Adivasis are still using indigenous methods

Adivasis use several indigenous methods to chase away birds and forest animals which eat and destroy pulses-redgram, greengram, ground nut and grains such as jowar and maize standing crops in the Adilabad district of Telangana.      

They devise instruments from scarp an material available at hand to create sounds  that scare the birds and forest animals instead killing them especially wild boar and deer.    

For example, they hang two steel plates side by side to tree on a tree branch in the fields, the contract creating an off- putting sound. They also create sound by hanging beer bottle and a small iron rod to a tree branch. Adivasis also beat small, empty iron drums and use slings to throw stones.

Some of these methods have been in use since time immemorial, like hanging damaged white plastic bags that of once held rice or urea to convey the impression of there being a human presence.

A scarecrow is a common enough ploy, but they also torch waste wood. They also keep the birds at bay, using a sling from the manche or shed placed in the middle of the  an agriculture field.  

These methods are being used to protect their standing crops from the birds and forest animals from time immemorial and this traditional knowledge passed on to the new generations from their ancestors.

Kursinge Nagorao of Chapral village in Utnoor mandal said even today they depended on traditional knowledge systems that had been transmitted down the generations and had successfully protected their pulses and grains from the depredation by animals and birds.

‘Saving the standing crops in this way is a must for the Adivasis as their fields  are located in or near the forests’, he  said. 

Mission Kakatiya turns a boon

Katakam Gangaiah at tank in Yapalguda 

Some of the tanks and ponds revived under Mission Kakatiya have helped farmers cultivate paddy in their lands situated close by this Karif despite insufficient rainfall.

This Kharif season, some of the farmers cultivated paddy in their agriculture lands despite scanty rain fall.

Mission Kakatiya managed to bring in some positive results though the tank revival works were not up to the expectations due to many loopholes in the procedures, officials and contractors indulging in corrupt practices in taking up tank revival works. It overall impact, however, can be measured only after four year’s time.   

The tanks revived with de-siltation and strengthening bund saw increased water storage capacity which has helped mitigate the effects of the deficit rainfall this monsoon.

Such tanks are contributing a lot to the raise in the ayacut under newly revived tanks under Mission Kakatiya.

Katakam Gangaiah of Yapalguda in Adilabad was seen in cultivating paddy in his three acre land and seemed confident of being able to cultivate cotton in the Rabi with Komatikunta tank revived recently to store enough rainwater. All this on account of Mission Kakatiya.

‘Last Karif season saw no cultivation of paddy due to drought condition and not enough water in the tank but things have changed a lot with the revival of the tank in the summer’, said Gangaiah.

The agriculture laborers of Khanapur colony of the Adilabad, planting paddy in Gangaiah’s land, expressed happiness over getting work in this agriculture season unlike last one.

On the other hand, youth and middle- aged men flock to Komatikunta tank for fishing these days as there was good water in the tank after its revival under Mission Kakatiya.

At the same time, many birds are visiting Komatikunta tank these days for insects and fish and it was also seen some of the birds set up nests on the trees around the tank and forest plantation.