Sting operations kept the political temperature high in Uttarakhand
Uttarakhand will not forget year 2016 in a hurry. The year witnessed high drama to make it one of the…
Constant attacks by monkeys in agriculture fields have forced many farmers in Uttarakhand to take inspiration from popular Hindi proverb 'Bandar kya jaane adrak ka swad.' A new practice is gaining popularity in the hill state with villagers growing more ginger, as it is observed that monkeys generally don’t harm ginger plants.
Ginger is an important cash crop in Uttarakhand- with annual production of 47,648 metric tonnes. Majority of village in Uttarakhand are reeling under simian menace.
Sanjay Dobhal of Thano village, near Dehradun, shares his experience, “Our village is monkey affected. I have started growing ginger and banana in my fields, rather than any other vegetable which monkeys will destroy. You don’t need to guard ginger plants.”
Sanjay is not alone. Many other villagers have adopted ginger, turmeric and are making experiments with other crop/vegetable species. Interact with any local resident of Uttarakhand, and he/she will rue about the monkeys destroying their crops in day time and wild boar in the night- to cause financial loss to farmers. Many villagers were compelled to give up farming due to attack from monkeys and wild boar. The ginger experiment holds some hope for farmers to earn revenue by adopting the innovative approach.
Vijay Jardhari, founder of the famous Beej Bachao Andolan, says, “The pattern has changed and I have seen farmers in Tehri and many parts of Uttarkashi growing ginger and turmeric due to fear of the monkeys.”
Hindus consider monkeys as representatives of Lord Hanuman, so they are unwilling to harm the animal. So, religious belief is also posing hurdle for villagers in taking any aggressive attack on the simian.
Take the case of Bheta Pilkhi village in Chamoli, where 60 per cent of fields remains barren, as local farmers have given up farming due to attack from monkey, bear and wild boar.
Laxman Negi, a farmer from Bheta Pilkhi, says, “Monkey is a common problem of any village in Uttarakhand. Villages where good irrigation system prevails have started growing ginger- which monkeys generally don’t damage.”
Though gingers do not provide complete solution to attack from monkey- it still is a experiment worth taking for keeping the fields alive.
Indian Council of Agriculture Science’s horticulture scientist Pankaj Nautiyal says, “Villages located near forest are more vulnerable to monkey attack. We have started motivating farmers to grow ginger, turmeric, lady finger and other vegetables which monkeys don’t spoil.”
Till some years ago, it was believed that monkeys do not harm walnut, finger millet and Jhangora millet. But, now many farmers have registered a change in habit of the simians- who now harm many horticulture/agriculture produce which they never used to touch someone a decade ago.
Ginger is used for folk medicine, but by cultivating ginger, farmers in Uttarakhand are getting some relief from pain of the monkey attack.
Advertisement
