Subasa Mohanta is no stranger to hunger. That is a regular occurrence in the life of this 50-year-old farmer, her husband and two children.
Despite 16 hours a day working in the fields, hewing stones for a construction site, she was able to come home without enough to eat.
But in 2018, a small bag of seeds changed Subasa’s life.
Ms. Mohanta scatters finger millet – given to her by the Government of Odisha as part of a rural program supported by the World Food Program (WFP) – on the abandoned 0.6 hectare plot surrounding her brick and mud house in Goili village, Mayurbhanj district.
In about two months, she harvested her first mandia crop (the Odia word means ragi or finger millet). Subasa sold a portion of the roughly 500 kg she harvested for 40 rupees per kg, keeping a portion to feed the hungry at home and giving the rest to friends and family. And then she planted the seeds of change in her farmland.
Mandia Maa, a symbol of hope
Over the past three years, Subasa’s story of hope, confidence and empowerment has become intertwined with the formation and growth of the Odisha Millets Mission (OMM), a flagship program of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development. Empowering Farmers by regional government.
Now, her days are divided between farming her land, plus another 3.2 hectares she rented, and advising women in Mayurbhanj and other Odisha districts on methods. grow the best millet.
She also noticed local reporters, who lined up to get a glimpse of Mandia Maa, a nickname she has earned through her hard work and willingness to try a new crop when few others take it off. open to this idea.
Pancakes to drink health
Finger millet has not only changed the fortunes of the Mohantas, who have now diversified into growing other types of millet such as suan (small millet) and sorghum. It also makes a place for itself in their diet. From mandia kakara pitha (a type of pancake) to malt mandia (a healthy drink to start the day), family nutrition bowls are also part of OMM’s journey to success.
Breadfruit has a high tolerance to heat (up to 64 degrees Celsius), drought and floods making millet the obvious choice for farmers in an era of climate change and natural resource depletion.
Millet requires less water than rice and wheat, two staple foods in the Indian diet. Short-day millets easily grow without fertilizer, making them a healthier and safer option for both the consumer and the soil. The intercropping of millet with other crops also benefits soil quality: It helps keep water in check and aids soil conservation in areas prone to erosion.
Bishow Parajuli, WFP Representative, said: “In addition to being a rich source of nutrients and a climate-adaptable crop, millet can diversify food systems, aid in building and adapting to the potential resilience and livelihood enhancement for smallholder farmers, including women, nationally and regionally”. and Country Director for India.
Women come first
In Odisha, what started four years ago with the distribution of leaflets, loudspeakers from trucks and the distribution of seeds to the villagers by volunteers, community workers and officers of the agriculture department is now has blossomed into a movement campaigned by women’s self-help groups.
Women, who are still seen as the main labor force after harvesting and keeping the seeds, have been at the forefront of ragi processing, improving millet production with biological inputs, while also running cafes and The center serves dishes from millet.
The humble jau (a porridge made from unpolished grains) – the most common form of millet consumption in Odisha – is now enjoyed alongside other traditional dishes such as bara, malpua, khaja and chakuli.
No longer ‘poor man’s food’
The seeds of change have taken root, but the road ahead is free of challenges.
Millet is still seen as the food of the poor and the poor, an image problem that needs to be addressed through promotions, social media campaigns and awareness messages from celebrities. language.
Millet needs the support of urban consumers to find the right place on the shelf.
Although that change could happen in a few summers, the women in the villages and small towns of Odisha are taking their millet business seriously. And life is changing, grain by grain.
