Kaliapani: Of the slew of programmes launched by the state government, mushroom farming is all set to bring significant changes in the standard of living of Juangas of Nagada, a remote village of Jajpur district that hogged limelight a year back for a spate of deaths of children due to malnutrition.
The death of 19 children in the village July last year had brought disrepute to the administration and the government swung into action to remove the scar.
The state government had made all-round efforts to include the tribals in the mainstream of the society by changing their conventional way of living. The district administration also got some success in its attempt.
However, the mushroom cultivation training of Jeevika Mission became an instant hit with the Juangas. The tribals were seen earning a few bucks and supporting their families by cultivating mushroom.
According to Desh Pradhan, a resident of Tala Nagada, most of the men of the village had shown interest in mushroom farming. Not only in Tala Nagada, people of other two Nagadas have also selected suitable locations and prepared beds to cultivate mushroom.
At the beginning, the Juangas were given training in a farm at Mahavirod in Dhenkanal district. However, they managed to harvest mushroom on their own by setting up farms in their village.
“I collect 10 kg of mushroom a day from every bed,” said Katakia Padhan of the village.
However, the villagers rued that one bed has been allotted to 10 people of the village and the earning is less; hence, the number of beds should be increased. They demanded more beds to increase the production of mushroom.
“Though mushroom cultivation is new to us, we manage to earn something between Rs 120 and Rs 160 and we are happy for that,” said Ainthu Padhan.
They want to add a few more varieties of crops to the farming to supplement their earnings, said some villagers. PNN
