About a month ago, the farmer upsurge in Maharashtra gained a lot of eyeballs. Though without a strong political backing, it emerged to become one of the most powerful protests of recent times. Disheartening images of farmers, in huge numbers, with genuine demands, marching all the way from distant districts of Vidarbha and Nashik to Mumbai, did not warrant any rooftop, high decibel news anchors to capture one’s attention. However, the seeds of what culminated in the mass protest were sown years ago, in what we call as the agricultural policies of the country.
One of the main culprits behind low agricultural growth in India is the myopic outlook with which incentives provided to the sector. Over the years, India’s obsession with certain crops, viz, paddy, wheat, certain pulses and oilseeds, proved that procurement operations are focused on these, while other major crops were largely left for the oblivion. For the uninitiated, paddy and wheat are water-intensive crops and hence, financially intensive too.
On the other hand, other options like millets and cereals are given the least importance, even when they come with the advantage of climate change resistance, economic water usage and nutritional superiority.
Hence, promoting crop diversity assumes utmost significance in such a context. With its proven properties of resilience and higher nutritional values, lack of policy formulations to help and incentivise farmers to cultivate millets is appalling. “In India, millets are grown on about 17 million hectares with annual production of 18 million tonnes and contribute (only) 10 per cent to the country’s food grain basket. However, the direct consumption of millets as food has significantly declined over the past three decades,” notes M.S. Swaminathan, in a research paper named Nutritional and Health Benefits of Millets, published in August 2017 by, ICAR—Indian Institute of Millets Research (IIMR). “In order to revive the demand of millets in India, there is need to enable to bring all the stakeholders in production to consumption system value chain on a common platform and link poor dry land farmers with market and the consumers at large,” noted Vilas A. Tonapi of ICAR—Indian Institute of Millets Research (IIMR) Hyderabad and a co-author of the research paper.
However, the situation is now changing to a certain extent with, thanks to the Mid-Day Meal (MDM) Scheme.
Various state governments have now begun integrating millets into the MDM scheme. For instance, in Karnataka, the pilot project for integration of millets in Mid-Day Meal (MDM) Scheme was launched by The Akshaya Patra Foundation (TAPF) in partnership with the state government in January. A similar initiative was introduced in Hyderabad with TAPF serving ready-to-consume millet-based items, such as chikkis and ladoos, to more than 1.5 lakh beneficial children in the Telangana capital. “Akshaya Patra plans to implement the initiative in all its beneficiary schools in Bengaluru from the upcoming academic year onward. Depending on the success of this project, a millets-based menu will be extended to all the 4,86,172 beneficiaries served by Akshaya Patra in Karnataka, and can be used for advocacy of its inclusion in Mid-Day Meals across the country,” said Chanchalapathi Dasa, Vice Chairman, The Akshaya Patra Foundation.
Inadvertently, large-scale inclusion of millets as part of the Mid-Day Meal Scheme will automatically result in an increased demand for these crops, thus incentivising farmers to opt for them over rice and wheat. “During difficult times when drought hits some parts of the country, it is beneficial for farmers with small holdings to grow millets. Millets consume 80 per cent less water than crops like sugarcane, rice, and wheat, and require 70 per cent less use of chemical fertilizers. Millets are also drought-tolerant, pest-resistant, high-yielding, low-risk crops that require a low input cost which makes them extremely favorable to farmers,” said Dasa.
If the governments see success in the project, then this could result in government-initiated millet procurement, which will in fact, improve the profitability of the farmers. TAPF is also mulling to hold training sessions for farmers to improve millets farming standards, once the project graduates from the current pilot to its next stage.
In addition, millets are rich in nutrients, minerals, vitamins and organic compounds which boost human health. All varieties of millets display high antioxidant activity and consist high levels of vitamin B, calcium, iron, potassium, zinc, magnesium and fats. “The integration of millets will add to the nutritional value of mid-day meals, helping easily achieve and even surpass the recommended norms—especially in terms of protein intake. If we are to take into account the nutritional profile and health benefits these superfoods, it is safe to assume that it will make a difference in lives of these children by improving their nutritional levels,” added Dasa.
Millets are rich in fiber. They are also gluten-free, making them the best alternative to wheat for people with glucose intolerance. Millets are heart healthy foods which also help in controlling cholesterol levels and prevent diabetes. Including millets in the diet can help address a range of micronutrient deficiencies, especially in children and women.