Naga women farmers make news on soil fertility, intercropping

Atula is a Naga woman school dropout but has now become an expert on improving crop cultivation and soil fertility since the time she began working on the small piece of land leased from a landowner.

According to a report by United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), Atula’s family and fellow villagers have practiced slash and burn farming (jhum) which was no longer sustainable in the face of rapid land degradation and population pressures.

A joint programme between UNDP and the state government introducing subsistence farmers to new kinds of sustainable land management practices have helped Atula grown healthier crops and earn a steady income to better support her three children, said the UNDP report.

Since 2009, UNDP in partnership with state department of soil and water conservation have brought new techniques to farmers in 70 villages across three districts in Nagaland, including Atula and her neighbours.

Up until about a decade ago, the entire jhum cycle took about 20 years but today, in the face of population pressure and climate change, the same cycle has been reduced to only seven to nine years, said UNDP.

However, after the initiatives of UNDP and the state government, farmers like Atula were building critical earthen embankments on the hills where they farmed, slowing rates of erosion and keeping the soil fertile for much longer as a result.

Atula also now plants additional crops like ginger and peas, which she is able to sell at market. Her household – along with the 4,000 other households benefiting from this programme – has witnessed a 15 to 20 percent increase in average income.

She has also started to raise pigs, feeding them recycled crop fodder and using the manure in turn to fertilize her crops. According to UNDP report, Atula now earns Rs. 400 to 450 a week selling vegetables in the local market.

Another woman farmer who has received accolades in recent times is Veichochong Misao, a mother of six from Molvom village. Her contributions have been acknowledgment by many for the success story in intercropping.

Veichochong has been practicing farming for more than 10 years now.  She received recognition in ‘lady farmer’ category for breaking established stereotypes and driving innovation by leveraging modern technology in agriculture — lemon, orange and pineapple intercropping.

Talking to Nagaland Post, she informed that she had attended many training prgrommes imparted by centres like Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR).

To all the women farmers who aspire to follow her footsteps, Veichochong’s message is: “Attend trainings and extract lots of information. Take the trainings seriously not just for the sake of attending as it would benefit you in the long run.”

She also acknowledged that Women in Agriculture, a state government initiative had empowered women in Nagaland to take giant strides in farming. The scheme was formulated with a view to motivating and mobilizing women farmers through the group approach.

It may be mentioned that ICAR Nagaland Centre and KVK Dimapur had jointly felicitated Veichochong as a progressive farmer after she was awarded the prestigious Mahindra Samriddhi Krishi Prerna Samman (Farmer of the Year – Lady), 2012  at a brief function organized at Jaharnapani on March 5.

Veichochong has acknowledged the assistance provided by ICAR Nagaland centre, department of horticulture, CIH Medziphema, NABARD and Nandi Foundation which helped her win the prestigious national award.