Subasa Mohanta is no stranger to hunger. It’s a constant in the life of this 50-year-old farmer, her husband and two children.

Despite 16 hours of backbreaking work as a farmhand, hauling rocks around a construction site, she may come home without enough to eat.

But in 2018, a small bag of seeds helped Subasa transform her life.

Mrs. Mohanta scattered finger millet seeds – given to her by the Odisha government under a rural program supported by the World Food Program (WFP) – in the 0.6 hectare fallow land that surround his brick and mud house in Goili village in Mayurbhanj district.

In about two months, she harvested her first crop of mandia (the Odia word for ragi or finger millet). Subasa sold some of the approximately 500 kilograms she harvested at Rs 40 per kilogram, kept some to feed hungry mouths at home, and distributed the rest to friends and family. And then she again sowed the seeds of change on her farmland.

Mandia Maa, symbol of hope

Over the past three years, Subasa’s story of hope, confidence and empowerment has intertwined with the genesis and growth of the Odisha Millets Mission (OMM), a flagship program of the Department of Health. agriculture and farmer empowerment from the regional government.

Her days are now split between cultivating her own land, plus an additional 3.2 hectares she has rented, and advising women in Mayurbhanj and other districts of Odisha on best practices for growing millet.

She also deals with local reporters queuing to get a glimpse of Mandia Maa, a nickname she earned for her hard work and willingness to try a new culture when few others were open to it. ‘idea.

Health drink pancakes

Finger millet has not only changed the fortunes of the Mohantas, who have now diversified into growing other millets such as suan (small millet) and sorghum. It has also made its way into their diet. From mandia kakara pitha (a kind of pancake) to mandia malt (a healthy drink to start the day), the Family Nutrition Bowl is also part of OMM’s journey to success.

The millet plant’s high tolerance to heat (up to 64 degrees Celsius), drought and flooding makes this crop an obvious choice for farmers in a time of climate change and natural resource depletion.

Millet requires less water than rice and wheat, the two staples of the Indian diet. Short-season millets grow easily without fertilizer, making them a healthier and safer option for the consumer and the soil. Intercropping millet with other crops is also beneficial for soil quality: it helps control water runoff and helps conserve soil in areas prone to erosion.

“Besides being a rich source of nutrients and a climate-resilient crop, millet can diversify the food system, support resilience building and adaptation, and improve the livelihoods of smallholder farmers, including women. , at national and regional levels,” says Bishow Parajuli, WFP representative. and country director in India.

Women in the foreground

In Odisha, what began four years ago with the distribution of leaflets, loudspeaker announcements from vans and the distribution of seeds to villagers by volunteers, community resource people and Department of Health officials Farming has now turned into a movement driven by women’s self-help groups.

Women, who are still considered mostly post-harvest and seed keepers, have taken the lead in ragi processing, improving millet yields with organic inputs and also running cafes and centers that serve millet dishes.

Humble jau (a porridge made from unpolished grains) – the most common form of millet consumption in Odisha – now enjoys the company of other traditional dishes such as bara, malpua, khaja ​​and chakuli.

It’s no longer “the food of the poor”

The seeds of change have taken root, but the way forward is not free of challenges.

Millets are still perceived as a food of the poor and underprivileged, an image problem that needs to be addressed through promotions, social media campaigns and celebrity outreach messages.

Millets need the support of urban consumers to find their rightful place on the shelf.

Although this change may be a few summers away, the women in the villages and small towns of Odisha are seriously indulging in their millet work. And lives are changing, bit by bit.