Sambalpur: At a time when the economic activities are disrupted due to the pandemic and the subsequent lockdowns and shutdowns for the last one year, there are some green shoots in the form of livelihood security through watermelon cultivation. We are talking about the successful model of intervention by the ITDA under Mission Jeevika in Bamra Block where tribal farmers could produce best quality watermelons and earn a decent income.
About 64 tribal farmers of Salohi village of Kesharibahal Gram Panchayat in Bamra Block are today very happy that they have successfully cultivated a land patch of 32 acres and produced watermelon. With the help of the government agency, the farmers are selling their produce in local markets and other places such as Sambalpur, Rourkela, Hirakud, Anugul and Jharsuguda. Their produce is being sold at a premium due to the quality.
Each household involved in the project has got a profit of around Rs 60000/- to Rs 80000/- from 0.50 acre in three months during this Pandamic period. The farmers including the Self Help Group members from different tribal households were linked to avail the input support for the cultivation such as seeds and neem cake fertilizer from the ITDA.
This intervention by the government through ITDA has showed that the livelihoods of the people can be sustained through local activities without depending much on outside the district. While fighting pandemic is the priority, taking care of the livelihoods is also a concern for the government. The successful model of Bamra needs to be replicated in various other districts and should not confine only to watermelons. The officials implementing the project are also thinking on diversifying to cultivation of different other vegetables and fruits according to the feasibility.