KANNUR: As the farmers in the traditional kaipad rice fields are readying for a new season with renewed enthusiasm, after the organically produced rice in the brackish coastal marshes here got the Geographical Indicators (GI) tag recently, they are now facing a new threat.
Gluttonous birds that dive down in flocks in the dead of the night and forage upon seeds in germination stage when it is very sweet and tender.
The local farmers and scientists complain that the night raids of wading birds, locally known as ‘eranda,’ have foiled the strenuous efforts to cultivate seeds in the marshy fields of Kaipad.
The birds have destroyed seeds sown in many acres of Kaipad land this time, says Dr T Vanaja, Principal Investigator of the College of Agriculture at Padannakkad. “I have lost paddy in more than an acre and many farmers have complained about this new threat.
They all have to repeat the laborious process now,”she added.Even though ‘eranda’ attack was not new to Kaipad farmers, the birds show a change in their strategy this time, for some unknown reason. “These birds used to attack earlier as well, but the damages caused were limited. The flocks of birds used to swoop down on kaipad farms in day time and the farmers could scare them away using traditional methods,by making loud sounds and using crackers,” Dr Vanaja explains. “But this time, they are raiding the farms in the dead of the night!”
The local farmers believe that mangrove infiltration into kaipad areas must be a reason for the high intensity in the bird attacks.
The mangroves should ideally be on the fringes on the farms. But as most of these traditional fields were left fallow for years, mangroves invaded deep into the fields, giving safe perch to different types of ‘erandas’ and locally migrating ducks. The population of these wading birds has increased in the area, they observe. The scientists are thinking of ways to overcome the problem by sowing the seeds outside and planting them in the farms later, an unconventional method in kaipad.
“There is no solution in sight except to sow the seeds in dry fields and prepare the seedlings for planting,” Dr T Vanaja said. The bird raids, however, have come as a dampener to many farmers and youth clubs that took to kaipad farming with a renewed enthusiasm after the organic rice and farming got GI tag recently.
Nearly 60 percent of the traditional Kaipad area remains fallow still. We could take the real advantage of the GI only if we could bring more land under cultivation and increase production, Dr Vanaja, who played a crucial role in gaining the GI tag for the rice, pointed out.
Meanwhile, farmers at Kattampally have started another season of rice cultivationagainst all odds.