PERAMBALUR: If you travel through the lush green fields in Perambalur, millets hold you spellbound. The millet district, which switched from ragi, kodo, sorghum, and pearl to cash crops such as maize and cotton amid mounting losses nearly two decades ago, is crooning the glory of millets once again.
So, what has made farmers in the region now swear by these small-seeded grasses? A farmer producers’ organisation (FPO) from Veppur has been buying millets from farmers at Rs 8-10 above market price, making it a win-win deal for everyone. Since 2020, Nammalvar Iyarkkai Siruthaniya Uzhavar Urpathiyaalar Kuzhu, an FPO, has been buying millets from farmers with the help of the government and a non-governmental organisation, Barefoot Academy of Governance. They process the produce and sell it as seeds, rice, and grains. This has motivated several farmers to return to millet crops here.
“Since 2015, we have been trying to promote it here again. For this, we are training farmers, which includes everything from sowing to harvesting. We buy the harvest from farmers at Rs 8-10 over the market price,” says K Saravanan, coordinator of Barefoot Academy of Governance.
“Over the years, farmers faced many problems with maize and cotton, like requiring more fertilizer and manpower. But growing millets requires less input cost and gives a better yield. For example, we can get 600kg of millet per acre. Millet farmers are likely to increase if procurement is done properly,” he adds.
“Farmers were suffering for years without stable income and profitability in agriculture. Our plan is to bring back traditional millet crops and replace cash crops,” says P Banumathi, president of the FPO.
It comprises 19 women members and 60 farmers. The farmers cultivate millets (kodo, foxtail, black sorghum and barnyard) on more than 100 acres in villages in Veppur block. In 2021, the FPO set up a millet processing unit at Nannai village at a cost of Rs 18 lakh under the State Planning Commission’s State Balance Growth Fund. So far they have procured 64 tonnes of millets.
“Our aim is to bring back millet cultivation in Perambalur. At present, only three schools in Perambalur district have implemented the breakfast scheme. Collector P Sri Venkada Priya has ordered to include millet in the breakfast at least once a week,” says Karuppasamy, Mahalir Thittam project officer.
“As we are not dependent on any seed and chemical company, we can move to organic farming. Growing millets will meet our food and nutritional requirements,” adds Banumathi.