case studies undp: tribal communities of the jeypore tract of orissa, india

7/27/2019 Case Studies UNDP: TRIBAL COMMUNITIES OF THE JEYPORE TRACT OF ORISSA, India

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Equator Initiative Case StudiesLocal sustainable development solutions for people, nature, and resilient communities

India

TRIBAL COMMUNITIES OFTHE JEYPORE TRACTOF ORISSA

Empowered live

Resilient nation

Empowered live

Resilient nation



UNDP EQUATOR INITIATIVE CASE STUDY SERIES

Local and indigenous communities across the world are advancing innovative sustainable development solutions that wo

or people and or nature. Few publications or case studies tell the ull story o how such initiatives evolve, the breadth

their impacts, or how they change over time. Fewer still have undertaken to tell these stories with community practition

themselves guiding the narrative.

To mark its 10-year anniversary, the Equator Initiative aims to ll this gap. The ollowing case study is one in a growing ser

that details the work o Equator Prize winners – vetted and peer-reviewed best practices in community-based environmenconservation and sustainable livelihoods. These cases are intended to inspire the policy dialogue needed to take local succ

to scale, to improve the global knowledge base on local environment and development solutions, and to serve as models

replication. Case studies are best viewed and understood with reerence to ‘The Power o Local Action: Lessons rom 10 Years

the Equator Prize’, a compendium o lessons learned and policy guidance that draws rom the case material.

Click on the map to visit the Equator Initiative’s searchable case study database.

EditorsEditor-in-Chie: Joseph CorcoranManaging Editor: Oliver HughesContributing Editors: Dearbhla Keegan, Matthew Konsa, Erin Lewis, Whitney Wilding

Contributing WritersEdayatu Abieodun Lamptey, Erin Atwell, Toni Blackman, Jonathan Clay, Joseph Corcoran, Larissa Currado, Sarah Gordon, Oliver Hughe

Wen-Juan Jiang, Sonal Kanabar, Dearbhla Keegan, Matthew Konsa, Rachael Lader, Patrick Lee, Erin Lewis, Jona Liebl, Mengning Ma,

Mary McGraw, Gabriele Orlandi, Juliana Quaresma, Peter Schecter, Martin Sommerschuh, Whitney Wilding, Luna Wu

DesignOliver Hughes, Dearbhla Keegan, Matthew Konsa, Amy Korngiebel, Kimberly Koserowski, Erin Lewise, John Mulqueen, Lorena de la

Parra, Brandon Payne, Mariajosé Satizábal G.

AcknowledgementsThe Equator Initiative acknowledges with gratitude the Tribal Communities o the Jeypore Tract o Orissa, and in particular the guida

and inputs o Bibhu Prasad Mohanty, Chairman. All photo credits courtesy o MSSRF. Maps courtesy o CIA World Factbook and Wikiped

Suggested CitationUnited Nations Development Programme. 2012. Tribal Communities o the Jeypore Tract o Orissa, India . Equator Initiative Case Study

ries. New York, NY.

http://equatorinitiative.org/images/stories/events/2012events/Book_Launch/power%2520of%2520local%2520action%2520final%25202013%25208mb.pdf


http://equatorinitiative.org/index.php?option=com_winners&view=casestudysearch&Itemid=858





PROJECT SUMMARY The M.S. Swaminathan Research Foundation (MSSRF) wasconcerned about the rapid depletion o rice diversity in theJeypore tract o the Indian state o Orissa, once the homeo the largest number o rice varieties in India. In 1998, theoundation undertook to improve the condition o poorarmers while revitalizing vanishing rice varieties, combiningmodern and traditional approaches or the conservation,enhancement, and sustainable use o local rice biodiversity.

While coordination o initial research, pilot studies,and unding was handled by MSSRF, the institute has

increasingly handed control over to local actors amongthe tribal communities o the Jeypore Tract through thedevelopment o community-based organisations. Theselocal institutions have sustained and expanded the project’sbenets or the district’s communities and ecosystemsthrough the introduction o a diverse range o sustainablelivelihood activities.

KEY FACTS

EQUATOR PRIZE WINNER: 2002

FOUNDED: 1998

LOCATION: Jeypore, Orissa, India

BENEFICIARIES: 1000 families from 16 villages

BIODIVERSITY: 83 rice landraces

3

TRIBAL COMMUNITIES OF THE JEYPORETRACT OF ORISSAIndia

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Background and Context 4

Key Activities and Innovations 6

Biodiversity Impacts 9

Socioeconomic Impacts 9

Policy Impacts 11

Sustainability 13

Replication 14

Partners 14



4

he Jeypore tract in the Indian state o Orissa (now Odisha), is

onsidered a center o origin and diversity o Asian cultivated rice

oryza sativa l .). Located in the district o Koraput, in southern Orissa,

he Jeypore tract comprises a highland plateau o the Eastern Ghats

onsisting o a number o hills, with altitudes ranging between

50 and 1,500m above sea level. Fity-two tribal communities live

n Koraput, with the Khond, Bhatada, Paroja, Bhumia and Gadaba

umbering among the largest o these. Tribal communities

onstitute hal o the district’s population. Approximately 84 per

ent o Koraput’s population live below the poverty line, making it

ne o the poorest regions in India.

he rural, tribal communities o this region have developed andonserved species o rice using traditional knowledge and innovative

ractices to meet evolving ood security and environmental needs.

ice is cultivated across a range o agro-ecosystems, including

plands and lowlands, and irrigated and rain-ed landscapes. Land

ypes are classied locally into ve broad categories: donger - land

n hilly slopes used or shiting cultivation; dhepa - unbunded and

unded upland landscapes; bhatta - irrigated and rain-ed medium

ands; khala - lowlands; and jhola – deep lowlands or land located

etween hills as terraces.

Within each o these land categories, numerous varieties o rice

re cultivated in three, distinct seasons: beali (autumn rice), sarrad

winter rice) and dalua (summer rice). Specic rice varieties arerown depending on local preerences or characteristics such as

lant height, pigmentation o plant parts, grain shape and size,

nd the presence o awns. Dierent rice varieties are also cultivated

or their culinary properties – cooked rice, popped rice, pued rice

nd pressed rice; and their palatability – aromatic or non-aromatic.

he range o genetic varieties and o cultural practices associated

with rice have made the Jeypore tract a globally important reserve

genetic diversity and accumulated traditional knowledge o rice

ultivation.

Addressing a decline in genetic diversity

asdThe latter hal o the twentieth century saw a rapid erosio

biological diversity in India. As a subset o biodiversity, agricul

biodiversity is under particular threat, with standardized

varieties replacing native ‘landraces’ – local species varieties that

developed naturally through adaptation to their local environm

With the advent o India’s Green Revolution in the late 19

government agricultural extension agencies began introducing

rice varieties to improve production and productivity in tribal a

In the process, local varieties were oten replaced with high yie

varieties, eroding the rich genetic diversity o rice. Orissa was othe traditional home o the largest number o rice varieties o

state in India, with more than 1,750. However, by the 1990s

number o local rice varieties had allen to approximately 150.

Background and Context



55

o counter this trend, a movement to devise means and strategies

in situ conservation o agrobiodiversity and associated traditional

nowledge has developed, to compliment ex situ storage and

etrieval. Much agrobiodiversity is in the custody o tribal and

ural communities scattered in remote, mountainous and oten

naccessible regions, which are invariably poor and economically

marginalized.

Concerned about the rapid depletion o rice diversity in one o

ts centers o origin, the M.S. Swaminathan Research Foundation

MSSRF), with a pro-poor, pro-nature, pro-women mandate, began

ndeavors to revitalize vanishing rice varieties, while simultaneously

mproving the conditions o poor armers. In 1995, with a grant

rom the Ramon Magsaysay Foundation, MSSRF initiated a project

o collect and document landraces rom throughout the Jeypore

ract in an eort to protect the intellectual property rights o the

istrict’s tribal and rural arm amilies. In 1998, MSSRF, supported by

he Swiss Agency or Development and Cooperation, commenced a

roject to enhance the conservation and sustainable and equitable

se o biodiversity in seven tribal villages o Koraput district. The

main goal o the project was to promote sustainable management

agrobiodiversity and to develop procedures to recognize and

eward the contributions o tribal and rural amilies, in particular

women, to the conservation and enhancement o genetic diversity.

he project had the ollowing objectives:

Revitalization o the on-arm conservation traditions o

rural and tribal armers

. Development o innovative approaches to eectively link

biodiversity conservation and enhancement with impro

ments to the livelihoods o the rural and tribal poor

i. Development o participatory plant breeding and conservation systems

v. Integration o principles o gender and social equity into

biodiversity conservation sustainable use, through policy

research.

. Linking primary conservation actors with markets, to

create an economic stake in conservation

i. Oering networking and capacity building opportunities

to tribal arm amilies through scientic training and expo

sure visits

ii. Enhancement o capacities related to biodiversity

management at various levels (armers, local communities,

non-governmental organizations, government agencies

and policy makers)

The key players in the project have been tribal and rural arm

amilies, locally elected ocials, government agencies and

society organizations. Through sel-help groups and commu

based institutions, arming amilies have taken leadership in

management, conservation and sustainable use o genetic dive

o rice landraces. Wherever easible, members o locally ele

gram panchayats (village-level sel-governments) take decision

legal matters. Three dominant communities, the Paroja, BhumiaGadab, have participated in the in situ arm conservation prac

that now extend to sixteen villages, and are supported by

project sta. While the overall vision has not changed dramati

since 1998, new learning has been incorporated, most notably

use o participatory tools.

“Empowerment of primary conservers at the community level should be given top priority for

situ and on-farm conservation of agrobiodiversity.”

Bibhu Prasad Mohanty, Chairman, Tribal Communities of the Jeypore Tract of Orissa



6

Key Activities and Innovations

Activities o the Jeypore tract project ollow a ‘Four C’ strategy,

ocusing on conservation, cultivation, consumption and commerce,

ll with the aim o ostering conservation and sustainable use o rice

enetic resources.

The ‘Four C’ approach

Conservation: Participatory plant breeding and on-arm,

participatory conservation systems are used to link tribal armers

o ex situ gene, seed and grain banks. Documentation o armer

practices and cataloguing o genetic resources are undertaken at

eld locations, such as the Biju Patnaik Medicinal Plants Garden and

Research Centre, and are subsequently shared with a Community

Gene Bank in Chennai.

Cultivation: Farmers have been trained in improved agronomic

practices. The spread o modied cultivation practices and genetic

arieties has been acilitated by armer-to-armer seed exchanges,

workshops on participatory hybridization, and the creation o eld-

evel gene, seed and grain banks.

Consumption: The project has established mini hullers to reduce the

abor intensity o rice grain processing, promoted kitchen gardens

o increase household ood security and nutrition, and has worked

owards the revitalization o other traditional ood crop varieties,

ncluding various species o millet, pulses and oil seeds.

Commerce: The project has attempted to introduce new varieties o ce and improve armers’ access to new and emerging markets.

rior to the project’s initiation, lack o access to modern agricultural

echnologies and practices hampered the ability o small-scale

arming households to meet their ood security needs. Yields o

raditional rice varieties were typically low, and over-reliance on rice

s a ood staple was high. Rice cultivation was sucient to meet

ood security needs or an average o eight to nine months per year.

imple agronomic practices have been introduced to increase the

productivity o native rice varieties including seed selection and

treatment beore sowing; line transplanting to aid in harve

and weeding; low seed rates to optimize spacing between se

transplanting o seedlings; and development o seed nurse

Organic arming has also been encouraged through the applic

o armyard manure and bio-pesticides. Consequently, tribal arm

amilies have experienced higher rice yields, making it pos

to meet household ood requirements while also produ

considerable surplus grain or sale on the market.

Community-based grain, seed and gene banks were created

storing and lending excess grains during ood shortages. Short

to ‘Village Seed Banks’ by participating communities, these b

also acilitate storage and exchanging o high-quality seeds o

landraces or sowing, and ensure the long-term conservatio

genetic varieties.

Participatory methods

Participatory approaches to plant breeding and conserva

have been applied to enhance existing on-arm varieties o

Sel-help groups have been ormed to carry out vermicompo

(composting using worms) which has contributed to enha

agricultural yields. Kitchen gardens, household ruit-tree plan

and orest ood gardens have all been promoted to enhance

security and nutrition, and to give amilies additional source

income.

MSSRF scientists and armers worked together througparticipatory process to catalog native rice landraces based

genetic characteristics. A number o quantitative traits were obse

based on random samples o plants, including plant height, num

o tillers, number o panicles, average panicle length, numb

lled grains per panicle, grain ll index and harvest index.

Farmers were trained in the identication o various morpholo

characters related to yield perormance, and also received traini

selecting panicles with well-lled grains as seed material. Ater t

seasons o practical training by MSSRF scientists, armers were

to autonomously conduct seed selection and varietal puricati



7

sing methods such as threshing, hand winnowing, removing

ndersized seeds, removing o-color seeds, and sun-drying. Data

n the quantitative traits o landraces were statistically analyzed and

he top perorming varieties or each agro-ecosystem were selected.

he process o selecting and puriying native varieties helped

armers to add value to seeds or sale, with puried seeds achieving

igher prices on the market than unpuried varieties, as illustrated

n Table 1.

All o the improved agronomic practices introduced under the

nitiative practices have a high rate o uptake among armers

articipating directly in the initiative’s work, and methods may also

e replicated by non-participating neighboring armers. Figure 1

lustrates the adoption rates o various components o improved

gronomic practices by both participating armers and non-

articipating armers.

Target beneciaries o the project are tribal, rural and economi

marginalized arming amilies, most o whom arm less than

hectares o land. In 1998, a total o 100 arming amilies rom e

villages comprised the three community development bloc

Koraput district participating in the project. This number has s

increased to nearly 1000 amilies rom sixteen villages belon

to ve dierent tribal communities. Knowledge has been ra

disseminated to other regions and arming communities thro

armer-to-armer exchanges. Similarly, the initiative has develop

‘Train the Trainers’ program that equips model armers to dissemmore complex scientic knowledge. Village knowledge ce

use inormation and communications technology to promote

project as well as or outreach and knowledge dissemination.

The project has innovatively applied technology, tradit

knowledge, and management techniques. In terms o innov

technology, the selection o seeds rom mother panicles o loca

varieties or seed purication has led to uniormity and stabili

yields as well as to crop improvement.

Table 1: The relative price o purifed and unpurifed rice varieties

Agro-ecosystem type Landraces Purifed (INR) Unpurifed (INR)

UplandParadhan, Matidhan, Pandakagura,

Basumati, Donder 7-8 5

Medium land Sapuri, Bodikaburi, Gathia, Muktabali 12-15 10

Lowland

Umuriachudl, Sunaseri,

Veliyan, Pathangada 12-15 10

Kalajeera 20 15

ource: M. S. Swaminathan Research Foundation, 2010-2011 Annual Report

0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 1

Low seed rate (12 kg/acre)

Line sowing in raised nursery seed beds

Seed nursery area 10% o area to be transplanted

Transplanting o seedlings within 21-25 days

Line transplanting

Roughing out o mixtures

Farmyard manure (10-15 cartloads/acre)

Seed treatment beore sowing

Seed selection rom mother panicle

4-6 deep ploughings per harvest

Participant armers (n=54) Non-participant armers (n=44)

Fig. 1: The percentage o participating and non-participating armers applying improved agronomic practices




8

Among the most noteworthy technological innovations has been

he establishment and introduction o gene, seed and grain banks,

which have provided grain or consumption, seeds or cultivation and

enes or conservation. Participatory approaches to local rice variety

ybridization, water management in elds, and the practice o seed

oaking have also contributed signicant technical advancements.

he project has applied traditional knowledge to seed storage,

rying and preservation, rooting these practices in local capacity

nd culture. The project’s management innovations include theuilding o community institutions around the gene, seed and grain

anks, or sel-help groups and as the basis or knowledge-sharing

etworks.

Improving livelihoods

To supplement the increased incomes rom improved agron

practices, MSSRF encouraged the development o a numbe

alternative livelihood options among Jeypore’s tribal commun

Between 2004 and 2009, a range o livelihood projects ena

amilies to diversiy their sources o household income. T

activities (summarized in Table 2) ocused on six villages - Chen

Jhiligaon, Dhola-Jhiligaon, Kaudiaguda, Kusumguda, Paknagand Uduluguda, targeting the poorest tribal households. The

successul activities promoted included large-scale veget

cultivation, vermicomposting, backyard poultry arming,

arming, and the initiative’s ‘ve-plant’ campaign.

Table 2: Livelihood diversifcation activities initiated to diversiy household incomes

Livelihood activity Number participating Year Status Results

Group vermicompostproduction

16 households in threevillages

2006-07 Very successul, replicated inother villages

Farmers use compost in their ownelds and sell surplus or cash inco

Individual vermicompost

production

35 households in three

villages2004-05 Very successul

Organic cultivation has enhanced

production and raised income

Oyster mushroom

cultivation75 members 2007

Cultivated by groups and

individuals in three villages

Created employment and raised

incomes

Straw mushroom

cultivation


villages2007

Replicated in neighboring

villagesSupplementary income source

O-season vegetable

cultivation61 households 2004-05

Hampered by water scarcity

during summer months

Cultivation o cash crops has

increased incomes o arm amilies

Group vegetable

cultivation


villages

2004-05

Group cultivation a success;

individual cultivation given

emphasis ater two years

Created employment and raised

incomes

Individual vegetable

cultivation


villages2007

Built on success o group

cultivation; technical

guidance given to armers

Enhanced productivity o upland

areas, increased incomes

Inter-cropping o arbi

(taro) and yam

24 households in

Nuaguda village2004-05 Used or seed multiplication

Farmers have also used or househ

consumption

Fish-arming24 households in

Nuaguda2007 Successul

Tamarind value addition

35 households

in Nuaguda and

Gunthaguda villages

2007Undertaken with Community

Gene Bank (MSSRF Chennai)

Tamarinds processed and kept in c

storage or sale during peak seaso

higher price

Mini rice huller 34 households inNuaguda 2007 Maintained by sel-helpgroup members Has helped households to save timand increase income

Lea plate stitching8 households in

Boliguda village2007

Groups provided with sewing

machines

Increased incomes and used to rep

clothes

Groundnut cultivation54 households in

Boliguda village2006

Under large scale production

and has been replicated

The largest source o income ater

paddy rice

Green-gram (mungbean)

cultivation

13 households in

Nuaugda2006 Has been successul Incomes increased

Shallow wells or

irrigation

46 households

in Nuaguda and

Gunthaguda villages

2008-09Has benetted vegetable

cultivation

Income generated by vegetable

cultivation




9

Impacts

BIODIVERSITY IMPACTS

The area under landrace cultivation, the number o dierent local

varieties used, and the number o arm amilies participating in

he project have all increased signicantly across the target region

ince the project was initiated. The number o rice landraces under

cultivation has increased rom 72 to 83, and this rate o scaling-up

has continued, with 402 acres under landrace cultivation in 2009, and

978 arming amilies involved in the conservation and enhancement

o genetic diversity o rice species. Village Seed Banks are now

operating in 17 villages, conserving a total o 24 rice landraces, in

contrast to six varieties in 2002.

These activities inherently enhance biodiversity by conserving

varieties o rice that would otherwise all out o use. The armers

o the Jeypore tract are conserving unique landraces o rice that

have adapted, largely by natural processes, to the specic climatic,

environmental and cultural conditions o the region, thus enhancing

he region’s agrobiodiversity, and thus its general biodiversity.

Playing a leading role in the conservation o agrobiodiversity is

he Biju Patnaik Medicinal Plants Garden and Research Centre. This

medicinal plants garden is home to 347 ethno-medicinal plants

commonly used by nine tribal communities in Orissa. In conjunction

with other gardens, including a women’s medicinal plants garden,

he Eastern Ghats Rare, Endangered and Threatened (RET) PlantGarden, and articial, sacred groves, this center has coordinated the

preservation o a diverse range o native species and catalogued

esearch into their ethno-botanical properties.

All three agro-ecosystems in which the project operates – upland,

rrigated and rain-ed landscapes; medium land; and lowland –

have benetted rom organic arming methods. Dierent species

o traditional ood crops like millets, pulses and oilseeds have also

been revitalized, improving household ood security and income

generation, and increasing resilience to crop ailures.

SOCIOECONOMIC IMPACTS

The target beneciaries o the initiative are arming amili

Koraput’s tribal and rural communities, generally arming

than two hectares o land each. MSSRF has worked to increas

livelihood options o these amilies, raise their household inco

and improve household ood security. Since 1998, the projec

extended to reach sixteen villages in three community develop

blocks in the district, reaching a total o 4,500 individuals by 200

illustrated by Table 3, poverty levels in these villages are high,

76 per cent o their overall population living below the poverty

The social and economic benets o cultivating nativevarieties are numerous. In addition to the cultural value pl

on inherited varieties, other benets o traditional varieties

high-yielding varieties may include superior taste and nutrit

value, resistance to pests and diseases, resistance to droughts

foods, compatibility with local arming conditions, and econ

practicality as they require ewer inputs such as chemicals

ertilizers. Generally, armers o traditional varieties benet

the crops’ natural adaptation to specic local conditions, w

allows them to be armed more sustainably using ewer che

inputs. There is also a great cultural benet to communities in

use o their accumulated traditional knowledge o local vari

properties and uses.

Increasing ood security

As a result o the methods introduced by the initiative, rice is

available year-round, bridging household ood decits, w

previously, it only met amilies’ ood needs or eight to nine mo

o the year. Harvested rice complements the arming o tu

bamboo shoots, mushrooms and other orest products or

security. The promotion o o-season vegetable cultivation has

supported greater resilience to climatic changes and bolstered

security.



raining in line transplantation has improved the productivity o

amily arms by up to 25 per cent. Previously, transplantation o

eedlings took place at 45 days old, with seedling then planted

aphazardly. MSSRF training has encouraged the transplantation

seedlings at 21-25 days, allowing 20 cm between rows and

0 cm between plants on leveled plots, and planting north to

outh to allow plants to capture more sunlight. These conditions

ptimize agricultural productivity and increase yields. Similarly,

MSSRF researchers determined that the widespread practice o

lanting more than 80 kg o seeds per acre was adversely impacting

roductivity, as plants competed or scarce nutrients. Consequently,

armers have been encouraged to use a seed rate o 12 kg per acre,

cientically determined to maximize output. As line transplantingas made it easier or armers to weed rice crops, armers have

ncreased their numbers o productive working days.

he impact o MSSRF’s participatory work in Koraput villages has

een remarkable. Average yields under improved agronomic

ractices have increased dramatically in all landscapes and or all

andraces cultivated. The extent o yield improvement has varied

etween 30 and 70 per cent, all o which has been achieved without

ny chemical inputs and with only slight increases in the total cost

cultivation. Variation in the extent o improvement was observed

across armers, which could be attributed to variations betw

landholdings and variation in the adoption o modied agron

practices.

Initial results in 1999 were especially impressive, helping to conv

armers o the benets o adopting modied agronomic practic

market terms, individual armers realized yield improvements o

to 298 per cent in lowlands, 209 per cent in medium lands, and

per cent in uplands. In a survey o participating and non-participarmers, improvements in benet to cost ratio compared

traditional arming practices were seen in lowland and medium

arms, with the results or lowland armers especially impressiv

an average cost o INR 6,023 per hectare, yields produced INR 14

or a benet to cost ratio o 2.35.

The range o benets brought about by the initiative has v

improved households’ economic situations. Participa

households have been able to sell excess grain and vegeta

reducing incidence o armers mortgaging their lands, se

possessions or having to pawn belongings at high interest r

Farmers have also been able to invest in bullocks to plough

land, urther improving productivity. Revenues have been inveinto school ees to improve educational opportunities, comm

inrastructure projects, home renovations and other improvem

in quality o lie.

O the rice varieties native to Jeypore, Kalajeera, a lowland sce

variety, has one o the highest commercial values due to its arom

quality and cultural importance. Kalinga Kalajeera Rice Gro

Cooperative Society was ormed or the large-scale cultivatio

this variety, with support rom the National Agricultural Cooper

Federation. The increased yields and prices achieved or this va

since 2000, illustrated in Table 4, demonstrate the success o e

to enhance its cultivation. In 2010-2011, the Kalinga Kalaj

Rice Growers Cooperative Society also promoted the adoptio

the popular landraces Machhakanta and Haladichudi, which

processed into dosa powder mix, pued rice bodi, chuda pre

rice mixture, and murukku. These value-added products are so

the local weekly market, exhibitions, and in retail shops by sel-

groups, bringing in extra income or group members. In 2010

combined area under cultivation o these three varieties was

acres.

Developing new sources o household income

During the winter and summer seasons, MSSRF assisted 116

amilies in bringing 105 acres o land under cultivation witdierent vegetables, including watermelon, tomato, pum

and carrot. These amilies shared a total prot o INR 713

rom cultivation, with an average household prot o INR 6

(approximately USD 120).

Fish arming was carried out in the rainy season using individual

ponds and community ponds, involving a total o 96 households

community purchased around 27,000 ngerlings rom the hatc

o the Orissa Fisheries Department. These were raised in vi

ponds with technical guidance and regular monitoring by MS

10

Table 3: The populations and poverty levels o project

villages in 1999

VillageHouse-

holds

Total

population

Households

living below the

poverty line (%)

1 Boliguda 86 357 57 (66%)

2 Nuaguda 34 150 20 (59%)

3 Gunthaguda 80 299 49 (61%)

4 Tolla 102 314 82 (80%)

5 Pujariput 75 536 40 (53%)

6 Bedhaguda 16 82 16 (100%)

7 Badapar 46 228 40 (87%)

8 Patraput 135 453 106 (79%)

9 Kashiguda 71 298 64 (90%)

10 Jhalaguda 47 197 17 (36%)

11 Taliaguda 29 139 20 (69%)

12 Chemiaguda 9 54 9 (100%)

13 Balia 122 590 118 (97%)

14 Bisoiput 56 312 56 (100%)

15 Maliguda 35 289 22 (63%)

16 Kanjei 35 201 29 (83%)

TOTAL 978 4,499 746 (76%)




A total o 2,390 kg o sh was harvested or a prot o INR 191,160,

iving an average prot o INR 1,991 per household (approximately

USD 39).

Vermicomposting was taken up by 86 arm amilies, who

onstructed compost pits with tin roos to reduce the maintenance

osts associated with traditional thatching. A total o 259 quintals o

vermiwash’ was produced. With each household using one quintal

n vegetable cultivation, a surplus o 173 quintals was sold at INR 400

ach.

ackyard poultry arming and the “ve-plant” campaign aimed to

mprove household nutritional security in 469 households. Each

ousehold was supplied with our 21-day old chicks, with 50 per

ent o the cost being contributed by the households. These chicks

were purchased rom the Central Poultry Development Organization

t the rate o INR 25 per chick. The poultry are ast-growing, reaching

ne kg in weight within three months.

inally, the ‘ve-plant’ campaign has encouraged households to plant

package o crops – drumstick (moringa oleiera), banana, papaya,

reen chili and yam – in backyard gardens. During the project term,

,800 seedlings o these plants were raised in community nurseriesn each o the six villages. Due to local climatic and soil conditions,

owever, the average survival rate o these crops was only 40 per

ent, with yam being the only crop that was grown successully

cross all households. This package o crops is being adjusted or

uture projects.

Health benets o native plants

hrough its work in conservation o native medicinal plant species,

he Biju Patnaik Medicinal Plants Garden and Research Centre

onducted a campaign on herbal prevention o malaria during

010-2011. A herbal remedy using our native plants with medicinal

roperties – nictanthes arbor-tristis, andrographis panniculata,zadirachata indica and tinospora cordiolia – was distributed to

00 tribal community members in Kundura. Awareness raising on

erbal remedies or malaria was also conducted in February 2011

with 316 students rom nine schools. The Biju Patnaik Centre hosted

emonstrations on 21 commercially cultivated species prioritized

y India’s National Medicinal Plant Board, including the large-

cale cultivation o long pepper ( piper longum) and lemon grass

cymbopogon exuosus). The center has also established a model on

ome herbal gardens to create awareness on the use o medicinal

lants or primary healthcare. The center has acted as a ‘community

campus’ o raising awareness on the ethno-botanical uses o n

plant species. During 2011, 34 schools in Koraput and Nabaran

districts established student herbal gardens with technical guid

rom MSSRF, and the Biju Patnaik Centre supplying 4,420 medi

plant seedlings belonging to 26 species.

POLICY IMPACTS

Since 1990, MSSRF has played a lead role in the organiza

o a series o international- and national-level workshops

consultations on plant genetic resources, their sustainable use

the equitable sharing o their benets, using the activities o

Jeypore tract armers as a basis. The Keystone Dialogues (1

1991) led to the recognition o armers’ rights within the Food

Agriculture Organization o the United Nations (UN FAO) rame

and also contributed signicantly to the Convention on Biolo

Diversity (CBD). MSSRF participated in national consultations o

creation o a sui generis system or India, which eventually led to

Protection o Plant Varieties and Farmers’ Rights Act in 2001 and

Biological Diversity Act in 2002, while the Chennai Platorm o A

was developed as a conscious eort to mainstream biodiversity

the Millennium Development Goals.

11

Table 4: Kalajeera production and price, 2000-2009

Year Villages FamiliesArea

(acres)

Production

(quintals)

Grain Price

(INR/quintal)Seed Price (INR/quinta

2000 3 3 0.66 12.2 600 700

2006 27 126 100.7 1208.4 1000 1500

2008 44 159 121.9 1340.9 1500 1700

2009 29 121 98.5 1209.4 1700 2000ource: M. S. Swaminathan Research Foundation, 2010-2011 Annual Report



he Plant Variety Protection and Farmers’ Rights Authority (PVPFRA)

was established by the Indian government to implement the

rotection o Plant Varieties and Farmers’ Rights Act. In order to

stablish an eective system or the protection o plant varieties,

he rights o armers and plant breeders, and to encourage

he development o new varieties o plants, it was considered

ecessary to recognize and protect the rights o armers involved in

onserving, improving and making available plant genetic resources

or the development o the new plant varieties. This authority haslso played a role in protecting plants breeders’ rights to stimulate

nvestment or research and development or the development o

ew plant varieties and to acilitate the growth o the seed industry,

nsuring the availability o high quality seeds and planting material

or India’s armers.

MSSRF has continued to assist the PVPFRA and the Nat

Biodiversity Authority by providing input into the developme

guidelines or the eective implementation o various provis

o the acts. In particular, MSSRF has worked alongside the PVP

with armers rom the Jeypore tract in the registration o local

varieties, the identication o agrobiodiversity hot spots, and

sharing o expertise in agrobiodiversity, intellectual property ri

genetic resource access and benet sharing, and social mobiliza

In 2011, MSSRF conducted street plays and training programarmers’ rights in 27 tribal villages o Boipariguda, Jeypore

Kundura in Koraput, reaching a total population o 5,000 triba

rural armers. To date, Jeypore armers have ormally registere

native varieties with the PVPFRA.

12

“In view of the emerging challenge global environmental change including climate, emphasis

needs to be shifted towards addressing new dimensions of on-farm conservation of biodiversity

for food security, poverty reduction and sustainable livelihoods.”




13

Sustainability and Replication

SUSTAINABILITYince 2006, MSSRF has been carrying out its work on biodiversity in

lose cooperation with the tribal villages o Koraput. Processes and

esults o all projects are documented and converted into multimedia

esources, and used as training material and as tools or education

nd learning. Attempts are made to acilitate replication o this body

learning through village knowledge centers and armer groups

hat act as vehicles or sustainability.

n recognition o the initiative’s achievements, the State Government

Orissa provided land to the Foundation or the establishment o

Community Agrobiodiversity Centre at Koraput. This permanentacility will include laboratories and a training center that will

ontribute signicantly to the long-term sustainability o the

roject’s work.

At the grassroots level, the eorts o MSSRF and the communities

the Jeypore tract have been institutionalized through the

evelopment o community-based organizations that are carrying

ut projects with increasing autonomy rom the Foundation. These

nclude the Panchabati Grama Unnayana Samiti (PGUS), Central

Village Committees, the Kalinga Kalajeera Seed Growers Society

KKSGS), village seed banks, sel-help groups, and the project’s

entral management committee. These local institutions have the

bility to sustain, enhance and expand the project’s environmentalenets throughout the district’s communities and ecosystems.

he Panchabati Grama Unnayan Samiti is a community-based

rganization bringing together the sixteen target communities. The

rganization is unded by interest earned on the USD 35,000 Equator

rize, awarded to MSSRF in 2002. This interest totaled INR 300,000

USD 5,855) in 2010-2011, and has been reinvested by communities

n local resource development, including the renovation o village

nd arm ponds to conserve rainwater or agriculture, household

se and sh arming. The organization won the Genome Saviour

Award in 2009-10 and six representatives o the sixteen villages

honored with a check or INR 1,000,000 (USD 19,510) in a cerem

in New Delhi in recognition o their contribution to the conserva

and promotion o local genetic resources in the eld o biodive

Central Village Committees have been created in all o the proj

target villages, with executive body members elected by village

a one-year periods. These committees are responsible or monito

the work o projects in the villages, and providing suggestion

improvement, and play a key role in village resource managem

All social, technical, and political conficts are placed beore

committee or resolution. Each committee manages a Vi

Development Fund into which community members pay indivcontributions ranging between IDR 5-30 each month. The und

designed to meet emergency needs and provide nancial assist

to individuals or groups. All village unds are ormalized and li

to banks or availing loans. In 2010-2011, IDR 56,098 was colle

rom 958 households.

The Kalinga Kalajeera Rice Growers Cooperative Society has take

considerable responsibility in recent years, building on MSSRF’s

in promoting the cultivation o commercial Kalajeera, Machhak

and Haladichudi rice varieties. The Society has conducted arme

armer extension programs to encourage cultivation o these c

bringing substantial economic rewards to its members. A tot

thirty sel-help groups have also been established. These grtake regular deposits rom members and are able to take out l

to invest in activities including goat rearing, agricultural activ

sh arming and mushroom cultivation.

Finally, village seed banks have been replicated in all ta

communities, ocusing on conserving traditional landrace

rice, ragi, horse-gram and green-gram, with grains collected

community members. These local institutions are linked to

MSSRF Community Gene Bank in Chennai. The range o

institutions established has helped to devolve the managem



“Communities should pool and utilize their local bio-resources and form local institutions for

ensuring long term sustainability. Capacity building is another important component to sustain

a project for a long term. Building a corpus fund is essential for improved management and

continuity”


1414

the project to the grassroots level, avoiding overall dependence

n any one entity, while substantially building local capacity. These

nstitutions underpin the work o MSSRF and have been key drivers

the initiative’s growth, expansion and sustainability.

REPLICATION

ince the initiative was begun, the area under landrace cultivation,he number o dierent local varieties in use, and the number o arm

amilies participating in the project have all increased signicantly

cross the target villages. In 1998, a total o 100 arming amilies

rom eight villages in Koraput district were involved in the initiative’s

ctivities. This number has since increased to nearly 1,000 amilies

rom sixteen villages, encompassing members o ve dierent tribal

ommunities. The area under cultivation increased rom 278.5 acres

o 366 acres between 2000 and 2005; the number o landraces being

ultivated increased rom 72 to 83 in the same period, while the

umber o participating arm amilies rose rom 250 to 390.

his rate o scaling-up has continued, and by 2009, the area under

andraces had increased to 402 acres and involved 978 arm

amilies. Village Seed Banks are now operating in seventeen villages,

onserving a total o 24 rice landraces, up rom six varieties in 2002.

nowledge has been disseminated rapidly to other regions and

arming communities through armer-to-armer exchanges, while

‘Train the Trainers’ program has equipped model armers in the

issemination o more complex scientic knowledge. The project is

romoted through village knowledge centers, which use inormation

nd communications technology to promote the project as well as

or outreach and knowledge dissemination. Training modules have

een created or the extension o improved agronomic practices.

nowledge generated by the initiative is extensively disseminated tother stakeholders during ormal meetings, presentations, websites

nd scientic and other publications. Farmer-to-armer knowledge

iusion also occurs organically during visits to local markets, as

well as through interaction during religious and social unctions.

GOs in Kalahandi and Malkangiri districts have also played a role

n replication, while the State Government o Orissa is in the process

unding local biodiversity projects based on the knowledge and

xperiences o MSSRF projects in Koraput.

PARTNERS The project’s leading partners include the M. S. Swamina

Research Foundation (MSSRF), the Swiss Agency or Developm

and Cooperation (SDC), United Nations Development Program

(UNDP) Equator Initiative and the Plant Variety Protection

Farmers Rights Authority.

Beyond these organizations, a wider range o stakeholders

oten brought together by MSSRF or knowledge exchanges

policy development. For instance, a pilot study on conserva

and the adaptive management o globally important agricul

heritage systems was carried out during 2010-2011 with suprom UN FAO. This involved a one-day national consultatio

Jeypore in November 2010. Regional consultations or this w

conducted with participants rom national institutions suc

the Protection o Plant Varieties and Farmers’ Rights Autho

the Central Rice Research Institute, the National Bureau o P

Genetic Resources; state institutions such as the Orissa Unive

o Agriculture and Technology; and members o NGOs, commu

based organizations, armers, local government and Panchaya

Institution members o Koraput district.



FURTHER REFERENCE

Hooper, M., Jary, R., Marolla, M., and Phan, J. Scaling up Community Eforts to Reach the MDGs: An Assessment o the Experience rom

Equator Prize. UNDP. www.equatorinitiative.org/images/stories/2002winners/Tribal_Jeypore/scalingup.pd

Tribal Communities o the Jeypore Tract o Orissa Photo Story (Vimeo) vimeo.com/15672408

Equator Initiative

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New York, NY 10017

Tel: +1 646 781-4023

www.equatorinitiative.org

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necting countries to knowledge, experience and resources to help people build a better lie.

The Equator Initiative brings together the United Nations, governments, civil society, businesses and grassroots organizatio recognize and advance local sustainable development solutions or people, nature and resilient communities.

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