuradhi means axe. Once a man was cutting a tree when a forest watchman caught him off guard. The frightened man could do nothing but run away. Unfortunately, the partially cut tree fell on the watchman, who died instantly. Some people said he killed the watchman, some others said the phasha [net] he had spread out proved fatal. That was how our village name, Kudhariphasa, came about,” Madhusudan Mallik, a local, tells Taruni Mallik and Mina Mallik.Taruni (15), a class 10 student at Kudhariphasa, and Mina (17), a class 10 passout, were documenting their village history under a programme funded by the the Department of Agriculture and Farmers' Empowerment, under its flagship Odisha Millets Mission (OMM) scheme.  To preserve village histories, OMM has taken the participatory route of holding discussions and interviews with elderly people, so that future generations can uphold and carry on their rich cultural heritage. When Taruni and Mina started exploring their roots by talking to elders, they learnt among other things how their elders had to relocate due to a dam construction. “Our village existed much before Manbhang Dam was constructed in 1982. The village then was called Mandia grama. When the dam came up, people were forced to leave the village. Some moved to Kudhariphasa, some to Laudmal,” says Padmani Mallik, another village elder.So far, around 30 students of classes 7 to 10 from the tribal villages in Bargarh, Angul and Malkangiri districts have been trained at the district level to conduct interviews and ensure written and video documentation of their village histories under the pilot programme named 'Engaging Schoolchildren for Documentation of Agrobiodiversity, Cropping Systems and Food Culture'.From the 15 selected villages in each pilot district, two students each were engaged for the documentation work. Those interested in documenting their own village's history and familiar with mobile videography were selected. Thematic experts educated them about the technical nitty-gritty of the shoot. The production was costless as the students used mobile phones to capture the nuances of the village life. The raw videos they fetched were compiled and edited by thematic experts.Experts in social science designed the interview questions and a booklet for students for documentation, which were disseminated through workshops and seminars at the district level. There are plans to share the booklets with the district administration, agriculture department and other relevant departments in future for developing villages and introducing necessary welfare schemes.“At school, we study about our country and its different states. But we know very little about our village and its history,” says Babula Golari (16), a class 10 student, who has interviewed elderly residents of Baliguda in Chitrakonda block of Malkangiri under the OMM programme.Apriankita Barik (13), a student from Kishorenagar block, never knew the reason why her village was named Himirita. “When I enquired with the village elders, they told me that cold conditions prevailed in our village in the past. Hima means cold in Odia, and that was how our village got its name,’’ she says.The learnings were not only about the origins of village names, but also about traditional farming practices, food habits and village culture, all of which have been disappearing due to modernisation. “During the village meetings and interviews we get a feel of our shared history… When we recorded the experiences of our elders, we also realised the value of keeping these stories alive,” says Taruni.Students interviewing villagers (Photo - Abhijit Mohanty, 101Reporters)Changing food habitsAccording to village elders, collection of forest produce such as honey, tubers, roots, fruits, berries, mushrooms, greens and subsistence agriculture were the mainstay in Kudhariphasa at one time. From five to seven households, the village has grown to house 80 households. One of the major findings from the interviews was the loss of traditional agricultural practices and crops in village areas. ‘’When I was a child, my father used to grow around 32 varieties of crops under a mixed system of farming,’’ says Madan Pangi (74) of Gunthaguda in Chitrakonda. Traditional crops such as millets, pulses, cereals, tubers and roots were our major staple foods. However, farmers nowadays have replaced these crops with paddy, cotton and potatoes, he adds.According to Madan, many traditional seed varieties that needed less inputs and could withstand erratic rainfall were lost around 20 years ago as people stopped cultivating them. They hardly fetched good market prices. Penetration of hybrid seeds and commercial crops fast-tracked their extinction.  “My father died when I was around 30. He was among the few farmers in our village who preserved traditional varieties of finger millet, arhar [pigeon pea] and paddy. I continue to grow these varieties in my farm for household consumption. These seed varieties are not available in the market. If we do not preserve them, we may lose them forever,’’ explains Madan.Class 10 student Trinath Pangi (16), who interviewed Madan, says he was surprised “to know that our grandparents cultivated such a wide range of crops”. “There were traditional recipes, which were lost when people stopped farming those crops and switched to monocropping,” he shares.Little millet porridge was once a delicacy among the tribals in Chitrakonda block. Over the years, the cultivated area under little millet fell substantially as these crops were not remunerative for farmers. Similarly, Kodo millet rice was once widely consumed by tribals of the Paikmal block. But with the easy availability of rice under the public distribution system, the demand for Kodo millet went down.‘’We are what we eat,’’ Lachma Pangi (67) of Gunthaguda tells 101Reporters. “Our traditional recipes were passed on from generation to generation. They nourished our body and provided the necessary strength to work in this hilly terrain. However, the younger generation is not interested in consuming them. In fact, they are more attracted towards urban food like chow mein, roll and fried items.’’However, after documenting village history, students have shown keen interest in recording traditional recipes. “Earlier, people used to prepare a certain pickle from mahua flowers. I have started documenting this traditional recipe. Also, I am interested in documenting the traditional recipe of bamboo shoot curry and fried chips,” says Trinath. Babula, meanwhile, is determined to conserve and promote traditional crops. “Climate is changing. Sometimes it rains early and at other times, it gets delayed. Our traditional crops such as millets can sustain such extreme conditions. I will encourage young farmers to bring back our traditional crops to the farm.”Villagers used to make pickle out of mahua flowers (Photo - Abhijit Mohanty, 101Reporters)Dying village cultureParvati Mallick (60) of Taladar village in Kishorenagar block of Angul recalls the traditional process of marriage. “In the past, weddings were simple. People used to hire a dhulia [traditional drummer] and nachunia [dancer]. They performed in a procession and the bride travelled in a bullock cart. Now people use DJ music, and vehicles that we have never seen in our times,” she says.Mostly, sal leaf cutlery were used during weddings and community feasts in Malkangiri. Plastic plates and bowls have replaced the biodegradable cutlery these days. The changed practices have reduced the income of villagers, who could once have sustained themselves by stitching sal leaf plates and bowls.Danda jatra is one of the oldest festivals in Himirita. Hymns of the goddess and prayers for bumper harvest are all part of the many songs the group of devotees sung during the procession. However, the students recording village history have found that many villages in Himirita’s neighbourhood have stopped celebrating the jatra.Students organizing village meeting in Chitrakonda block (Photo - Abhijit Mohanty, 101Reporters)Student learnings“I never did video documentation before,’’ says Sangita Mahanand (15), a class 10 student at Parashkandi in Paikmal block of Bargarh district. “Today, I feel happy and proud that I have done a video documentation of our village history. Now, others can know more about our village.”“The documentation work was fun and enriching for us,” Sibasankar Gudia (12), a class 8 student from Chitrakonda block. ‘’It is not like reading a book and answering the questions. It is like going to the past and learning about the changes that have taken place in our village over the years.’’Jaganath Sahoo (16), a class 10 passout from Kasturibahal village in Kishorenagar block says, “In my childhood, I heard a lot of folk tales and stories from my grandparents. Nevertheless, while interviewing the village elders, I came to know that they know the past of the village like no one else does. If we do not document their stories and experiences, we may lose the rich history and culture of our village.’’“Village history is important because it has a significant impact on our everyday life, developing practices, behaviours and culture. The youth, especially the students, have made it their mission. It has also created connections, bridging the gap between the old and young in villages,” Chudamani Barik, Block Education Officer, Paikmal, tells 101Reporters.Worshiping village deity for good harvest in Paikmal block (Photo - Abhijit Mohanty, 101Reporters) “Written documents about the village’s past are scanty,’’ says Swayamprava Parhi, who has worked with the students to design the interview booklet. This historical information is passed on from generations mainly through stories, songs and folk tales. The community's elderly inhabitants exist as living archives, having important historical information and recollections, she says.For the first time, several school students have become documentary makers, and this has definitely changed their approach towards all things local. They have understood the need to preserve their culture and food habits, what needs to be seen now is how they will manage to do it in the long run.  Edited by Rekha Pulinnoli Cover Photo - A student documenting village history in Paikmal block (Photo - Abhijit Mohanty, 101Reporters)

Poor access to forest resources, welfare schemes gives Juangs of Kendujhar a hard time

Shooed away from the hills, they are forced to settle down on forest fringes with not much land available for cultivating traditional crops that supported their nutritional needs    Kendujhar, Odisha: In every sense of the word, Kendujhar district presents a picture of contrast. Once a lush green paradise, it has been turned into a mining hotspot in the last four decades with 64 projects actively dismantling over 1,000 hectares of forests. Similarly, once a quintessential part of the woods, the tribals have been pushed to the fringes and denied access to forest resources.One of the 13 Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups (PVTGs) in Odisha, the Juangs are found in Kendujhar, Dhenkanal, Angul and Jajpur districts. In Kendujhar, they can be spotted in 148 villages in Banspal, Telkoi, Harichandanpur and Ghatagaon blocks. In Budhighar village of Bansapal block, Juangs live on the slopes of Gonasika hills. Their forefathers resided amid dense vegetation, but the forest department’s entry restrictions after the 1990s forced the present group to settle on the fringes. Their current population is 381 with a total of 84 households.For years, shifting cultivation inside the forest and collection of minor produce were their main livelihood sources. Traditionally, they changed their place of stay every 10 years, looking for fertile patches that supported rainfed agriculture. However, the forest guards on patrol duty do not allow such activities these days. According to the tribals, even women who go to collect minor produce are threatened.They think of the days when they could freely collect tubers, roots, edible leaves, fruits and honey. “Our forefathers roamed every nook and corner of the hills. They were stronger and healthier. However, the present generation is extremely thin and shorter in height,” says an observant Madhu Juang (68).  A man stands near a dilapidated community well near Budhighar village (Photo - Abhijit Mohanty, 101Reporters)Traditionally, Juangs consumed forest produce and local varieties of millets and pulses. “Cereal-centric food slowly replaced our diverse and nutritious platter. Subsidised rice under the public distribution system eroded the local agrobiodiversity,” claims Jema Juang, the sarpanch of Gonasaki panchayat in Bansapal.“Gongei (sorghum) and mandia (finger millet) were our staple foods. We used to grow at least 32 varieties of traditional crops. They could sustain less rainfall,” recalls Parmeswar Juang. In fact, the crops they cultivated were suitable for the hilly terrain and slopes that they could freely choose from in the early days.  The present restrictions have contributed to the poor tribal health indices in Kendujhar. Over 25% of women have a below-normal body mass index as against the state average of 20.8%, according to the National Family Health Survey-5. Similarly, 74.7% of women in the district are anaemic as against the state average of 61.8%. A Juang woman eating rice and lentils. Over a quarter of the women in the district have a below-normal body while three-fourths of them are anaemic (Photo - Abhijit Mohanty, 101Reporters)To make matters worse for Juangs, the OMC has unearthed the presence of white soapstones (khadi pathara) in Gonasika hills. "Mining has not begun, but sooner or later, it will," says Ratnakar Juang, who holds the position of naik, the communicator/messenger of the community.   Though the District Mineral Foundation (DMF) has been initiating development programmes for tribal welfare, several Juang villages do not have access to electricity, potable water, roads or income-generating opportunities. Recent data suggest that Kendujhar's DMF fund stands at a whopping Rs 8,926.23 crore, possibly the highest such collection from miners in any district of the country.The district accounts for 26% of the iron ore reserves in the country. It is home to Gandhamardan mines, one of the largest iron ore mines in the state functioning under the Odisha Mining Corporation (OMC). According to a conservative estimate, iron ore worth Rs 5,000 crore has been extracted from here in the last five years.  Snakes lurk in the dark Groping in the dark is nothing new to Rebati Juang of Budhighar. “Power lines are in a state of disrepair for the last two years. We make do with the solar lamps that the government (Juang Development Agency or JDA to be precise) gave us. Life at night is miserable without sufficient lighting facilities,” she says.With power lines in a state of disrepair, families are dependent on solar lamps like these. There is usually just one per household and a single charge doesn't last for more than three hours (Photo - Abhijit Mohanty, 101Reporters)Her husband Baburam adds that the solar lamp will hardly last for three hours. “The households here got only one such lamp. How can our children study after sunset?"Snakebites are very common in the area, especially in the rainy season. “Due to poor lighting, people unknowingly step on the snakes that enter their houses,” says Dabanda Juang (64). In 2020-21, the district reported 426 snakebite deaths. Across Odisha, snake poisoning kills around 900 people every year.The nearest primary health centre (PHC) for villagers of Budhighar is located eight km away in Gonasika. Sarpanch Jema says the PHC, established in 1965, does not have a permanent doctor even today. “Pharmacists manage the centre. The DMF funds were used to build a medical college and hospital in Kendujhar town, which is far away from our habitats.”The DMF was not ready to comment on why the hospital was built in the town when tribals were mostly based in remote locations.Official apathy Queuing up for hours together to collect water is nothing new to the women of Budhighar. Nevertheless, most of them are relieved that they at least get clean water now. That was not the case until last year. “We used to drink muddy, foul-smelling water from a perennial stream. It was only last year that the JDA set up a community water tank in our village. Water quality is good,” says Nayani Juang.There are only two water taps at the community tank to serve all 84 houses in the village (Photo - Abhijit Mohanty, 101Reporters) Rukmi Juang spends around two hours every day fetching water from the tank. “For 84 houses, we have only two water taps at the community tank. We need more such water points,” she appeals. Tubewells installed by the JDA are dysfunctional. The first one became defunct three years ago, while the second, a solar-powered facility set up in 2017, also met a similar fate soon.All households in Budhighar have received land titles for one acre of patta land under the Forest Rights Act (FRA), 2006. Additionally, four decimals were provided for building houses. The JDA completed all the paperwork on the community’s behalf.“We got land titles in 2014-15, but our happiness did not last as the land identification and demarcation process never took off. Now we do not know which site belongs to us,” claims Madhu, a village elder. Though the tribals raised the issue with both the sarpanch and JDA, no action followed.  Only four of the 84 households in Budhighar have received financial support under the Pradhan Mantri Gramin Awas Yojana to build pucca houses. The rest are traditional one-room huts, mostly in dilapidated condition.“Even the pucca houses built under the scheme are fragile,” says Birabar Naik, the founder of Banabasi Chetna Mandal that works for the land rights of tribal communities in Kendujhar. Lack of community participation in the process of design and execution and hilly topography are the major reasons for such poor quality. “Many houses were erected without building a strong foundation,” he claims.Only four of the 84 households in Budhighar have received financial support under the Pradhan Mantri Gramin Awas Yojana to build pucca houses but even these are fragile as they were built without consideration for the hilly terrain (Photo - Abhijit Mohanty, 101Reporters)Community rights Foraging for food and non-timber forest produce is not allowed, but the community still manages to collect certain food items, siali leaves (used for making leaf plates) and bamboo."They say (the forest department) the area falls under the Harichandanpur-Telkoi reserve forest. The government wants to mine white soapstone from Gonasika hills, so it is least interested in granting us rights," says Laxmidhar Juang, a community leader working with local civil societies on forest rights. "We are losing our identity and pride. The department controls everything now," adds Krushna Chandra Juang, a traditional leader known as sardar among the Juangs.  Noting the need to grant community forest rights, Bhubaneswar-based activist Y Giri Rao tells 101Reporters that increasing restrictions over Juangs on the collection of wild, uncultivated food and minor produce on one hand and poor implementation of welfare schemes and programmes on the other have resulted in poor health, nutrition and livelihood conditions.Listing food and nutritional security as the topmost priority, Srikant Juang says ruma (pulse), gongei and local paddy varieties alitundi, bijapatia and kalaputia should be revived as they are suited for the local agroecosystem and are highly nutritious. Srikant, the first graduate from the community, works as an assistant teacher at the Balika Bikash Pratisthan in Gonasika panchayat.“The anganwadi does not function throughout the week. My children get khichdi only once every two or three days,” complains Pramila Juang, a mother of three.Increasing restrictions on the collection of wild, uncultivated food and minor produce on one hand and poor implementation of welfare schemes and programmes on the other have resulted in poor health, nutrition and livelihood conditions (Photo - Abhijit Mohanty, 101Reporters)Reacting to this, JDA Nutrition Officer Dilip Kumar Swain, lists the three key programmes that cater to women and children. "At the creche facility for children from six months to three years of age, hot cooked food is regularly served. A creche functions in Tala Champai and Kodhai panchayats for eight hours a day and food is provided to around 20 Juang children from each centre."According to him, Mother Spot Feeding Centre also provides a hot cooked meal per day to pregnant women and lactating mothers. Tala Champai and Tala Panasanasa panchayats each have one such facility. In addition, spot feeding centres are present in places where anganwadis are located far away. A hot-cooked meal is provided to preschool children as per the anganwadi guidelines, too.Cover Photo: On a winter evening, Juang women and children warm themselves around a fire (Photo - Abhijit Mohanty, 101Reporters)Edited by Rekha Pulinnoli

Photo Essay: Tribal women in Odisha’s Mayurbhanj in deep waters

The rising water crisis in rural areas of Odisha’s Mayurbhanj district not only increases the drudgery of tribal women, but also degrades their social dignity and health. The piped water supply coverage is poor here, with only 2,02,390 out of the total 5,56,516 rural households having access to it. The impact of water scarcity is more pronounced among rural women, who traditionally fetch drinking water from community wells, tube wells, shallow wells and rivers spending around two hours every day. In many villages, poor maintenance and lack of timely repair of water infrastructures such as government-installed tube wells, pump operation machinery, and motor and water distribution pipelines affect the regular supply of drinking water. Mahalibasa village in Laxmansahi panchayat under Khunta block is home to 50 households of Ho tribal people. The village does not have access to a piped water supply. The only tube well available provides muddy water around the year. And the 20-ft well built around 30 years ago becomes dry during summer. Rest of the season, only one feet of water is available. Hence, women trek two km twice daily to fetch water from a tube well located on the premises of a stone crushing unit. Their evening task is more difficult as women often face eve teasing from contractors and labourers working in the crushing unit.Lali Singh hails from Mahalibasa village in Laxmansahi panchayat in Khunta block of Odisha’s Mayurbhanj district. The village is home to 50 households belonging to Ho tribal communities. “We do not have a piped water supply facility in our village. The only tube well available in the village provides muddy water round the year,” says Lali.  At the age of 48, she treks two km daily to fetch drinking water from a tube well located inside a stone crushing unit. Women of Mahalibasa village standing in front of their defunct community well. “We have requested several times to the block administration to repair this community well. But to date, no action has been taken,” Lali rues. Mahalibasa village women fetch water twice a day, in the morning and evening, from the tube well. “It is not safe to fetch water in the evening. While returning home, we often face eve teasing. Contractors and labourers who work in the stone crushing unit pass lewd comments on us,” says Lali. "To ensure our safety, we always fetch water in groups," she adds.Sabita Bindhani, 51, another woman in Mahalibasa village, says, “There is an old well in our village. It was constructed around 25 to 30 years ago. This well never went dry. Earlier, it catered to the drinking water needs of the entire village. Its water quality was also good. But gradually, the water table went down. As a result, it has gone dry. For the last five years, the situation has remained the same.”Sulochana Singh, 30, carries her three-year-old son while fetching water from the tube well. “My husband works as a migrant worker in Andhra Pradesh for around four to six months a year. I take my son along as I cannot leave him alone in the house,” says Sulochana.     Bandhogada village in Bahanada panchayat of Khunta block is home to 85 households belonging to Ho and Santal communities. Piped water supply is not available here, too. Of the four government-installed tube wells, only two are functional. Women complain that during the rainy season, water becomes muddy in the functional tube wells. The village has a community well, but its water quality is poor and not fit for drinking. During summer, when the water table goes down in tube wells, the village women depend on shallow wells located in their farms. Though the water quality is bad, villagers do not have any other choice. As a result, water-borne and skin diseases are reported during summer.The situation is worse in Bandhogada village in Bahanada panchayat of Khunta block. Here, there are 80 households belonging to Ho and Santal tribal communities. There are four government-installed tube wells in the village, out of which only two are functional. These tube wells provide only muddy water during the rainy season. In the summer season, they turn dry. There is no piped water facility in this village. “We depend on shallow wells for getting drinking water in summers, though the water quality is extremely poor,’’ says Pratima Patra, 36, who resides in Bandhogada. “Water contains sand particles and pebbles, and is at times muddy. But we do not have any alternative source of water,” she laments.“There are three shallow wells on our farms, located one to 1.5 km from the village,” says Bharati Singh, 27, a resident of Bandhogada. “During summers, we depend on these shallow wells for getting water for drinking and bathing purposes. We face water-borne and skin diseases at that time. Because the water is polluted. It appears muddy and often smells foul.”Aladi Majhi is a ward member of Bandhogada village. She is standing near the tube well, which has been defunct for the last four months. “The government should take steps to immediately repair the four tube wells in our village,” urges Aladi. “I have reported the problem to the Rural Water Supply and Sanitation Department to fix the tube wells. But the district administration is yet to take any action,” she informs.Photos by Abhijit Mohanty 

In Malkangiri's tribal villages, every drop saved today is an investment for tomorrow

Community-led water governance initiated jointly by agriculture department and NGOs helps farmers cultivate round the year and earn higher income through better yieldsMalkangiri, Odisha: A community-led water governance initiative is doing wonders for tribal farmers in southern Odisha’s Malkangiri district, helping them cultivate round the year, harvest better yield, earn higher income and consume diversified nutritious food.“All our crops were rainfed, but we still received good yields. We sold the surplus at local weekly markets, and bartered some for essential goods. However, climate change made things unpredictable,” said Dhanurjaya Khila of Kadamguda in Korkunda block.    Farmers started incurring losses due to erratic rainfall and prolonged dry spells. “We slowly lost faith in agriculture. Many migrated to Andhra Pradesh for work,” said Arjun Khila, another farmer. Dhanurjaya and Arjun represent hundreds of thousands of farmers, who struggle to cope with the rising temperature, heavy rainfall, flash floods and landslides.The micro-irrigation system provided water to 651 acres and benefited 295 tribal farmers spread across villages in Malkangiri district, Odisha (Photo: Abhijit Mohanty)To strengthen farmers' resilience and livelihood security, the Department of Agriculture in collaboration with local civil societies such as Sisu O Mahila Kalyana Samiti (SOMKS) and Parivartan launched a community-driven micro-irrigation programme, supported under the Special Programme for Promotion of Integrated Farming (SPPIF), in 2019-20.The system provided water to 651 acres and benefited 295 tribal farmers spread across Tekguda village in Khairput block, Chitapari III and Totaguda in Korkunda, and Potitang, Themrupali and Batriatal in Malkangiri block. Channelling resourcesGroup discussions were organised with farmers to identify major water deficit areas. The agriculture department’s technical team comprising engineers and soil conservationists identified and marked certain areas in their farms that required irrigation.“Based on our study, water deficit areas in farms were converted into water outlets,” said Soumya Ranjan Majhi, an engineer with SPPIF, Malkangiri. Each outlet covered three to five acres, to which water from natural streams was carried using pipeline distribution networks. Water was then redirected through drip irrigation to those areas where crops were cultivated. Earlier, people used to flood the entire farm, which led to wastage of water. Also, a cadre of community resource persons in the role of pump-cum-valve operators was created. The village water user committee (VWUC) members appointed the operator for a monthly payment of Rs 2,000. One such operator, Jalandar Dalapati regularly inspects the functioning of motor and pipeline networks, and informs engineers if something is amiss.Farmers were looped in by the agriculture department officials to identify seeds with high yield potential and water resilience which suit the local terrain (Photo: Abhijit Mohanty)“Every drop of water is precious. We have sensitised farmers not to over-irrigate. They mostly think it will spur plant growth, instead it leads to waterlogging, leaches away soil nutrients, and reduces soil fertility,” said Jagabandhu Hantal, pump-cum-valve operator in Totaguda.Chameleon soil water sensors, which mimic a plant to understand how much water is present in the soil, were installed to monitor water level in the root zone of plants. Based on the colour code — red (irrigation highly essential), green (water needed in two to three days) and blue (water sufficient) — farmers decided when to irrigate their fields. The sensor arrays were inserted below the ground level at a depth of 15 cm, 30 cm and 45 cm to read water availability data. Joint governance“Besides access to irrigation, promoting community stewardship in water management and governance is critical for ensuring long-term sustainability,” said Aniket Likhar, District Project Officer, SPPIF, Malkangiri.All villages under the micro-irrigation system have functional VWUCs. The husband and wife of each benefiting household are its members, so there are 30 to 50 members in a given village. Villagers elect the VWUC president, secretary and treasurer. The president looks after overall governance and water management, while the secretary coordinates meetings with farmers and monitors timely water delivery. The treasurer collects and manages user fees deposited in bank accounts. If there is a grievance, a farmer can reach out to the president and secretary. For years, tribal women have been conserving seeds of indigenous crops in earthen pots. This traditional knowledge was utilised by the agriculture department to identify the climate resilient crops (Photo: Abhijit Mohanty)Tekguda VWUC president Chandrasen Madhi said they collected Rs 100 per month from each household as user fee and deposited it in the VWUC’s bank account as an emergency fund to deal with machinery glitches and repairs. The VWUC members charge a fine of Rs 50, if they find cases of excess water use during their routine inspections.The VWUC bars monocropping. Meetings to assess seed availability and decide on the crops to be grown are organised during kharif and rabi seasons, according to Totaguda VWUC president Lakhmi Khara. Decisions are unanimous, mostly based on the suggestions from elderly farmers and guidance from department staff. The block agriculture officer (BAO) visits tribal villages to provide technical inputs from time to time.Resilient crops, effective land usePulses and millets are preferred crops as they need less water and have higher Minimum Support Prices (MSPs). “Special focus was given to revive traditional crops, including pulses, millets and tubers, as they are climate resilient, highly nutritious and a part of the local food culture,” said Chief District Agriculture Officer Nandagiri Ramkrishna Hayagreeva. With farmers’ help, agriculture department officials have identified seeds with high yield potential and water resilience, to help select the most promising varieties suitable for the local climate, the soil and the hilly terrain.“For years, tribal women have been conserving seeds of finger millets, foxtail millets, little millets, paddy, black gram, red gram and green gram in earthen pots,” said Manjula Sisa, the sarpanch of Somnathpur panchayat in Korkunda. “Before the launch of micro-irrigation system, we grew only dangar dhano (upland paddy) during rainy season,” said Bhagirathi Madhi, who used to migrate from Tekguda to Andhra Pradesh to work in a brick kiln for Rs 400 per day. However, in the last two years, Bhagirathi planted red gram, green gram, black gram, finger millet, groundnut, sesame and tubers twice a year. “I now earn around Rs 25,000 from groundnuts, Rs 15,000 from millets, Rs 8,000 from pulses, Rs 6,000 from sesame and Rs 4,000 from tubers,” he says proudly. Chameleon soil water sensors installed in Totaguda village in Korkunda help the farmers to monitor water level in the root zone of plants (Photo: Abhijit Mohanty)Farmers also practise rotational cropping in each season to boost soil fertility and water-retention capacity. “After harvesting paddy and finger millet, we sow green, red and black gram seeds as they use up the leftover soil moisture,” said Subarna Khara of Totaguda.Papaya, drumstick and guava serve as farm fencing. “These trees provide shade to the crops and act as a barrier against wind. Their deep root systems help in soil conservation and moisture retention,” said Lachma Kurami at Batriatal.Lachma grows pumpkin, bitter gourd, ridge gourd and bottle gourd around her farm fencing. In winters, she earns around Rs 1,500 per week by selling creeper varieties. In summers, demand is more and supply is less. “This time, I earned around Rs 3,000 a week,” she said. Better yield, income and nutrition “Micro-irrigation has decreased water requirement and fertiliser cost,” said Nigamananda Behera, an agronomist at Krishi Vigyan Kendra, Malkangiri. Mixed cropping reduced topsoil run-off during rains, thus improving soil fertility and yield.“I now harvest eight quintals of groundnut per acre, against the earlier five,” said Laki Madhi of Tekguda. Under mixed and intercropping methods, the vegetable yield is also up from around 150 kg per cent (0.1 acres) to over 300 kg.Similarly, Ghasi Kirsani of Chitapari III is harvesting around six quintals of green and red gram per acre against the earlier three. From Rs 8,000 a year, her income has increased to around Rs 20,000 during each cropping season of kharif and rabi.For the first time, farmers are selling finger millet at MSP in local markets. Anganwadis procure little millet in Mathili block to provide nutritious meals under the Integrated Child Development Scheme.According to Khairput BAO Hemant Kumar Padhiari, better yield has helped farmers to switch from a cereal-centric diet to a diverse food basket. “We used to spend Rs 700 per week to buy vegetables, but it hardly lasted for a week,” recalled Laxmi Hantal, whose family now saves that money and consumes more varieties of vegetables. “This model has the potential to scale up in other tribal villages. Our field assessment has found that around 800 acres are suitable for micro-irrigation in Talaguda, Darduruguda, Khadikajodi, Kandhaguda and Semiliguda villages,” said Manaswini Mohapatra, Assistant Agriculture Officer, Malkangiri block.Edited by Rekha PulinnoliThis article is a part of 101Reporters' series on The Promise Of Commons. In this series, we explore how judicious management of shared public resources can help the ecosystem as well as the communities inhabiting it.The cover image is of a farmer couple who have adopted micro-irrigation technique for their field, captured by Abhijit Mohanty.

Rural Malkangiri rears livestock while the sun shines

Tribals get easy access to vaccines after the launch of solar-powered cold storage facilities, which reduce mortality among fowls. The State government’s pilot project also puts in place a decentralised vaccine distribution system that generates income for locals trained as paravets Malkangiri, Odisha: “Fearing an outbreak of infectious diseases, we used to sell off our desi (country) chicken before the rains. Traders made the most of it, paying less than usual. However, this year was different. Thanks to the solar-powered cold storage facility, I could vaccinate all my fowls before the monsoon. Only five or six birds in my flock of 50 died,” Anil Kirsani from Pulapally Colony in Mathili block told 101Reporters. Over the years, livestock rearing has served as a backup to meet financial emergencies in the tribal belt of Malkangiri. “However, high mortality rates always posed a problem for small farmers,” said Ranjita Pujari, the sarpanch of Mecca panchayat in Mathili. Narsingh Pula of Siripeta village said his fowls started sneezing and coughing last monsoon, besides twisting their necks. They became paralysed and died in a few days. Veterinary officials said it was a case of Ranikhet (New Castle Disease). In fact, Ranikhet and Fowlpox wiped out the entire flock in Siripeta, Panighata and Banktiguda villages in Khairput block last year. According to Binayak Mishra, district livestock coordinator for Somks, a regional NGO that promoted better animal husbandry practices, goats and cattle succumbed to Peste des Petits, Goat Pox, Haemorrhagic Septicaemia and Black Quarter diseases. The tribal income thus suffered a massive setback in the district, where over 58% of the population struggled with poverty, according to Niti Aayog’s National Multidimensional Poverty Index for 2021. Though vaccines were the only way to save their poultry, farmers had to travel 80 km to the district headquarters to buy them from unregistered agents for Rs 50 to 60 per bird and Rs 100 to 120 per goat.  Madhu Bhumia shows his solar-powered vaccine cold storage refrigerator at his house in Pushpali village (Photo: Abhijit Mohanty)  A shot in the armMathili and Khairput blocks got their solar-powered vaccine coolers in January 2022 under the Odisha government’s two-year pilot project to assist local farmers in tackling livestock mortality. Costing Rs 1,06,000, it comprises solar panels, a refrigerator, a small cold storage box to take vaccines to the customers, and other essential inputs/supplies.  Each refrigerator can store up to 100 litres of various vaccines. In the event of a power outage, they can maintain cooling for 24 to 30 hours. These functions are of utmost importance as erratic power supply and absence of cold storage facilities impair vaccine efficiency in remote settlements, said Khairput Block Veterinary Officer Tushar Mishra. Vaccine availability and its decentralisation have come as a boon to farmers in the area, where income from rainfed agriculture has come down drastically due to climate change. “The cold storage facility has encouraged farmers to scale up their livestock,” noted Malkangiri Chief District Agriculture Officer Nandagiri Ramakrishna Hayagreeva. It has also reined in distress sale of livestock. The Department of Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Services initially trained two farmers running large-scale livestock enterprises on how to keep farm animals in good health. The solar panels and fridge were installed at their houses, from where vaccine vials were supplied to other 40 tribal youth, who were trained by the department in January. These para-veterinarians earn a living by selling vaccines, but they have to bear their travel expenses themselves to reach remote villages. As per the agreement, the department purchases cold storage units and hands them over permanently to selected farmers, who have to give an undertaking that they would use it only for supply of vaccines to local farmers and paravets. A local NGO will also regularly monitor the smooth run of the system. The recipient farmer is responsible for the device's safety. The equipment comes with a one-year warranty, after which the farmers need to pay Rs 2,000 annually to get the manufacturer’s services.  In Khairput block, the cold storage facility is placed at the house of Madhu Bhumia of Pushpali Colony. “Agriculture is steadily becoming unprofitable. I supplement my family’s income by selling vaccines that the department provides. In the last three months, I have saved around Rs 8,000,” Bhumia beamed. Farmers in 10 neighbouring villages rely on Bhumia for vaccines. He earns Rs 1,400 to 2,000 per month by supplying vaccines for 700 to 1,000 poultry birds at a subsidised rate of Rs 2 per bird. Similarly, he supplies vaccines for 250 to 300 goats at Rs 5 per animal, adding Rs 1,250 to 1,500 to his earnings every month.   He also sells 150 to 200 vaccine vials to other para-veterinarians at Rs 10 each to earn Rs 1,500 to 2,000. In turn, the paravets provide vaccines in other rural areas. Each of them earns a monthly income of Rs 3,000 to 5,000 by serving 100 to 120 farmers. “Access to vaccines is now easier. The demand is also rising,” shared Lachuram Chalan, at whose house in Mecca village the cold storage facility for Mathili block is installed. “We intend to establish a cadre of paravets at the community level,” Uday Kumar Kalyanapu, Livestock and Fishery Officer, Watershed Support Services and Activities Network (WASSAN), told 101Reporters.(Left)Madhu Bhumia standing near solar panel that supplies power to his cold storage refrigerator; (Right) Indigenous breed of chicken is a major source of livelihood for tribal households in the district (Photos: Abhijit Mohanty)Meanwhile, Malkangiri District Collector Vishal Singh said routine vaccinations would not be enough in the long run to sustain the benefits of small-scale livestock rearing. “It is important to support community-led disease management,” he advised. A mix of everythingDr Bikash Chandra Sardar, Malkangiri district nodal officer and master trainer on better livestock management at the animal husbandry department, said farmers received financial assistance for raising exotic and mixed-breed animals, but such assistance was less common for native ones.  “Selecting the right breed that can adapt to the local agroecosystem is critical. Local breeds have high procreation rates and are resilient. They require little investment, but provide excellent returns,” Sardar told 101Reporters. He added that improved feed quality and selective breeding would maximise the genetic potential of various indigenous breeds. “Farmers are eager to engage in free-range backyard poultry, but the shortage of indigenous chicks poses a challenge. The government should help establish breeding farms in remote areas to ensure supply at reasonable rates,” appealed Balaram Kansari from Mathili’s Ambaguda village. Beyond vaccinations, experts suggest use of tried-and-tested local concoctions to keep poultry in good health. “These practices should be documented and widely disseminated. The local paravets can be taught traditional herbal techniques to boost antibody production,” suggested Dr Sunil Kumar Dash, a livestock expert at WASSAN.Balaram Sahu, a veterinarian and a recipient of the National Award from the Department of Science and Technology for promoting organic and cost-effective methods for sustainable agriculture and livestock management, said local communities have been using a variety of herbs, roots, leaves and oils to improve the health and immunity of their cattle. “We should not dismiss such low-cost herbal healing practices.” In summers, poultry farmer Budra Dumali of Khatiguda adds turmeric powder and aloe vera juice to the water bowls of birds to protect them from heat stroke. “Aloe vera juice lowers their body temperature and turmeric promotes growth,” Dumali explained. Kamala Beta of Mecca said she applied a paste of neem and turmeric on the skin of fowls that suffered from Fowlpox. Her other tip was to add lemon and amla juice to the water in summers, which she said worked as an anti-stress agent. “We add dried Chiretta leaves to the chicken feed once a month. It works as a dewormer and improves the digestive system,” shared Ghanshyam Samarath of Temurupali.  Edited by Gia Claudette FernandesCover image by Abhijit Mohanty: Malkangiri goat breed is small sized but heavy chevon is reared for its quality meat and early maturity characteristic.

From cotton to millets: Rayagada's tribal farmers make a switch

A tribal farmer standing on her Sorghum farm (Photo: Prabhat)Debt trap, climate change and diminishing returns make them switch from Bt cotton to millets.Rayagada, Odisha: “We thought Bt cotton would be lucrative. But in just about two years, we realised we were sowing seeds of poison. We were using too many chemical fertilisers. As a result, our soil lost its fertility,” laments Sirimajhi Pasanga (62), a tribal farmer from Paji Gerega village in Rayagada district’s Chandrapur block.Take Pangam Jani, a farmer from Muniguda block, who got bumper yields in the initial two to three years. “From one acre, we could harvest five to seven quintals of cotton. Gradually, it began to come down. Last year, I got only three quintals from one-and-a-half acres. Because soil fertility is decreasing." Pasanga has taken loans to sow the seeds, and any profit he makes goes to the moneylender. “We are caught in a debt trap,’’ he tells 101Reporters, his words echoing the collective regret of several others who have met the same fate.“We earned around Rs 25,000 to Rs 30,000 per acre from cotton cultivation. The cropping cycle is nine months long. Two years ago, I harvested five quintals of cotton, of which the moneylender took four,” rues Nabina Bredeka, another farmer in Pajigarega.At least 88 percent of people residing in southern Odisha’s Rayagada belong to Scheduled Tribes. For years, tribals in the region farmed traditionally; growing multiple crops such as millets, pulses, cereals, tubers, roots and vegetables.But over the past decade, the penetration of illegal Bt cotton seeds has eroded local crop diversity, soil health and crop productivity. In Odisha, herbicide-tolerant cotton seeds like Bt cotton are not permitted. “But in Rayagada district, Bt cotton seeds are available everywhere. Unfortunately, the genetically-modified crop has induced new pests that have the capacity to greatly disrupt the ecological stability in tribal hinterlands,” informs a retired agriculture officer, on the condition of anonymity. The lure of kancha paisaCotton was never on the list of local crops in Rayagada. Tribal farmers were unaware of the side effects of the genetically-modified Bt cotton, too.“But middlemen gradually penetrated the villages and knocked at their doors with unregistered Bt cotton seeds and money to cover input costs. They also provided assured markets for the produce, which further prompted many to take up cotton crop in the district,” explains Haraprasad Hepruka, sarpanch of Kuli panchayat in Rayagada block.The region falls under the Niyamgiri hill range, which is home to Dongria Kondh, a particularly vulnerable tribal group.Unsuspecting farmers believed in the popular punch lines endorsed by the middlemen — cotton is kancha paisa (raw money), white money, etc. “That was how they fell into the trap,” Hepruka adds.In recent years, the Odisha government has increased cotton procurement at Minimum Support Price (MSP) — another reason why more farmers were tempted. Too many side effects  According to the Water Footprint Network, producing a kg of cotton consumes 22,500 litres of water. Even for post-harvest processes  — cleaning, bleaching and dyeing  — water is required in huge quantities.Besides, the extensive use of chemical pesticides and fertilisers harms the agro-biodiversity of the region. It not only affects human health but also threatens wildlife. Water bodies are polluted, and the overutilisation of soil nutrients by the cotton crop brings down soil fertility further.“Cotton is too sensitive. The crop cannot sustain when rainfall is less or erratic. Drastic changes in local weather mean crop loss for farmers,” says Pagadalu Banujani from Dekhapanga village in Chandrapur block.Erratic rains have been troubling farmers like her. Unseasonal rainfall in January damaged cotton crops, with several farmers in Muniguda, Ramnaguda, Gudari and Padampur blocks registering losses. According to modest estimates, cotton crops in around 45,000 hectares of land were affected.“How will we repay our loans when no incentives have been given to farmers yet,” Damburu Jani, a farmer from Muniguda, expresses his angst. The way forwardAdmitting that poor policies pose a constraint on initiating legal action against unauthorised Bt cotton seed suppliers, Dr Prasanna Mishra, former finance secretary, Odisha government, advocates the need for crop diversification.“Farmers should be encouraged to intercrop red gram, black gram and oilseeds on their cotton farms. This will enrich soil productivity and strengthen farmers’ resilience to biotic and abiotic stress.” Dr Mishra told 101Reporters.He said around six lakh small and marginal farmers in Odisha grow cotton. “If robust policies are made, cotton farming can be profitable, and environment-friendly too.”Nanda Kishore Pradhan, who retired as a professor from the Odisha University of Agriculture and Technology, Bhubaneswar, notes that organic cotton is the way forward, as it restores soil fertility and nurtures biologically-diverse agriculture.In India, organic cotton harvest stands at 1.23 million tonnes (MT), which is 51% of the 2.40 Mt produced globally. “But its production cost is comparatively high, while the demand stays low. It takes around three years for a conventional cotton field to become fully organic, so farmers opt for illegal Bt cotton seeds,” he explains.A tribal farmer harvests finger millets on her farm (Photo: Prabhat)A return to traditional methodsIn the tribal villages of Chandrapur and Gudari block of Rayagada district, local NGO PRABHAT has been promoting millet cultivation with the support of Odisha Millets Mission (OMM), a flagship programme of the State Department of Agriculture and Farmers Empowerment. It covers all aspects of millet ecosystems, including production, consumption, processing, marketing and inclusion of millets in the Integrated Child Development Services, Mid-Day Meal, tribal school hostels and State Nutrition Programme. “For years, we cultivated our staple food items such as finger millets, little millets, barnyard millets and sorghum. Earlier, we did it for household consumption only. But now, the OMM has made it lucrative for us,” Shiva Pasanga, a farmer in Chandrapur panchayat, told 101Reporters.Banujani is all praises for millets. “They require only farmyard manure, as opposed to chemical fertilisers and insecticides used in cotton farming. Millets grow easily, even when it rains less. In two years, we have expanded our millet cultivation from half an acre to three acres,” she beams.Over 15,000 tribal farmers in the district are growing millets in 8,200 hectares, adhering to eco-friendly and improved agricultural practices, said Sharat Kumar Ghosh, OMM District Scheme Officer. The OMM programme also provides incentives to farmers in nine blocks: Chandrapur, Muniguda, Gudari, Gunpur, Rayagada, Bissam Cuttack, Kalyansingpur, Kashipur and Kolnora. Other partner NGOs implementing OMM programme in the district include Agragamee, ASHA, AKSSUS, Nirman, OPDSC and RCDC. According to research by the Naba Krushna Choudhury Centre for Development Studies, the OMM has raised the value of millet produce per household from Rs 3,957 to Rs 12,486, whereas the value of produce per hectare has gone up from Rs 9,447 to Rs 20,710. In four years, around 94,000 farmers in Odisha have benefited from MSP by selling 6.39 lakh quintals of finger millets through local mandis set up by the Tribal Development Co-operative Corporation of Odisha Ltd.Trinath Taraputia, the Regional Coordinator at the OMM, tells 101Reporters, “Reviving traditional agricultural crops is a feasible solution to mitigate climate crisis, and also to address the rising nutritional insecurity in tribal areas.”Over 43% of children in Rayagada under the age of five are stunted, while 50% are anaemic. As for women, 33% are underweight, reveals a 2019 study by Niti Aayog. Paraja Majhi, a farmer from Laxmanguda village in Gudari, adds, “Cotton crop residues are useless. But millet farming provides fodder for our livestock too.” Edited by Gia Claudette Fernandes

Fisherfolk at sea as conservationist tag eludes them

Traditional coastal dwellers hardly overfish, but are still locked out of their livelihood options in the name of conservation Puri, Odisha: “We go to sea to feed our families. But the mafias use explosives to catch huge quantities of fish at one go. Yet, the police come only after people like us,” laments a fisher from Batighar village in Kendrapada, as he tries to explain how traditional fishing community is at a loss, though it hardly overexploits the resources at its disposal.For years, conservationists have been exploring ways to increase the fish population along Odisha’s coast, besides protecting the breeding grounds of Olive Ridley turtles, a species recognised as ‘vulnerable’ by the IUCN Red List. Traditional fisherfolk, who are key to such efforts, have mostly welcomed them, despite incurring heavy losses. For example, the Gahirmatha coast in Kendrapara district has a blanket ban on fishing in place as it is the largest nesting spot of the Ridleys.  Additionally, the state government has prohibited fishing within 20 km of the coast at the river mouths of the Rushikulya, Devi and Dhamra during the turtle breeding season that extends from November to May. This affects the livelihood of tens of thousands of fisherfolk, who have to fall back on government aid for sustenance. “The incentive is meagre. Around 1,500 families get Rs 7,500 per month when the ban is in place,” Kanda Alaya, secretary, Odisha Traditional Fishermen Union, tells 101Reporters.  Traditional fisherfolk are key to the conservation efforts on Odisha's coastline (Photo: Soumya Ranjan Biswal)He says the scheme has failed to compensate for the loss incurred by the community, forcing many to migrate to cities for work.Fisher Arabinda Swain explains how the compensation has failed. “There are several fisherfolks without identity cards. They remain deprived of the measly incentive the community manages to get during the annual ban period.” Though fisherfolk claim themselves to be easy targets, Debasish Bhoi, Forest Range Officer, Gahirmatha Marine Wildlife Sanctuary, thinks otherwise. While denying allegations, he tells 101Reporters that “the department arrests those involved and seizes their vessels and trawlers, whenever there is an alert about illegal fishing in prohibited areas." Bhoi cites an incident, wherein 19 fishers were arrested in January 2020 for illegal fishing in Gahirmatha. Rights as paper tigersForget incentives, fishing communities are denied even their rights to access coastal produce in the name of conservation. “The laws are hardly being translated in the true spirit,” says Dr Geetanjali Panda, a lecturer in Anthropology at the Dharanidhar Autonomous College, Keonjhar. She notes how the tourism department has curbed traditional fishing rights along the coasts of Gopalpur, Puri and Satapada, besides Chilika lake.Traditional fisherfolk though involved in the protection of nesting grounds of the Olive Ridley Turtle, don't have fishing rights throughout the year (Photo: Soumya Ranjan Biswal)The Forest Rights Act (FRA), 2006, allows Scheduled Tribes and other traditional forest dwellers the rights to fish and use water bodies in forest areas. This is applicable to fishing communities in the mangrove forests also. Besides, the Wild Life Protection (Amendment) Act, 2006, takes care of the rights and occupational interests of traditional fishing communities. However, the laws remain mostly on paper. “The tourism department keeps ponds, canals, lakes, wetlands and reservoirs out of fisherfolk’s reach. To make things worse, there is no community participation in the management and protection of water bodies,” says Panda. Under the FRA, panchayats in the non-scheduled areas should acknowledge the rights of traditional fishing communities over water bodies for their livelihood. “But this provision seems to be non-existent,” she says. Acknowledging that majority of the fisherfolk in Odisha do not own any land, Y Giri Rao, the director of local NGO Vasundhara, calls for the protection of traditional fishing rights. NGO Vasundhara works on forest governance and land rights of tribal and forest-dwelling communities. CRZ proves costlyThe Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) notification of 2018 puts coastal communities in the line of disaster. “They are more vulnerable to climate disasters now,” notes Kanchi Kohli, a researcher associated with the Centre for Policy Research, New Delhi. Under the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986, the Ministry of Environment and Forests first issued the notification in 1991 for the regulation of activities in coastal areas. It said the coastal zone encompassed all that land with which the sea had direct contact and those portions of land on which the sea had an influence indirectly through tidal action. It is aimed at conserving the rich and diverse coastal biodiversity.However, Kohli thinks that it doesn't serve its purpose fully. “The latest notification gave an upper hand to real estate developers, besides promoting tourism and industry on a mass scale. With it, the local subsistence economy of fishing hamlets went for a toss,” she tells 101Reporters. On condition of anonymity, a government official explains how the 2018 notification has brought down the regulation area to a mere 50m from the hazard line, which will significantly damage the fragile coastal ecology.  “Permission has been given in the notification to reclaim land for commercial activities, extract sand dunes and groundwater within 200 to 500m from the high tide line. Such laws only serve to quicken the pace of displacement of local communities,” he warns.Edited by Gia Claudette FernandesThis article is a part of a 101Reporters' series on The Promise Of Commons. In this series, we will explore how judicious management of shared public resources can help the ecosystem as well as the communities inhabiting it.

Millets vs Malnutrition: Reviving the super crop via nutrient-rich meals at Odisha’s anganwadis

Odisha's new initiative aims to boost the production and popularity of millets in tribal areas and also improve the developmental growth of preschoolers. Koraput, Odisha: “Children happily eat little millet khichdi,” says Ispari Dani, an anganwadi worker in Goudaguda panchayat in Koraput district’s Lakhimpur block. “The new recipe has created curiosity among them.” As many as 3,751 preschool children within 3 to 6 years of age, in Lakhimpur, are being fed little millet khichdi twice a week as part of the Odisha Millets Mission, a flagship programme launched by the state to revive millets in the tribal areas here. The initiative, run in collaboration with the Mission Shakti Department, also introduced millets-based dishes at anganwadi centres. “Earlier, millets were considered a poor-man’s food. But now, even the government has recognised its health benefits,” Dani explains, hopeful that the younger generation will come to appreciate the nutritive value of this cereal crop.Adivasi women play an instrumental role in introducing millets-based recipes to the meals of schoolchildren, to fight malnutrition and ensure dietary diversity among preschool children. The need for such a programme stems from the abysmal state of nutrition among young ones in the state — over 69% of children in Odisha in the age group of 6 months to 4 years are anaemic, according to the National Family Health Survey-5, 2019. Similarly, in the age group of 5 years, 33.5% are underweight, 43.1% are stunted and 15.9% are wasted. In Koraput district, where the mission has been introduced, over 44% of the children are underweight, 40.6% are stunted and 28.5% are wasted.The tribal revivalLocated in the Eastern Ghats, Koraput is home to several indigenous communities and represents a unique mosaic of ethnic life and culture. Over 50% of its population belongs to the Scheduled Tribes, who sustain their livelihood primarily on rainfed agriculture, collection of uncultivated wild food and forest produce. Over the years, monocropping and the use of chemical inputs to enhance crop yield eroded the rich agrobiodiversity once abundantly found in the tribal hinterlands. As a result, the area under millet cultivation shrunk, forcing the tribes to replace climate-resilient, nutritious traditional crops with hybrid paddy, maize and cotton. The public distribution of rice and wheat also lowered the importance of local food culture and preferences, while the influence of urban food diminished the demand for local cuisine, especially among the youth.“These days, the diet of tribal children is not optimally diverse and has, instead, become cereal-centric,” says District Social Welfare Officer of Koraput Bidyulata Patra. “The traditional varieties of millets, pulses, vegetables and wild fruits, which they once consumed regularly, are now missing from their plates.” Children between 0 to 6 years need special attention as the nutrition they receive at this time lays the foundation for their optimal development. During this phase, lack of a nutritious, balanced diet could result in lifelong health implications and increase the risk of a child becoming undernourished and prone to micronutrient deficiency.Why local food mattersTo address this challenge, “Inclusion of millets in the Integrated Child Development Service programme would transform the nutritional status of preschool children,” believes Sabita Sahu, Child Development Project Officer in Koraput’s Lakhimpur block. “This would increase dietary diversity and nutritional gains and also revive the age-old traditional culture of millet consumption.”District Collector of Koraput Abdaal M Akhtar (IAS) stresses, “It’s high time we promote these nutri-cereals to fight against malnutrition as millets are traditionally a major staple among tribal communities. They are also climate-resilient crops, can thrive with less water and have pest-resistant qualities.”Similarly, Dr Debabrata Panda, Assistant Professor, Department of Biodiversity and Conservation of Natural Resources at Koraput Central University, points at the “immense potential’ that such traditional crops have “to bridge the nutrition gap among women and children”.“The diversity of local food should not be underestimated,” he warns.Several studies have emphasised that millets are rich in protein with a balanced amino acid profile, making them superior to most other cereals like maize, wheat and rice. Millets are high in calcium and folate content, which helps in foetus development, whereas magnesium and potassium control blood pressure. The crop is non-glutinous, easy to digest and also beneficial for women suffering from polycystic ovarian disease, as it helps to cut down visceral fat and regulate menstrual cycles.“Tapping the nutritional values of millets could be a potential low-cost, pragmatic strategy to enhance the nutrition intake in tribal areas,” says Nabakishore Kundu, a Lakhimpur-based medical officer.The Odisha Millets Mission promotes millet consumption, production, value addition and marketing in 142 blocks in 19 tribal-populated districts. It reaches 1.5 lakh small-scale farmers and covers more than 75,000ha under millet cultivation. The crop is gradually regaining its value in the community’s food basket. Local women’s self-help groups (SHGs) and farmers’ producer organisations purchase millets directly from farmers at a fair price. “This has been creating local demand for the forgotten millets,” says Suryakanth Nahak, Block Agriculture Officer, Lakhimpur. “Farmers are getting incentives under minimum support price for finger millets under the initiative.” How are women benefited?This nutri-sensitive programme has also been benefiting pregnant women and lactating mothers. Every month, they receive 4.9 kg of ragi chatua take home ration (THR), which is prepared from ragi, peanuts, sugar, sesame and cardamom powder. These women are encouraged to add water or milk to the ragi chatua THR and mix it well before consuming. Women’s SHGs lead the THR unit in Lakhimpur. They prepare the ragi chatua and little millet khichdi from the training they received from WASSAN, a not-for-profit and the programme secretariat of the Odisha Millets Mission. Anganwadi workers, cooks and SHG members go through comprehensive capacity-building programmes on processing millets, preparing dishes, storage and maintaining general hygiene. “This programme is an assured source of income for the women’s SHGs and farmers alike,” says Tapas Chandra Roy, Scheme Officer, Odisha Millets Mission, Koraput. “It will also boost local millet production and promote a circular economy, wherein the entire demand is met through locally grown millet.”Priti Ranjan Ratha, Lakhimpur Block Development Officer, highlights how this state government initiative brings to focus the intricate link between agriculture and nutrition by engaging women on the frontline.Sanari Miniaka, a tribal woman, farmer and member of an SHG in Toayaput village, Lakhimpur, says they can go for hours without the need for more food once they have a bowl of mandia jau (finger millet gruel)."We can work hard throughout the day on our farms. If our children eat mandia regularly, they will become healthy and strong like our grandparents,” she adds.Sarpanch of Goudaguda panchayat Bhagabati Muduli says they will monitor the quality of food delivered to the area’s anganwadi “to ensure the best quality, hygienic food for preschool children”.According to a government official, the state will analyse the learnings from this programme and replicate the model in other districts of the state. The aim is to make Koraput self-sufficient with respect to the production, procurement and distribution of millets from farm to plate.The Public Distribution System“For decades, food grain self-sufficiency has been the focus of food delivery programmes in India, not nutrition,” points out Devinder Sharma, food policy and agricultural trade expert. “These provided calories but didn’t address protein and micronutrient deficiencies,”Moreover, nutritionists and food policy experts largely criticised the recent announcement that fortified rice would be provided through the PDS and Mission POSHAN 2.0.“It largely ignores the role of a balanced and diverse diet,” explains Dr Vandana Prasad, a public health expert also associated with the Right to Food campaign. “Merely raising the iron intake will be futile because dietary diversity facilitates the uptake of iron for the body, which is critical to address anaemia.”All photos: Abhijit Mohanty

Odisha's tribal women spearhead the mission to promote millets from farm to plate

Drawing on traditional wisdom, tribal women from Odisha are leading their communities to include and promote millets, ensuring their nutritional and livelihood security while also providing an impetus to revive the millet economy. Keonjhar: The Odisha Millets Mission (OMM), a flagship initiative of the state government of Odisha, has supported women self-help groups (WSHGs) to set up 76 millet tiffin centres at various community locations in 13 tribal-dominated districts. The initiative has fortified the strength and conscientiousness of women collectives by setting up primary processing and post-harvesting units for millets in rural areas. These millet-based enterprises can become a comprehensive solution in addressing malnutrition, unemployment and in motivating farmers to increase their millet cultivation area, which was once reduced due to aggressive promotion of cash crops, claim civil society organisations facilitating the implementation of OMM at the grassroots.Finger millet matures in about 120-135 days depending on the tract and the variety(Photo Credits: Odisha Millets Mission) To revive millets as "Nutri-Cereals" in the state, OMM has prioritised creating awareness about production, productivity, consumption and marketing of millet produce and including millets in the state nutrition programme. Awareness-building activities were organised, such as food festivals, cooking competitions, and celebrating local millet food cultures. Participatory training programmes were also conducted for WSHGs on millet recipes and millet enterprises.  Millet tiffin centresMillet tiffin centres were launched in rural areas to create a demand for millet recipes and ensure access to diet diversity that is locally acceptable and highly nutritious. The WSHGs entirely manage these centres. They prepare a range of millet-based hot cooked items and ready to cook products."We prepare pakoda, samosa, jalebi, idli, vada, kheer and kakare from ragi and little millets," Dasmati Sunani, President, Dakua WSHG in Sundargarh's Rajgangpur block, told 101Reporters. "Initially, we had no idea how people would react to our tiffin centre. However, today, we are happy. The demand for our food (millet recipes) is growing. Last month we earned around Rs 25000 as net profit," she added. A member of Women Self-Help group showing a packet of ragi ladoo mix in Sundargarh district(Photo Credits: Odisha Millets Mission)Phulbasa Barla, Dakua WSHG member, recalled that initially their tiffin centres faced some resistance from locals. "For years, it has been unheard of for women from our village to be involved in businesses. However, gradually, things are changing. Today, we are more organised as a group, and people respect us and love our food," beamed Barla.In Sundargarh, six millet tiffin centres were established between December 2021 and January 2022. An additional 21 such centres have been approved, and the memorandum of understanding was signed among the WSHG, Project Director, Agricultural Technology Management Agency and District Social Welfare Officer. To set up these tiffin centres, the OMM has sponsored Rs.30,000 for each WSHG.Millet Shakti CaféEfforts have also been made to promote millet consumption in urban areas. For instance, in the collectorate campus of Keonjhar district, a Millet Shakti Café was established in October 2021. Ma Mission Shakti Women Federation manages the café, which offers different food items made from millets such as biscuits, mixture, khurma, rose cake, ladoo and eight grain varieties, including ragi flour, sorghum flour, little and barnyard millets. The café also provides tea, coffee and snacks to attract customers. Millet Shakti Cafe in Keonjhar district which serves around 200-300 customers daily(Photo Credits: Odisha Millets Mission)"We earn around Rs 50,000 as profit per month," said Suprabha Mahanto, a federation member to 101Reporters. As the demand for millet food recipes has been growing in the district, around 200-300 customers regularly visit this café per day. To expand our customer base, we are also providing home delivery services," added Mahanto.In Keonjhar, about 30 years ago, millet cultivation and consumption used to be widespread, recalled a retired agriculture officer in the district. "Earlier, millets were known as poor man's food," said Nalini Murmu, Secretary, Maa Padmaja Farmers Producer Company Limited. She added that people preferred commercial crops like paddy and replaced their traditional mixed method of cultivation with the mono-cropping system.Various millet recipes available in millet café(Photo Credits: Odisha Millets Mission)"OMM has revived people's traditional millet-based diet, which is climate-resilient and boosts immunity," highlighted Shishir Kumar Sarangi, former project coordinator, Mission Shakti, Keonjhar. He played an instrumental role in setting up the Millet Shakti Café. "This is a first of its kind initiative in the state. We are hopeful that more such cafés will be established in future," he said.In the state capital Bhubaneswar, a similar initiative has been taken up by Shaktimayee Ward Women Federation members. They have established a 'Millet Outlet' in Kurshi Bhawan a range of packaged millet food items is available such as ragi and sorghum flour, ragi cookies, ragi ladoos, ragi mixture, khurma and mudki. The federation earns around Rs.3000-4000 per day from selling various millet products. Expansion of OMMInitially, the OMM was launched in 30 blocks in seven districts and subsequently scaled up to 84 blocks in 15 districts, covering more than 1.2 lakh farmers with 52 thousand hectares under sustainable agronomic practices. Recently, the state government has allocated Rs 2800 crore to expand the OMM to 142 blocks in 2022. Considering its visible impact, the OMM model has received numerous recognitions from other state governments and credible institutions. Niti Aayog has pledged to facilitate the inclusion of millets in the Integrated Child Development Services, Mid-day Meal and Public Distribution Services in different states as part of Poshaan Abhiyan as per the learning of OMM. "Odisha Millet Mission is a replicable initiative," said Abhilaksh Likhi, Additional Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Government of India. In order to popularise millets across the state and national level, there is a need to engage with multiple stakeholders, including doctors, chefs and nutritionists. Also, he emphasised that it was essential to strengthen millet farming policies and institutional interventions that are inclusive and market-oriented. The United Nations General Assembly has declared 2023 as the 'International Year of Millets'. In India, the recent announcement during the 2022-23 Union Budget of supporting post-harvest value addition, enhancing consumption and branding millets further heightens the crucial role OMM could play in reinforcing the supply chain and promoting millets from farm to plate.