Age is just a number if we look at the achievement of this Koya girl, Muni Madkami, of the tribal-dominated Malkangiri district in Odisha. She is just 18 years old, yet her valuable guidance on agriculture has redirected many tribal people to farming who were once forced to travel to other states in quest of employment. She not only made farmers of ten villages in the region self-reliant agro-preneurs but also earned the ‘Krushi Mitra’ (farmer friend) tag for herself.
In a rain-scarce district like Malkangiri, Koya farmers have always been dependent on rice farming for a living and unfamiliar with rabi cultivation. In addition to rain scarcity, traditional farm methods and unrestricted animal incursions into farm fields resulted in severe losses for them. This forced them to leave their loved ones in the village and work outside of the district, even across the state boundary in Andhra Pradesh, for livelihood.
Muni Madkami who lives with her parents in a thatched hut in Kurti village of Kaladapalli Gram Panchayat in Podia Block in Malkangiri district was dismayed by the region’s hog-tied condition. She wanted to change the situation, but how could she?
Muni felt incredibly optimistic when she came to learn that the State Government in partnership with the Swaminathan Foundation launched a project in the Malkangiri region in the session 2022-23 to provide free rabi seeds and other equipment to boost the region’s agro-productivity and improve the lives as well as livelihoods of tribals. For the purpose, state government has executed several awareness and skill development program in the ground level.
Muni quickly learnt several modern ways for increasing farm yields through organic means. She understood the significance of legumes (rabi seeds) in agriculture, as well as its advantage to improve soil fertility, the ways to eliminate agricultural pests, how to fence farm land securely to avoid animal intrusion, and other methods to make organic vermin-composts. She found out about the provision that allows tribals to receive free leguminous seeds such as moong, urad, peanuts, maize, and other project equipment.
“Communication was our major challenge with Koya farmers. In a situation like this, Muni served as an essential bridge between the Koya tribes and us, allowing us to easily carry out awareness and skill development initiatives throughout the region. Despite having only completed eighth grade, Muni’s command of both the odia language and her own local dialect, as well as her philanthropic instinct, assisted us in effectively communicating the benefits of our project and related programs to the grassroots level. Muni accompanied us to all of the villages we visited during the program and also represented the Koya community’s agricultural needs.”
Dr. Kartik Lenka, Scientist, MSSRF
In the following days, Muni taught modern farming methods to her villagers and persuaded them to cultivate Moong on a 30-acre plot of land. The positive outcome has encouraged more farmers to start growing moong and urad this year on an extra 50 acres of land with suitable fencing, in addition to rice farming. She encourages village farmers to grow maize, groundnuts, and other vegetables to add extra source of income.However, she rigorously instructs farmers to keep enough produce from their farms for their personal consumption first and then sell the surplus in the market for profit.
“Whenever I visit a village, the residents appreciate and encourage my work. They respect me. I wish to go for my higher education in the future so that I can learn more and contribute more for my community. I hope we can all stay together in our village and make income from our own land. In this way, everyone could take care of their family’s necessities, enjoy festivals like in the past, and live happily. I shall work for my people until my last breath.”
Muni Madkami
Muni now works closely with the state government, visiting all of the villages in the Podia block to assess farmer requirements and convey their agricultural challenges to government officers and scientists. She educates and instructs them on a variety of government-run farmer aid projects. Last year, the Odisha Livelihood Mission (OLM) recognized her as a ‘Krushi Mitra’ for her honest efforts in farming and unwavering guidance to tribal famers of Malkangiri.
