TIRUVANANTHAPURAM : For the third year in a row, the Kadinamkulam grama panchayath will offer a vegetable and banana bounty during the Onam season. Thanks to the efforts of some 1,500 women, the panchayat is set to harvest some 1,40,000 bananas and a range of vegetables that were cultivated via multiple cropping. According to panchayath authorities, spread over 23 wards is 180-acre fallow land where banana and vegetables are being cultivated.
“The fallow land cultivation has been included in the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee (MGNREG) Programme. Before carrying out the said initiative, we entered into an agreement with the owner of the fallow land, promising him 20 per cent of the profit,” said Agriculture Extension Officer (AEO) Ramachandran, MGNREG, Kadinamkulam grama panchayat. According to the AEO, there are some 84 self-help groups in the panchayat and the farming is entrusted to them.
“Each group consists of 5 to 15 workers. They were entrusted with the upkeep of two-and-a-half acre of land. Each of this plot consists of around 1,000 plantain and varieties like amaranthus, ladies finger, chilli, snake gourd and others. As we were ensuring organic farming practices here, they are safe to consume,” adds Ramachandran.
Meanwhile panchayat president Felix P said special Onam outlets will be opened across the panchayat and the product will be sold from here at a reasonable price. The surplus will be handover either to Horticrop or to neighbouring panchayats. The panchayat has also made a name for itself in group farming as some 20 groups under the Kudumbasree Mission are carrying out initiatives like ornamental plant cultivation in a successful manner.