In the present times of environmental distress wrought about by climate change, one can be part of the global solution by making lifestyle changes at the local level.
And Sahaja Samrudha, an organisation engaged in promoting cultivation and consumption of indigenous variety of paddy and millets, has taken a step in this direction to create a market for traditional crops that are less water intensive.
In continuation with its efforts, it has rolled out a desktop calendar for 2022 that highlights the benefits of tubers and roots.
Titled Return to Roots, the calendar has different variety of tubers and roots displayed in every page of the month coupled with benefits and the culinary delights that one could dish out using these tubers and roots.
Krishnaprasad of Sahaja Samrudha pointed out that these roots and tubers are still used by indigenous tribes and not only are they less water intensive but are also nutritious. Promoting their cultivation and consumption can lead to a more sustainable planet and agricultural practices to benefit the farmer, he added.
‘’Though many of the tubers are on the verge of extinction they can still be revived only if we can create a demand for them and the desktop calendar is an attempt to kindle public interest in this unique heritage which is all but lost’’, said Mr. Krishnaprasad.
India is home to a number of tuber crops - cassava, sweet potato, taro, tannia, yams, foot yam, yam bean, arrowroot etc. They can overcome adverse weather conditions and can be cultivated by farmers to shore up their income provided there was a market for it. So Sahaha Samrudha in collaboration with NABARD has rolled out the Roots and Tuber Calendar 2022 as a unique effort to popularise the use of roots and tubers cultivation by creating an awareness about their benefits, said Mr. Krishnaprasad.
Sahaja Samrudha avers that these lesser known roots andtubers offer high nutrients and have various medicinal properties and also hold economic and nutritional importance for the tribal communities. The calendar is an effort to popularise roots and tubers and conserving them besides improving food and nutrition security, natural resources and eco system, according to the organisation.
For details call 9108128123.
