Guwahati: Meghalaya government has initiated a community seed-bank project for the preservation and promotion of the 6000-year-old rice species at Sadolpara in West Garo Hills.
The Meghalaya government partnered with NESFAS and the ELP Foundation for this purpose.
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Food Civil Supplies & Consumer Affairs Minister James Sangma on Thursday said the idea of the project was also to understand the scope for further research and development of the rice species so that large-scale cultivation could be made possible with the help of local communities.
“Dramatic changes are happening to our biodiversity today due to climate change. In such situations, it becomes important to identify and preserve such rice species because they are climate-resilient and therefore, a dependable source of food,” Sangma said.
“As of now, most of our rice comes from states like Andhra Pradesh, which also bears a significant cost to our state. As the Sadolpara species have withstood the test of time, it is both nutritionally and economically beneficial for Meghalaya,” he added.
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The species is currently found on the hill slopes of Sadolpara and are not resource-intensive to grow as compared to usual paddy, which requires submergence in large volumes of water.
The species was first promoted by International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) where the organization partnered with celebrated film-maker Mira Nair to produce a documentary in 2003, which was entitled ‘Still, the Children are Here.’
However, ever since then, no significant steps were taken by previous governments or other public institutions to bring the species to prominence.
“NESFAS will be collaborating with the local community who will be the active stakeholders, eventually running the seed banks. It will be very meaningful to have a rice-centric seed bank at Sadolpara because of its historic significance dating back to the Sumerian civilization.
“There are 17 varieties of rice at present in Sadolpara village, out of which, 7 have unfortunately disappeared over the years. Efforts will be made to interact with other neighbouring villages to bring back those that have been lost and have all the 17 species. It is our bid to preserve the seeds physically along with the traditional knowledge embedded within these seed varieties,” Sangma said.