Rayagada: Dongria Kondhs, one of the primitive tribes living under the Niyamgiri hills in this district of Odisha, are once again in the news for good reasons.
Members of the tribe are being talked about for undertaking strawberry cultivation on the foothills of Niyamgiri, their abode, which means everything to them. The primitive tribals, known for fiercely protecting their culture and sustaining themselves with the resources from the Niyamgiri forests, have turned a new leaf and are practicing horticulture apart from shifting cultivation.
In recent past, the indigenous tribals had reaped success through the cultivation of a variety of fruits and spices like banana, pineapple, turmeric, ginger, arrowroot, jackfruits, mango, flower broom and orange.
However, a Dongria farmer Lakunu Yakeshika, a native of Kurli village under Bissam Cuttack block has carved a niche for himself by cultivating strawberry for the first time on the foothills of Niyamgiri, a feat that was unthinkable in the past.
He has achieved this feat with the help of Dongria Kondh Development Agency (DKDA). The Odisha PVTG Empowerment and Livelihoods Improvement Programme (OPELIP) and Chatikana Kondh Development Agency have also provided their support for strawberry cultivation, Yakeshika said.
Reports said that the Dongria farmers assisted by the DKDA undertook a field visit to Nuapada district to gain a firsthand experience on strawberry cultivation undertaken by the tribal farmers of Chukatia and Bhunjia tribes. They gained rich experience from the field visit and once they came back the DKDA authorities decided to undertake strawberry farming on Niyamgiri foothills.
Lakunu Yakeshika has cultivated strawberries on one acre of land in Kurli village on the foothills of Niyamgiri. He has planted over 20,000 saplings and nursed them with all sincerity and love. The plants will start giving fruits 45 days after plantation and will bear fruits for two months.
Lakunu is elated over the success and hopes he will reap at least 60 quintal strawberry. The harvest will help him earn `10 to 12 lakh. He has spent around `5 lakh towards buying the saplings, fertilizers, arranging sprinkle irrigation facility and towards engagement of labourers.
He will expand his cultivation to more land if he gets success. When contacted, Sudarshan Padhi, project manager of OPELIP and DKDA said that the cold climate of Rayagada district is conducive for strawberry cultivation.
They aim at including more Dongria Kondh tribals if the experimental farming of strawberry proves successful. Moreover, the district horticulture department has also helped them in providing drip irrigation facilities for the cultivation, he added.
PNN