A joint effort to put together a registry documenting the food crop diversity of the Perumala region of Kanthalloor grama panchayat in Idukki got under way with Sacred Heart College at Thevara dispatching a team of 21 students for an in-situ camp and documentation of the varieties on Saturday.
The Jaiva Jeevitham collective, steered by the CPI(M), which has cultivated organically 46 types of fruits, vegetables, pulses and native grains on just an acre of land in the area, and the Organic Kerala Charitable Trust are joining hands in the effort.
“Clearly, the region is a top food crop diversity hub. We cultivated 20-odd varieties of fruits, 10 types of winter vegetables, roots, and native varieties of rice, some under the threat of extinction,” says M.M. Abbas of Jaiva Jeevitham.
“Local people say they used to have some 100 food crop varieties earlier, but some just faded away, thanks to the issues with farming, global warming which has upped temperature in the region by a few degrees, pollution and unsustainable farming practices. The effort is to see if we can scientifically retrieve some of these lost varieties and popularise natural farming practices,” he says.
The SH College team will study the crops and interview local farmers and traditional farming experts over the two days.
The team comprises postgraduate students in Botany, besides students from the college’s Agriculture Club, Environment Science Club and the National Service Scheme.
“Over time, cultivation of some crops has increased while some others dropped in popularity. But there’s no document which gives a clear picture of the situation. So we thought we should document it properly for the posterity. We have prepared a checklist and are getting down to work, with the support of the panchayat. Once the documentation is done, it will be handed over to the panchayat and the Kerala State Biodiversity Board for policy recommendations and steps to revive some varieties. It’s the first step towards all that,” says Fr. Prasanth Palakkappally, Principal of Sacred Heart College.
Mr. Abbas says the target is to submit the document in 60 days, with the larger role of conserving the area as a food crop diversity hotspot. An initiative on integrated organic farming undertaken by the Jaiva Jeevitham collective at Arookkutty in suburban Ernakulam enjoys the collaboration of SH College, St. Teresa’s, and Rajagiri.
