DHARWAD: Cows grazing peacefully is a familiar scene. They plod slowly, as they tear up grass and let out soft moos. As you enter this village, their lowing welcomes you. You turn to any household, you can find dung cakes slapped on the walls. And as the sun rises above this village, everyone gets busy with their chores.
Daddi Kamalapur village in Dharwad district, located about 10km from Dharwad, can well be called Moo village—it boasts of over 1,000 heads of cattle. There are around 130 houses and the families are into dairy farming and agriculture.
The Gouli community settled here many decades ago as then the area was covered by a thick forest and they thought this would be a perfect pasture for their cattle. “Down the years, the forest thinned, but we are happy living here,” says Meena Dandewale, a villager.
Normally the villagers go in groups to the nearby forest area, which is about 10km away, to graze their cattle. Sometimes they have to buy fodder.
Each member in the family has a set of role and task. While some take care of grazing the cattle, others get involved in the business of selling the milk. The milk is delivered door-to-door twice a day in nearby towns.
“We don’t sell our property to other community people. That is why it has still remained as Gouli village,” Meena says.
“In the last 20 years, our lifestyle has not changed much and the young generation is showing more interest in continuing the milk business. However, the winds of change are slowly blowing here. Three youths have cleared the engineering course and are out of the village. I have learnt that they are still unemployed,” she says.
Another villager, Dhanraj Mathwale, says that though they are a close-knit community, the elders of the village have invited a carpenter and a barber family to serve the villagers. “And, now, some townspeople have bought properties recently on the outskirts of the village. We don’t see this as an example of the times to come---of the village changing its character,” he says.
“The people in the village are now going out in search of work as labourers and other jobs. This is because there is a drought-like condition here and we fear that this could lead to shortage of fodder. A few years ago, the village had more than 1,500 heads of cattle. Now, this number has come down to around 1,000. If this drought-like situation continues, the villagers will have to give up their traditional occupation and look for jobs elsewhere,” he says.
More than 90 per cent of the houses of mud tiles and peat is still used as one of the major fuel sources. Ramesh Dandewale, a youth from the village, says that he owns 30 buffaloes and sells about 30 litres of milk daily. Every day, he returns with about a profit of Rs 1,000. It depends on the fodder price and the health of the cattle, he says.
“All these days we have been into traditional cattle-rearing. But now youths want to venture into something different and paying. Everything depends on availability of funds,” he says.
On the other side, he says they have a good market and no reason to complain. The community members residing in the city help them sell the dairy products by introducing them to their neighbours and others.
Youths who are not educated are into the same business and will continue to do so, he adds.
Earlier, they would deliver milk after 10am. But now, due to stiff competition, they have to supply it much earlier. But their loyal customers still prefer them, they say. And a cow moos as if in agreement!