A dimension within Millets & Heritage Crops
Discusses the preservation of various seeds, crops, pulses, and grains for food and agriculture.
150 voices speak to this
Positive
Overall Community Sentiment
We save and sow our traditional seeds. Such as chickpea, sorghum, Bhadi, pearl millet, etc.
— Vijay kanesh · Alirajpur, Madhya Pradesh
We save stable seeds and kuluth seeds are valuable for our family. We have old seeds like millet, kuluth, moong. We sell them and use them as food.
— Basanti · Dashapalla, Nayagarh, Odisha
We preserve old seeds for sowing work, which explicitly includes Moong, Kili, and Mustard.
— Vijay Kumar bhardwaj · Baloda Bazar, Chhattisgarh
We have the oldest seeds of pulses, oilseeds, and rice that we have preserved.
— Sunil oraon · Ranchi, Jharkhand
Yes, we grow other crops and also preserve seeds like black gram, pigeon pea, and green gram.
— Jagannath Baraik · Ranchi, Jharkhand
Chickpeas and gumbra are our old seeds, which we preserve and then sow.
— Vinita Singh Yadav · Mukasim, Sonbhadra, Uttar Pradesh
Yes, I collect my own seeds. Mung and Black Gram are the most valuable seeds for our family. I have horse gram, black gram, bajra (pearl millet) and Mugeisal rice as old seeds. For us...
— gadadhar dash
Yes, we save our local seeds. The most precious seeds for the family are wheat, chickpeas, peas, paddy, etc. Seeds are precious.
— Vimala
We have inherited the seeds of Bhaadi, Kodra, Bati, Jowar.
— Kachala Choudhary
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 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
The oldest seeds we have. Millet, foxtail millet, horse gram, green gram, lentils.
— Batakrushna Sahoo
We save our traditional seeds that we have inherited.
— Vijay kanesh · Alirajpur, Madhya Pradesh
Yes, pulses are cultivated in this. According to our ancestors, we also preserve seeds.
— Jagannath Baraik · Bayang, Seraikela-Kharsawan, Jharkhand
Our ancestors have been cultivating Kodo, Barnyard, Foxtail, Finger millet, Horse gram, and Barley since ancient times, which are very nutritious. We always preserve their seeds and cultivate them every year.
— Ram Kumari · Sonbhadra, Uttar Pradesh
We store black gram, green gram, finger millet, horse gram, foxtail millet, and pearl millet for future cultivation.
— Batakrushna Sahoo
We have preserved various items such as moong, beans, and gourds from ancient times.
— S Guruteli · Sindhiguda, Malkangiri, Odisha
We do farming. We save some seeds beforehand and then cultivate. This way, we get many crops, including green gram, black gram, and pigeon pea.
— Ulapi Sahu · Balangir, Odisha
Our precious seed jowar, urad
— Kachala Choudhary
We keep green gram, black gram, and horse gram seeds, and cultivate them in the second crop.
— Puspanjali Nag
For our family, the most valuable seeds are pulse seeds, paddy seeds, etc.
— Sunil oraon · Ranchi, Jharkhand
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 barnyard millet and finger millet and also conserve seeds.
— Manjusha Marko · Dudhi, Sonbhadra, Uttar Pradesh
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 also preserve seeds in a traditional way.
— Sunil oraon · Ranchi, Jharkhand
Yes, we save old seeds.
— Kachala Choudhary
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
Yes, we cultivate and preserve traditional seeds.
— Selina Pangi
We conserve paddy seeds.
— Vinita Singh Yadav · Dharura, Sonbhadra, Uttar Pradesh
We conserve paddy seeds
— Sunita Kumari · Ghorawal, Sonbhadra, Uttar Pradesh
Here, we cultivate paddy, sawa, medon, and mijhri. We store sawa, medon, and mijhri at home for sowing in the next year. Additionally, among pulses, we have kurthi and baturi, which we also store and sow the following year.
— Ram Kumari · Sonbhadra, Uttar Pradesh
This year, we have cultivated green gram, black gram, and chickpeas. We will save the seeds to cultivate them again next year.
— Gitanjali Bhoi · Karamdihi, Sundargarh, Odisha
We used to cultivate various crops extensively. Additionally, I cultivated mustard, moong bean, guava, horse gram, etc. All these seeds are important for my family.
— RINA BEHERA · Sundargarh, Odisha
And our local seeds are paddy, jowar, and among pulses there is tur, and groundnut, so we rely on our local seeds.
— Kachala Choudhary · Alirajpur, Madhya Pradesh
We store the seeds of ridge gourd, hyacinth beans, bottle gourd, water chestnut, bitter gourd, and sponge gourd at home and cultivate them annually.
— Laxmi Bagh · Subdega, Sundargarh, Odisha
In rain-fed land, we cultivate horse gram and green gram, and we store their seeds safely by using neem and karanja leaves.
— Sita Behera · Dashapalla, Nayagarh, Odisha
I cultivate pulse crops without irrigation. We save pulse seeds, among which horse gram, black gram, and pigeon pea are the oldest varieties. We save these seeds for cultivation every year. Our ancestors used to cultivate using manure and traditional ploughs.
— DASHARATH SINGH
Precious seeds: Pearl millet, Black gram, Sorghum, Bhaadi Kodo millet, Barnyard millet, Bati.
— Kachala Choudhary
We preserve the pulse crops that we have received from our ancestors.
— Sunil oraon · Ranchi, Jharkhand
We cultivated rainfed crops like pigeon pea, mung bean, and black gram, and will continue to cultivate and preserve them for the future.
— bachcha lal · Shahganj, Sonbhadra, Uttar Pradesh
AI-synthesised pieces woven from many community voices on this theme. They may contain errors or interpretation — they're a reflection of the stories, not a record of fact.

By preserving our traditional, rain-fed seeds and planting them with care, we ensure food for our families and fodder for our animals.

We carefully save seeds from our diverse crops like chickpeas, lentils, and mustard, ensuring we can grow them again next year and maintain our livelihood.

By cultivating a variety of crops, preserving ancestral seeds, and exploring animal husbandry, we build a resilient livelihood for our community.

By carefully collecting and preserving seeds from our first harvest, we ensure a second, nutritious crop and maintain our traditional farming methods for generations.