Poet Sugathakumari, who was in the forefront of the struggle against the Aranmula airport project, received a unique gift on Tuesday: a bushel of Aranmula rice, cultivated in the paddy field saved by the campaigners against the airport project.
Agriculture Minister V.S. Sunil Kumar arrived at the poet’s home on Tuesday and presented her with the red rice, which is rich in bran. He also presented her a finely tied bunch of paddy stalks and payasam made using Aranmula rice. “This is one significant gift that I have received in my life,” said Ms. Sugathakumari, who was also all praise for the efforts of the government to restore the State’s green cover.
The Agriculture Department had taken the initiative to resume farming in 101 hectare in the 443-hectare Aranmula paddy polder. Following harvest, the department had also taken steps to market the rice as ‘Aranmula Rice’, which would be used for the traditional ‘Aranmula Vallasadya’ and ‘Ashtamirohini’ festivities at the Parthasarathy temple, a Farm Information Bureau press note said.
