TODAY'S PAPER » NATIONAL » ANDHRA PRADESH
VISAKHAPATNAM, February 29, 2012NABARD evinces interest in Cycads plantations in Agency area
It is said to have medicinal properties, besides acting as pest repellent
A Cycas plant at Visakhapatnam Public Library. —photo: C.V. Subrahmanyam
‘Cycads' (Cycas), known the world over as an ornamental plantation, is facing extinction in the Agency areas in the district due to felling of trees by the tribal people.
The tree is as old as the dinosaur and belonged to the Jurassic age, according to scientific studies. The tree is said to have medicinal and food properties and also acts as pest repellent, according to farmers.
Farmers say that cultivation of the plant near paddy fields would ward off pests and prevent crop damage. While scientifically this aspect is yet to be confirmed, the NABARD has evinced interest in the conservation, cultivation, and regeneration of the age-old plant, which has high ornamental value.
NABARD is implementing a pilot project of Cycads plantation involving Vikas, an NGO, at Narasayyapeta village in Chodavaram mandal. Plantation has been undertaken on three hill tops and, in all, 3,000 plantations are being raised with the financial assistance of NABARD. The NGO first spotted Cycads at Avuruvada, Pedda Saarada, and Konda Veedhi villages in the Chodavaram forest range.
Healing properties
Vikas has launched the plant conservation programme involving local communities, apart from raising 3,000 plantations on the hill tops.
Farmers of Avuruvada and Konda Veedhi villages say they have the tradition of using Cycad leaves cut and placing them at the paddy fields as they act as pest repellent. Cycad bark is also used to heal wounds of cattle. They grow very slowly and live for a very long time with some specimens known to be as old as 1,000 years. Because of their superficial resemblance, they are sometimes confused with and mistaken for palm and oil palm trees
NABARD Assistant General Manager C. Udayabhaskar told that the plantation was taken up in the 2011-12 year with the help of Vikas. Another 10,000 plantations would be undertaken in the next phase.
The plant is on the verge of extinction, as people who knew the value of the ornamental plant are uprooting them in their infant stage and making business out of it.
One leaf of the plant is sold for Rs.100 in view of its evergreen condition. The leaves are used for decoration of venues during festivals, marriages, and other community celebrations. The cost of an infant plant varies between Rs.1,000 and Rs.5000 depending upon the size.
The starch obtained from the stem of certain species is still used as food by some indigenous tribes. The tribes grind and soak the seeds to remove the nerve toxins that may be present, making the food source generally safe to eat, though often not all the toxin is removed.
Cycad meal known as ‘Eenthu' in Malayalam, is a common food in Kerala. Food items such as Puttu, Eenthu Kanji, Eenthu Payasam are made out of Cycad seed powder. These food items are prepared for rainy season in Kerala. There is an indication that regular consumption of starch derived from Cycads is a factor in the development of Lytico-Bodig disease, a neurological disease on the lines of Parkinson's disease.
Village Development Committee team leader Prasad, representing Vikas, says that NABARD has given a grant of Rs.5.74 lakh under the Rural Innovation Fund for the plantation project. Farmers would immensely profit by selling the ornamental plants with each plant fetching between Rs.1,000 and Rs.3,000.
It is said the plant species belongs to the Jurassic age
People uprooting them and making business out of it
Today's Paper » NATIONAL » ANDHRA PRADESH
Published: November 13, 2011 00:00 IST | Updated: November 13, 2011 04:29 IST Mushrooms in big demand in city market
Awareness has increased about the benefits of the fungi
Mushrooms have become a favourite food among health-conscious people, thanks to the awareness created by experts about their benefits.
Mushrooms until a few years ago had very few takers and were not a very popular item on the menu. Things have changes since then as the demand for mushrooms is soaring and markets are importing mushrooms from Hyderabad.
As the fungal offshoot arrives in Rythu Bazzars and other places, they are sold like hot cakes and ‘no stock' board greets you in a couple of hours.
The mushroom culture wing of the Department of Horticulture rose to the sudden demand for mushrooms in the markets and stepped up training programmes for housewives and unemployed youth for creating awareness on its culture and marketing the product and its by-products.
Good for diabetics
“Mushrooms have high protein content, are easily digestible, have less carbohydrates, are rich in vitamins and minerals, cholesterol-free, affordable and have nutrients equal to non-vegetarian food”, says Horticulture Assistant Director S. Ram Mohan.
To top it all it is good for diabetics as it is cholesterol and sugar-free and rich in fibre.
Oyster Mushroom, Maharaja Mushroom and Milky Mushrooms are the three varieties available in the market.
The Maharaja Mushroom costs about Rs.120 per kilogram and the other two Rs.80 and Rs.100 respectively.
The city climate is suitable for mushroom culture and the backyard kitchen gardens can undertake the culture for family consumption. For commercial culture 1 to 10 cents of land is required. The Horticulture department supplies quality mother spawns for cultivation.
Subba Rao from Vijayawada who attended the training programme says that private trainers were charging Rs.3,000 for a week's training while he had received free training from the horticulture department.
Being the lone training centre with well equipped laboratory facilities, youngsters, farmers and housewives are clamouring for training and are coming from as far as Vijayawada, Godavari districts, Visakhapatnam, Vizianagaram and Srikakulam districts and even from Orissa to Visakhapatnam.
Narayana, a mushroom trader says that there is a new found love for the once ignored product due to increased health consciousness among the people.
He says that his shop in Rythu Bazzar alone sells Rs.2,000 worth in the morning hours every day.
