Tribal Seed Heritage

Even today, in our tribal areas, the method of traditional seed conservation by ancestors is adopted.

— Sunil oraon · Ranchi, Jharkhand

In our region, people depend on rainwater, so we only use zero-irrigation seeds, and we have traditional seeds available, which are maintained using traditional methods.

— Rupesh Maravi · Mandla, Madhya Pradesh

Our tribal people will conserve seeds of Kangu, Biri, Mandia, Chimba, Kakodi, Kumuda, Kalata, Sarukanda, Judum, Bhadasembi.

— Krushna Sisa · Udulibeda, Malkangiri, Odisha

We save our traditional seeds that we have inherited.

— Vijay kanesh · Alirajpur, Madhya Pradesh

In our region, we save and conserve our local seeds such as indigenous oilseed seeds, indigenous pulse seeds, and paddy seeds.

— Sunil oraon · Ranchi, Jharkhand

We also preserve seeds in a traditional way.

— Sunil oraon · Ranchi, Jharkhand

We have received our traditional native seeds from our ancestors, which we conserve and protect for the coming generation.

— Sunil oraon · Ranchi, Jharkhand

We have traditional seeds here like Saadia, paddy, pigeon pea, semi-native gourds, Karaiguta, Chipra, etc. We preserve these every year and cultivate them using old traditional methods without irrigation.

— Rupesh Maravi · Mandla, Madhya Pradesh

We save and sow our traditional seeds. Such as chickpea, sorghum, Bhadi, pearl millet, etc.

— Vijay kanesh · Alirajpur, Madhya Pradesh

Yes, we practice traditional farming and also conserve indigenous seeds.

— Sukhdas Mandavi · Mohla, Mohla-Manpur-Ambagarh Chowki, Chhattisgarh

We save seeds at our location and keep them for our family. And saving old seeds in a traditional way is our

— Anil Pargi

Yes, we cultivate and preserve traditional seeds.

— Selina Pangi

We conserve our local seeds ourselves.

— Sunil oraon · Ranchi, Jharkhand

We still have traditional seeds like Kodo, Kutki, Maize, Sorghum, Kulthi, Arhar, etc., which we sow using old methods even without irrigation facilities. Even then, our crops ripen.

— Rupesh Maravi · Mandla, Madhya Pradesh

Yes, we practice zero-irrigation farming and also conserve seeds every year such as Kodo, Kutki, Madia, Ragi, Kulthi, Urad, Hirwa.

— Birohin · Mohla, Mohla-Manpur-Ambagarh Chowki, Chhattisgarh

We cultivate seeds such as chickpea, lentil, mustard, and horse gram using traditional, possibly rain-fed, farming methods. We preserve these seeds and cultivate them using this traditional agricultural practice.

— Laxmi Sahu

In our region, zero irrigation crops are sown, mainly pulses and oilseeds, and we practice traditional farming and conserve pulse seeds.

— Sunil oraon · Ranchi, Jharkhand

We have a lack of irrigation resources, due to which we cultivate crops every year using traditional methods and traditional seeds, and even today we have old traditional seeds available.

— Rupesh Maravi · Mandla, Madhya Pradesh

This seed was received from our ancestors, which we save.

— Sunil oraon · Ranchi, Jharkhand

Yes, we conserve traditional seeds using traditional methods and also farm using traditional methods, where, by God's grace, the crop grows even without irrigation.

— Rupesh Maravi · Balaghat, Madhya Pradesh

Yes, we practice zero-irrigation farming and conserve seeds like millet, madia, ragi, kulthi, kodo, kutki.

— Sukhdas Mandavi · Mohla-Manpur-Ambagarh Chowki, Chhattisgarh

We do traditional farming. We save rain-fed seeds and cultivate crops like sorghum and chickpea.

— Vijay kanesh · Alirajpur, Madhya Pradesh

Yes, we preserve natural seeds here.

— Vijay kanesh

Here, we cultivate Sawa, Medon, Mujhri, Kodo, and pulses using the 'Batririri' method. We also store the seeds at home for the following year and then re-sow them in the field; this practice is a legacy from our ancestors.

— Ram Kumari · Sonbhadra, Uttar Pradesh

These native seeds were inherited by us from our ancestors.

— Sunil oraon · Verno, Gumla, Jharkhand

Yes, we also grow other crops without irrigation using traditional methods, which we call 'unhari' crops. We also store their seeds using traditional methods.

— Rupesh Maravi · Mandla, Madhya Pradesh

Some seeds only grow with rainwater. Just by sowing the seeds, they grow and provide food throughout the year. All these seeds have been preserved by our ancestors.

— Anirudha Marai

We ourselves save our local seeds, which are indigenous seeds that are on the verge of extinction today.

— Sunil oraon · Ranchi, Jharkhand

We will practice traditional farming and save seeds for next year.

— Sathimambalaka · Tado, Rayagada, Odisha

We conserve paddy seeds

— Sunita Kumari · Ghorawal, Sonbhadra, Uttar Pradesh

Yes, we save old seeds.

— Kachala Choudhary

They practice traditional courtyard farming, having done so since their ancestors. They keep us committed to the conservation of seeds.

— Man Singh Bankira

Yes, we practice zero-irrigation farming and also conserve seeds annually, such as Kodo, Kutki, Madia, Jowar, and Bajra.

— Sukhdas Mandavi · Mohla, Mohla-Manpur-Ambagarh Chowki, Chhattisgarh

We conserve paddy seeds.

— Vinita Singh Yadav · Dharura, Sonbhadra, Uttar Pradesh

Yes, due to the lack of water facilities in our fields, we grow Rabi crops using traditional methods without irrigation and also maintain traditional seeds using traditional methods.

— Rupesh Maravi · Mandla, Madhya Pradesh

Yes, we cultivate dryland crops such as madiya, kodo, and kutki in our region, and we also conserve seeds for every year.

— Sukhdas Mandavi · Mohla-Manpur-Ambagarh Chowki, Chhattisgarh

Yes, pulses are cultivated in this. According to our ancestors, we also preserve seeds.

— Jagannath Baraik · Bayang, Seraikela-Kharsawan, Jharkhand

Yes, we preserve traditional seeds and sow them. This helps during the harvest season for the Rabi crop. It is also beneficial even without irrigation.

— Santosh Barik · Narala, Kalahandi, Odisha

They conserve TC and paddy seeds.

— Sunita Kumari · Ghorawal, Sonbhadra, Uttar Pradesh

These seeds have been inherited by us through many generations. We preserve them with the thought that they might not be available to us in the future or could become extinct.

— Sunil oraon · Ranchi, Jharkhand