Prakash Kamat in Panaji
July 9-Historically known as granary of Salcete and its Rice-Bowl,Curtorim village of South Goa is determined to revive on large scale it's age-old organic rice cultivation,thanks to an innovative project of Goa State Biodiversity Board(GSBB) and active involvement of its Biodiversity Management Committee(BMC).
The GSBB award winning BMC of Curtorim has taken the the initiative to turn around the paddy cultivation in Curtorim with support from GSBB and involving all stakeholders, right from farmers to Zilla Parishad Member,Village panchayat to MLA Reginaldo Lourenco, all joining hands side-stepping their respective political affiliations to see village reclaims its pride of being granary of Salcete.
The story began a couple of years ago when GSBB was validating the People's BiodiversityRegister(PBR) of Curtorim.
The discussion began on the last part of the PBR as to what the village needs to preserve and conserve.
"So we consulted the local people through BMC.They said since their village was once known as granary and rice bowl of Salcete(taluk) of Goa, why don't we first focus on rice cultivation," Member Secretary of GSBB Dr. Pradip Sarmokadam told this journalist.
However, they could not identify any local variety of rice. Taking "Patni", the local existing paddy variety as the base, the local farmers said since they cultivate it in a unique organic way, the taste of rice is unique and different.
In the subsequent meeting, GSBB and the BMC explained to the farmers the importance of conserving indigenous varieties. Interestingly, many of the elder farmers who were consulted,which included a 96-year-old veteran, recalled with nostalgia their traditional"Patni"cultivation.
Contrary to general opinion that farmers would not be keen to plant indigenous variety, many farmers agreed to plant Patni in one corner of their field, in a bid to try and preserve and conserve this variety.
Responding to their enthusiasm,at the initiative of the BMC headed by Santan Rodrigues, GSBB decided to support this initiative through one of their conservation projects.
As the BMC began working in that direction it became aware that the biggest problem was finances for cultivation and latter on the marketing,which needed support.
The farmers in Goa are constrained to sell the rice at Minimum Support Price(MSP) given by the government.However, the biggest hitch is that this price they do not get upfront.
Farmer sells his paddy for say Rs.14 per kg to farmer organisations or some private purchaser. The rest of the balance, difference between that price and the MSP which is about Rs.20 per kg, the farmer gets from the government. The difference he does not get immediately, sadly due to red tape in the government.
Unwilling to give up, the local BMC collected some funds locally and gave farmers upfront price of Rs.20-25 per kg at the time of sowing. Once the paddy was harvested the GSBB stepped in to transport the paddy to one of the best rice mills of Godrej at Kudal in neighbouring Maharashtra, to get it processed professionally.
The double boiled red rice of "Patni" variety as best quality, geared for marketing, was ready.
The rice was packed in 10 kg bags and branded as "Cudtri" rice, based on a slang for Curtorim, prevelent among the village farmers.
The rice was marketed by GSBB in malls,Bardez Bazar successfully once endorsed by renowned people, to whom it was referred by GSBB for opinion, as of excellent taste.
The good news for farmers is that the Bardez Bazar has promised to purchase the in bulk in near future.
With proper branding and marketing the farmer got a price if Rs.25-30 per kg.
As the success story of Cudtri rice spread, GSBB is flooded with requests from other villages enquiring why not support them in rice cultivation. The GSBB says it is not their core activity.
In Curtorim, the success of last year had its own trigger effect as a result of which more farmers have taken up cultivating this year. As a result of this enthusiasm, this year nearly 25 lakh sq. metre area has been brought under cultivation of Patni, largely due to relentless efforts of BMC.
Backed by Zilla Parishad Members, Village panchayat members and local MLA, this Patmi rice cultivation haacemerged as a model for other villages to follow,says GSBB Member Secretary.
Enthused by the success of the project, GSBB is exploring the possibility of forming a rolling fund which Curtorim model could be replicated in other villages through their BMCs.
The Biodiversity Board is aslo keen that the BMCs which have today reached 191 across the State should not be allowed to become dormant and defunct sance lack of activities. (eom)
(BMC Curtorim Chairperson J Santan Rodrigues coordinated with farmers, local representatives and GSBB).
July 9-Historically known as granary of Salcete and its Rice-Bowl,Curtorim village of South Goa is determined to revive on large scale it's age-old organic rice cultivation,thanks to an innovative project of Goa State Biodiversity Board(GSBB) and active involvement of its Biodiversity Management Committee(BMC).
The GSBB award winning BMC of Curtorim has taken the the initiative to turn around the paddy cultivation in Curtorim with support from GSBB and involving all stakeholders, right from farmers to Zilla Parishad Member,Village panchayat to MLA Reginaldo Lourenco, all joining hands side-stepping their respective political affiliations to see village reclaims its pride of being granary of Salcete.
The story began a couple of years ago when GSBB was validating the People's BiodiversityRegister(PBR) of Curtorim.
The discussion began on the last part of the PBR as to what the village needs to preserve and conserve.
"So we consulted the local people through BMC.They said since their village was once known as granary and rice bowl of Salcete(taluk) of Goa, why don't we first focus on rice cultivation," Member Secretary of GSBB Dr. Pradip Sarmokadam told this journalist.
However, they could not identify any local variety of rice. Taking "Patni", the local existing paddy variety as the base, the local farmers said since they cultivate it in a unique organic way, the taste of rice is unique and different.
In the subsequent meeting, GSBB and the BMC explained to the farmers the importance of conserving indigenous varieties. Interestingly, many of the elder farmers who were consulted,which included a 96-year-old veteran, recalled with nostalgia their traditional"Patni"cultivation.
Contrary to general opinion that farmers would not be keen to plant indigenous variety, many farmers agreed to plant Patni in one corner of their field, in a bid to try and preserve and conserve this variety.
Responding to their enthusiasm,at the initiative of the BMC headed by Santan Rodrigues, GSBB decided to support this initiative through one of their conservation projects.
As the BMC began working in that direction it became aware that the biggest problem was finances for cultivation and latter on the marketing,which needed support.
The farmers in Goa are constrained to sell the rice at Minimum Support Price(MSP) given by the government.However, the biggest hitch is that this price they do not get upfront.
Farmer sells his paddy for say Rs.14 per kg to farmer organisations or some private purchaser. The rest of the balance, difference between that price and the MSP which is about Rs.20 per kg, the farmer gets from the government. The difference he does not get immediately, sadly due to red tape in the government.
Unwilling to give up, the local BMC collected some funds locally and gave farmers upfront price of Rs.20-25 per kg at the time of sowing. Once the paddy was harvested the GSBB stepped in to transport the paddy to one of the best rice mills of Godrej at Kudal in neighbouring Maharashtra, to get it processed professionally.
The double boiled red rice of "Patni" variety as best quality, geared for marketing, was ready.
The rice was packed in 10 kg bags and branded as "Cudtri" rice, based on a slang for Curtorim, prevelent among the village farmers.
The rice was marketed by GSBB in malls,Bardez Bazar successfully once endorsed by renowned people, to whom it was referred by GSBB for opinion, as of excellent taste.
The good news for farmers is that the Bardez Bazar has promised to purchase the in bulk in near future.
With proper branding and marketing the farmer got a price if Rs.25-30 per kg.
As the success story of Cudtri rice spread, GSBB is flooded with requests from other villages enquiring why not support them in rice cultivation. The GSBB says it is not their core activity.
In Curtorim, the success of last year had its own trigger effect as a result of which more farmers have taken up cultivating this year. As a result of this enthusiasm, this year nearly 25 lakh sq. metre area has been brought under cultivation of Patni, largely due to relentless efforts of BMC.
Backed by Zilla Parishad Members, Village panchayat members and local MLA, this Patmi rice cultivation haacemerged as a model for other villages to follow,says GSBB Member Secretary.
Enthused by the success of the project, GSBB is exploring the possibility of forming a rolling fund which Curtorim model could be replicated in other villages through their BMCs.
The Biodiversity Board is aslo keen that the BMCs which have today reached 191 across the State should not be allowed to become dormant and defunct sance lack of activities. (eom)
Thanks for your encouragement and support in spreading such good actions. They will inspire others.
ReplyDeleteExcellent success story in conservation of indigenous food grain varieties
ReplyDeleteI have been following the efforts of Curtorim BMC for the past few years. They have achieved tremendously in their en devour. Convervation of agri biodiversity has been the key focus of the team. The MLA, sarpanch and others have collectively supported Mr. J.Santano Rodrigues.We at Curtorim Union library will give all our encouragement and appreciation to all those leaders who ave pulled in their resources to push Him to do this task. Once more congratulations to Chaiperson Curtorim BMC.
ReplyDelete