{"id":28114,"date":"2023-03-02T14:30:00","date_gmt":"2023-03-02T09:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/idronline.org\/?post_type=ground_up_stories&p=28114"},"modified":"2025-09-03T17:11:37","modified_gmt":"2025-09-03T11:41:37","slug":"millets-return-to-malkangiri-a-solution-for-soil-erosion","status":"publish","type":"ground_up_stories","link":"https:\/\/idronline.org\/kn-in\/ground-up-stories\/millets-return-to-malkangiri-a-solution-for-soil-erosion\/","title":{"rendered":"Millets return to Malkangiri: A solution for soil erosion"},"content":{"rendered":"

Malkangiri is a hilly district that lies in the southernmost part of Odisha, very close to Andhra Pradesh. Due to its location, it receives much heavier rainfall than the rest of Odisha.<\/p>

Like all districts in the state, Malkangiri villages once grew a variety of millets such as ragi, bajra<\/em> (pearl millet), and foxtail millet. However, following the Green Revolution, farmers in these regions switched to commercial crops such as rice and wheat, which would give them a better price.<\/p>

“Our ancestors grew ragi and other millets following traditional farming methods. But because they didn’t get a good price for these in the market, they shifted to rice and wheat that had higher MSP<\/a>,” says Muka Padiami, a farmer from the district.<\/p>

Malkangiri should have been an ideal place for water-intensive crops such as rice because it receives good rainfall. However, this has not been the case due to water run-off, which is particularly common for farmers living uphill. In addition, rainfall patterns have changed, leading to prolonged dry spells that damage water-intensive crops. Abhijit Mohanty, programme manager at WASSAN<\/a>, a nonprofit that works with the Odisha government programme secretariat on the Odisha Millet Mission (OMM)<\/a>, says, “Water run-off also leads to soil erosion and loss of fertile soil for the farmers. Earlier, the tribes living in the hills used to cultivate millets, which had a deep root system and could hold the soil tightly. This prevented soil erosion.”<\/p>

Farmers such as Muka are now going back to growing millets. He says, “I have been growing ragi for a few years now, and it’s been three years since I started cultivating bajra<\/em>. Initially when I started, people in the village would mock me. But now all of them are following my lead because there’s no other way. The rainfall is erratic, and millet requires little water.”<\/p>

The government’s push for millets in recent years has helped. Farmers like Muka are now earning INR 3,400 for one quintal of millet at MSP in the local mandi<\/em> (marketplace) set up by the Tribal Development Co-operative Corporation of Odisha. Their farming methods are a mix of new and old ways. Muka says, “Our ancestors grew millets in quantities that were sufficient only for household consumption.”<\/p>

The new generation of millet farmers in Malkangiri follow improved agronomic methods. For better productivity and yield, they apply bio-inputs such as jeevaamruta<\/em>, ghanajevamruta<\/em>, and bijaamruta<\/em><\/a>. Unlike rice, which requires chemical inputs, millet can thrive with minimal agro-inputs.<\/p>

For the communities in Malkangiri, millet cultivation helps their livelihood in more ways than one. Farmers involved in rainfed agriculture in Malkangiri practise livestock farming as a secondary source of income. The millet crop residues act as fodder for the livestock.<\/p>

As told to IDR<\/em>.<\/p>

Abhijit Mohanty works as programme manager at Watershed Support Services and Activities Network (WASSAN), Bhubaneswar. Muka Padiami is a progressive millet farmer-cum-trainer supported by Odisha Millet Mission (OMM).<\/em><\/p>

—<\/p>

Know more: <\/strong>Learn why farmers in a West Bengal village are returning<\/a> to traditional methods of cultivation. <\/p>

Do more: <\/strong>Connect with the author at abhijitmohanty@wassan.org<\/a> to learn more about and support his work.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":29,"featured_media":28115,"template":"","categories":[5],"tags":[3625,3655,3686,3702],"series":[1776],"meta-filter":[],"schema-filter":[743],"no-display":[],"class_list":["post-28114","ground_up_stories","type-ground_up_stories","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-agriculture","tag-farming","tag-irrigation","tag-organic-farming","tag-rural-india","contributor-abhijit-mohanty","contributor-muka-padiami","series-climate-solutions","states-odisha","schema-filter-article"],"yoast_head":"\nMillets return to Malkangiri: A solution for soil erosion | IDR<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"After years of growing water-intensive crops like rice, farmers in Odisha return to millets due to soil erosion and unpredictable rainfall patterns.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/idronline.org\/ground-up-stories\/millets-return-to-malkangiri-a-solution-for-soil-erosion\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"kn_IN\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Millets return to Malkangiri: A solution for soil erosion\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Malkangiri is a hilly district that lies in the southernmost part of Odisha, very close to Andhra Pradesh. 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