KOCHI: Vadakekara panchayat is on the path of resurgence. For an area that was devastated by the floods in August 2018, the panchayat today presents an altogether different picture. As a part of the project ‘Onathinu Oru Pookkuda’ launched by the women’s collective of the panchayat, marigold flower crop cultivated by around 30 Kudumbashree and MNREG workers across 20 wards was harvested on Monday.
The flowers will be sold through the Agriculture Department’s Samruddhi Agriculture Market and Kudumbashree. According to K M Ambrose, president, Vadakkekara panchayat, a kilogram of flowers is being sold at Rs 100. “Nearly all the areas in the panchayat had been inundated in the 2018 flood. Around 25,000 marigold plants were destroyed,” he said.“This year too, heavy rain had adverse effects on the plants. But the women’s collectives didn’t bow down in front of inclement weather and came out triumphant,” he said.