Longitude

Q. Why aren’t there more vegetable gardens in the villages? Are the villagers lacking in knowledge? Seeds? Fertilizer?


A. Regarding Gummallapadu Village (GP), the main reason why there were not more vegetable gardens is because the surrounding land has been terribly degraded by the omnipresent aqua-culture farms. Essentially, the local communities surrounding Kolleru Lake were duped into flooding their rice paddies years ago in the attempt to make huge profits from fish farming. However, the cyclic process of flooding and draining the fish ponds and thereby spreading tons of pesticides, herbicides, antibiotics, etc. necessary to ensure a profitable fish harvest, also ensure the destruction of all nearby land rendering in unsuitable for conventional farming.

Another contributing factor in GP Village is the basic lack of land. Most families only own the small plot a few meters wider than the homes they are building.

Regarding Kothasatram/Indiranagar Village (KI), two very similar factors as above limit the ability for the villagers to grow their own food. KI Village is very near the coast, and as any volunteer who has dug out a foundation there knows, the ground is almost only sand for a meter or more deep. This means that it is difficult to grow all but a few vegetables in such sandy conditions.

Also, as in GP, the KI Villagers, and especially the Scheduled Tribe families in the visibly poorer half of the village, Indiranagar, only own the small plot of land around their homes. However, some families on the Kothasatram side, have had some success cultivating flowers and simple leafy greens for sale in Kavali city.

One family in particular inherited several plots of land from a grandfather who helped establish KI Village generations ago. The family consists of husband Aragala Malayadri, wife Hemalatha, and sons Pavan and Madhu. Because they have the land, they are able grow vegetables and flowers for sale which allows them to purchase rice, save for children’s education, and to repay a loan they took out to pay for the husband’s brother’s wedding (as their father had passed away leaving this responsibility to the eldest son, Aragala).

On average, the family cultivates several plots of flowers, and a 30 ft. x 70 ft. vegetable garden which costs 180 Rupees to seed. The plants grow and are harvested within 15 days, yielding 1000 Rupees on the market. Hemalatha spends 300-400 Rupees per crop on seeds and electricity to pump water from the communal well to the garden, bus fare to the city and back, and market stall fees.

This results in a profit of about 600 Rupees (about US$12.00) every two weeks, when the vegetables will grow, barring drought or floods. The family even grew a crop of taro for international sale, and from the profits were able to purchase a television for their new home.

So, the main obstacle for the villagers to grow their own food is access to fertile land. If they have the land they will surely grow their own food, as the Malayadri family has in KI Village. Longitude and ARV envision being able to empower the people to seek out suitable land, procure it and to start farming it towards the goal of self-sustainable food production.

Food security is an integral part of the Longitude Uncaste India Campaign, for once the survival necessities are secure can we proceed to empowering the Dalit to effect change and equality in their own lives. This will take time and the dedication of many donors and volunteers to come.

Thank you for your support!

Wandanamuru!!!

Rick Mickelson
Longitude Director of International Volunteering
volunteer[at]golongitude.org