Since 2019, the Kondh tribe in Odisha’s Nayagarh district has held the Bihan Mela, or seed festival, to support the rebirth of indigenous farming.
Mela Bihan
- Farmers from 40 villages in Dasapalla block participate in this festival, which involves the collection and preservation of indigenous seeds.
- Women collect indigenous variety seeds after harvesting kharif crops and preserve them in earthen pots.
- They adorn the pots with red and white designs, set them in a bamboo basket, and carry them on their heads to the village where the fair is held on a specific day in December.
- Men beat drums and other traditional instruments to accompany them.
Objectives
- The seed festival was created to assist farmers in returning to traditional farming methods, such as mixed-cropping, which is more resistant to irregular rainfall and pest infestations.
- Farmers have abandoned local crops and kinds that are naturally resistant to pests and better suited to the region’s climate in recent years.
This festival’s commercialization: Seed Savings Bank
- Nirman, a non-profit that works with the tribe on forest rights and agro-ecological farming, established a seed bank in Raisar village in 2019 to improve access to indigenous seeds.
- The bank harvests and preserves indigenous seeds from Kondh communities before lending them to farmers.
- The bank presently has 62 paddy types, four millets kinds, five pulse varieties, and eight vegetables.
- The bank is open to all Kondh farmers and has already benefited 750 families.
Source: https://www.downtoearth.org.in/news/agriculture/bihan-mela-a-seed-festival-aims-to-help-tribal-kondh-farmers-in-odisha-return-to-their-agricultural-traditions-88643