Traditional Dryland Farming

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 have preserved various items such as moong, beans, and gourds from ancient times.

— S Guruteli · Sindhiguda, Malkangiri, Odisha

The rice crop we cultivate, the valuable horse gram of our family; our ancestors have provided us with green gram, black gram, horse gram, and finger millet.

— Basanti · Nayagarh, 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

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

Bhaji leafy greens seeds, cluster beans, taro, turmeric, and Jani are all ancestral seeds. All these grow in fertile soil.

— Anirudha Marai

We can grow crops without irrigation like Ragi, Masoor, and Horse Gram. Millet.

— arun raja · Kon, Sonbhadra, Uttar Pradesh

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 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

Pulses, millet, grains, and green leafy vegetables

— Maya kumari Damor

The oldest seeds we have. Millet, foxtail millet, horse gram, green gram, lentils.

— Batakrushna Sahoo

Our ancestors used to cultivate Bhadi kodra, jowar, pulses, and oilseed crops.

— Kachala Choudhary

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

Pearl millet, maize, kodo millet, Mejri, barnyard millet, black gram, horse gram

— Kamleah Kumar · Sonbhadra, Uttar Pradesh

Our ancestors were cultivating. They grew urad and moong. The soil gave them a different kind of produce, and they nurtured the seeds for it.

— Mukunda Majhi · Udulibeda, Malkangiri, Odisha

Previously, we used to cultivate all crops like moong, urad, and kulthi, and we want to continue doing so in the future.

— Jyoti Senapati

Yes, we grow other crops and also preserve seeds like black gram, pigeon pea, and green gram.

— Jagannath Baraik · Ranchi, Jharkhand

Previously, we ourselves used to cultivate moong, Didhan Lar Golandi, Mahipal paddy, red paddy, Kalachu paddy, and Sarai paddy.

— Padmini Bhoi

We preserve old seeds for sowing work, which explicitly includes Moong, Kili, and Mustard.

— Vijay Kumar bhardwaj · Baloda Bazar, Chhattisgarh

In our region, especially minimal-input, zero-irrigation crops like pigeon pea, black gram, red lentil, etc., are cultivated.

— Sunil oraon · Ranchi, Jharkhand

We cultivate a second crop. The valuable seed of our family is Horse gram. Our ancestors have given us Green gram, Black gram, Horse gram, and Finger millet. We follow the farming methods of our ancestors.

— Basanti · Nayagarh, Odisha

Our ancestors used to cultivate mung bean, urad, horse gram, ragi, and mustard. At that time, it used to rain, and there were forests.

— Anirudha Marai

Pearl millet, corn, Kodo millet, Mejhari, Barnyard millet, Black gram, Chickpea.

— Kamleah Kumar · Sonbhadra, Uttar Pradesh

Wheat, chickpea, toria and local indigenous seeds.

— Sunita Kumari · Ghorawal, Sonbhadra, Uttar Pradesh

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

Yes, they grow other crops with zero irrigation. Here, for example, horse gram, ragi, kodo millet, black gram, kodo millet.

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

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 have inherited the seeds of Bhaadi, Kodra, Bati, Jowar.

— Kachala Choudhary

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

In our region, zero-irrigation crops of pulses and oilseeds are cultivated, which include pigeon pea, lentil, etc.

— Sunil oraon · Ranchi, Jharkhand

The traditional seeds are pearl millet, smooth sorghum, and Bhadi kodo millet.

— Kachala Choudhary

Yes, we are cultivating a second crop. We are growing lentils, moong, kalath, and their seeds are also in their traditional way.

— Trinath badanayak · Malakanagiri, Malkangiri, Odisha

In our region, even without rain, we cultivate crops like moong, urad, and horse gram. We also preserve their seeds by mixing them with neem leaves.

— Kunakanta Behera · Dashapalla, Nayagarh, Odisha