FARMER CULTIVATES DRYLAND RICE
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| Vijayan, Malarvadi Estate, Kottoor, Thiruvananthapuram |
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If the will is there, jackfruit can grow even on the root of the tree. If the will is there, rice can be cultivated with neither wetland nor ploughing.
So
proves Vijayan, Malarvadi Estate, Kottoor, Thiruvananthapuram, who
has reaped a rich harvest by planting rice in the high and dry land of
Kuttichal Panchayat.
He
felled rubber trees from 20 cents of his land and leveled the ground to
sow 2 varieties of rice seeds used by the adivasis: ‘Kambikkathan’ and
‘Channavella’.
He received guidance in farming from an adivasi, Mallan Kani and the local Agriculture Officer, Sreekumar. Since sowing he had to irrigate the crop only on one day. As fertilizers he used cow dung and ash. Only once did he have to use pesticides.
In
5 months the crop was ready for harvest.
And the yield per corn was 130 to 150 grains.
Already many farmers are ready to buy his yield as seed.
Earlier
Vijayan had tried to involve the Grama Panchayat and other farmers in the
dryland cultivation scheme. The
Kuttichal Panchayat liked his scheme and proposed a small incentive for 10
farmers doing dryland cultivation of rice.
It
was then that things went wrong. The
selection criteria for farmers somehow excluded Vijayan, the originator of
the idea.
Taking
it as a challenge, he had ventured into dryland farming to prove that he
could be successful even without the help and cooperation from the
Panchayat.
Vijayan and wife in their farm.
Courtesy: Malayala Manorama, August 6, 2002
Contributed by: Administrator
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