Fruits of change ripen in Thane’s orchards

Tribals turned to drought-tolerant fruits 10 years ago, now malnutrition-hit district reap dividend

Ten years ago, Mohan Kirkira’s daily routine consisted of trudging 10 kilometres to the nearby Jawahar village in search of odd jobs which would fetch him a paltry Rs 10-20. Now, he owns more than five acres of land in his village, Vanvasi, and earns more than Rs 1.7 lakh each year.

Kirkira took the turnaround route with a unique wadi (orchard) project launched by the Agro Industries Foundation (BAIF). “We were asked to grow drought-tolerant fruit crops like mango, cashew, amla, tamarind and custard apple. Since such fruit crops are grown only in coastal areas, the villagers were sceptical and just four of us joined the scheme to begin with,” says Kirkira.

Now, Kirkira walks through his lush orchard, surveying 50 mango, cashewnut and guava trees, interspersed with jackfruit, banana and amla. “The crop looks good this year. The mango has failed but the cashew trees and other vegetables will yield well,” smiles the class IV dropout, who now trains other tribals who are a part of the programme. Of the 65 families in this tiny village, more than 50 are part of the wadi brigade with more changing their minds.

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“The wadi programme is based on a farming system that includes horticulture, forestry, intercrops and intensive cultivation of cash crops on small plots separately,” explains Kishor Chapalgaonkar, programme director of the Maharashtra Institute of Technology Transfer for Rural Areas (MITTRA) – BAIF’s implementing agency in the area.

Hence, tribals like Kirkira have multiple sources of income to rely on. While fruit crops earned him Rs 20,000, vegetable and cash crops yielded Rs 10,000. Sale of grafts gave the highest remuneration of Rs 1,40,000. “Because I have diversified, I am not worried if one of my crops fails this year,” he says. A confidence echoed by many farmers here.

Currently, more than 4,000 families are taking part in the programme in the malnutrition-hit areas of Wada, Jawhar and Mokhada in Thane district. The incidence of grade III and grade IV malnutrition which stood at more than 18 per cent has come down to 3 per cent.

Gujarat, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh have also implemented the project. Tribals say the fall in incidence of malnutrition has to do with the growing prosperity in the region. More farmers are now breaking away from the traditional crops to choose more viable crop.

Grow a quick crop, save for later

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• Under the programme, a family can begin on a 1-acre plot, growing cashew, mango and papaya trees. “These are planted due to their quick yielding capacity,” says Vijay Deshpande, joint programme director at MITTRA

• For 5 years, the organisation provides technical support and training to the tribal. Then the wadi owner becomes part of a cooperative that looks after technical support and processing of fruit and vegetables

• Funds for the wadi schemes in Thane come from the Centre and state govt as well as the European Union and KFW Germany through NABARD