Angul Sweet Potato Growers Demand Processing Units in Satkosia Wildlife Region

By SANTOSH MOHANTY

Sweet Potato growers belonging to Tainsi, Kothabhuin, Antulia situated in Satkosia wildlife sanctuary in Angul and Kantapada, Paiksahi Maimura,Kudagoan in Athamallik blocks have urged Angul district administration to set up processing units in the region to boost marketing.

They said the sweet potatoes( Kandamula in Odia language) are grown over eight hundred hectare of fertile land in Satkosia wildlife region and forest localities in Athamallik block. The demand for the sweet potatoes are growing day by day, the farmers said and added that installation of processing units at various places in the above mentioned regions in Angul district will help them to get more proceeds from the sale of the product.

Sushil Pradhan and Ashok Satpathy opined that  the Satkosia wildlife region and Athamallik will become the hubs for sweet potatoes and added that the days are not far away for the farmers to achieve the excellence.

'Last year the farmers got less price for Covid pandemic. Their product has attracted buyers from UP, Maharastra, Bihar and Jharkhand. This year the farmers are hopeful that they will get good price for their product due to favourable weather condition in the region'.

Varieties like Bhu Krishna and Bhu Sona are in great demand among the buyers due to minimal presence of carbohydrates.

 

Mahima Ascetics Sore Over Depletion Of Kumbhi tree(Careya arborea) in Odisha Forest

By SANTOSH MOHANTY

Gradual depletion of Kumbhi tree(Careya arborea) in Satakosia Wildlife Sanctuary, Athamallik, Dhenkanal and Redhakhol forest divisions in Odisha has alarmed followers of Mahima cult in the state. They have expressed fear and anxiety that the extinction of Kumbhi tree might deprive them of getting the bark which they use to wear as their attire.

The relationship between Kumbhi tree(Careya arborea) and Mahima cult is deep rooted. A sect of Mahima Dharma use the barks of Kumbhi trees to cover their bodies who are known as Kumbhipatias.

A number of followers of Mahima Dharma have urged the forest officials of Angul and Dhenkanal districts to take up plantation of Kumbi saplings on a wide scale to so that the barks of the tree will not be in short supply. Such an effort will be beneficial for the ascetics of Mahima Dharma, some followers of the cult said. They said the forest department of Odisha must ensure plantation of the tree on a wide scale to save Mahima Dharma.

The Mahima movement appeared in Odisha in early part of the nineteenth century. Its founder was Mahima Swami or Mahima Gosain. Followers of the cult believed him to be the incarnation of Param Brahma( Supreme Soul).

According to the scriptures of Mahima cult, Mahima Gosain meditated at Kapilas hill in Dhenkanal district of Odisha for 24 years. During meditation he used to put on the bark of Kumbhi tree. Joranda in Dhenkanal district is the seat of Mahima cult which is widely known as Mahima Gadi. The Mahima Gadi spans over 100 acres. Joranda Mela commonly known as Magha Mela is held in January-February every year for a week thronged by followers of the sect from every nook and corner of India.

The ascetics of Mahima Dharma are divided into three sects, Kumbhipatias, Kanapatias and Ashritas. The Kumbhipatias use barks of Kumbhi whose botanical name is Careya arborea. While the Kanapatias use pieces of rag with matted hair palm leaf, the Ashritas use maroon colour attire (Gairikabasana) like the Brahmachari or Yogi.

Angul Farmers Producing Eco-Friendly Tulsi, Lemongrass Oil Under Aroma Mission

By SANTOSH MOHANTY

Farmers at Pampasar in Satkosia Wildlife Sanctuary, Saradhapur and Kumurisinga in Angul and Pipalbahal in Chhendipada blocks in Angul district of Odisha have embarked on a mission to produce eco-friendly products like lemongrass, mint and Tulsi oil to encourage the usage of these products to combat health hazards due to environmental pollution in the region.

They are growing lemongrass and Tulsi under the guidance of Central Institute of Medicinal and Aromatic Plant(CIMAP) to produce natural aroma. These products are of great demand in local market. Cultivation of these crops enhance the livelihood resources of farmers of Angul district. The Aroma Mission, based in  Lucknow, is a Government of India project.

Reports said of the 30 districts of Odisha, 22 are covered under Aroma Mission. CIMAP is providing seeds and saplings to farmers free of cost. The oil extraction units are provided free of cost to the farmers.

The oil extraction units are installed at Pampasar in Satkosia area and Pipalbahal in Chhendipada.  The other plant is being set up at Kumurisinga, situated close to the district headquarters town of Angul.

Tulsi oil is used for curing severe cough and cold and malaria. Cultivation of mint(Mentha) is underway at Saradhapur, according to Ashok Satpathy who is doing the marketing of aroma products like lemongrass oil, mint oil and Tulsi oil. He said Tulsi seed is also being used for reducing sugar level of patients affected with diabetes and other related ailments.

Taps Vanish As Drinking Water Project Fails To Take Off In Bantala

By SANTOSH MOHANTY

Piped water project has remained a pipedream for the people of Bantala in Angul district of Odisha. The standpoints erected on the roadside fitted with taps have been damaged. Most of them have vanished as the drinking water project failed to take off due to irresponsible attitude of Sarpanch and Block officials of Angul district.

The Sarpanch and Ward Members of Bantala Gram Panchayat are never worried about the success of drinking water project even as most parts of the region reel under acute shortage of water during summer. To add to this, a large chunk of groundwater table of Bantala Bazar is unfit for consumption due to hard water elements.

The water project was conceived several years ago with a big well being dug near Fisheries Office at Bantala. But, the project was abandoned as ground water table was not sufficient enough to ensure uninterrupted water supply.

Since then the drinking water project has been going through rough weather. The situation has come to such a pass that people of Bantala will never get water through pipes as the water taps installed on the wayside have been damaged and underneath pipes are almost destroyed for being unused over the years. 

Mango Tree Leaning Precariously Over Old Cuttack-Sambalpur Road Poses Threat To Life

BY SANTOSH MOHANTY

People of Bantala in Angul district in Odisha have urged the authorities to take immediate measures for  chopping down the big mango tree which is leaning precariously beside the busy Old Cuttack-Sambalpur road for quite some time posing severe threat to human life.

It resembles a situation like the sword of Damocles is hanging over motorists and commuters passing through the route. Villagers said that that it is the responsibility of Public Works Department(PWD)and the State Highway authorities to chop down the tree and added that their lackadaisical attitude has put the lives of commuters in peril.

The tall dry mango tree standing close to Bantala Forest Range Office has huge branches that could crash into the road anytime. Some branches have already fallen on the busy route, but luckily none has been injured, nor any vehicle damaged so far. Locals said the dry branches fall on the road as wind speed increases and no one knows who will become a victim.

Neither Bantala Grampanchayat Sarpanch nor the police nor the forest officials are allegedly seemed to be little worried about the danger that might cost lives of innocent commuters and passerby if the dry mango tree comes down to the road at any time.

This tree was planted on the roadside during British Raj. The Britishers were fond of planting fruit bearing trees alongside the road during their rule.The volume of traffic has been increasing in old Cuttack-Sambalpur road as motorists from cities like Sambalpur, Chhattisgarh, Cuttack and Bhubaneswar prefer this route due to less congestion.

Traffic in National Highway(NH) no 55 that runs through Angul connecting Sambalpur to NH 5 has been badly hit over the years due to four lane work going on at a snail's pace. This has forced the motorists to take the bypass route through Bantala to travel to Bhubaneswar, the Capital city of Odisha and the business hub of Western Odisha, Sambalpur. 

Odisha Forest Department Out To Reduce Elephant-Man Conflict

By SANTOSH MOHANTY

The Odisha Forest and Environment department has embarked upon a novel scheme, Animal Intrusion, Detection and Repellant System(ANIDER), being powered by solar energy to stave off Elephant-Man tussle.

Forest officials said the pilot project is being introduced in Athamallik forest region in Angul district and also in Dhenkanal. Earlier, the State's forest wing had introduced a REHAB(Reduce Elephant-Human Attacks Using Bees) project. But, the project was not successful despite several measures taken by the department.

The REHAB project was implemented in different forest locations in the State by placing beehives at different villages situated close to forest to dissuade the pachyderms not to visit the area and destroy life and property. The reasoning behind the project was that jumbos are afraid of humming bees and therefore they will not venture to enter the villages where the beehives in boxes were kept. But, this project failed to click even as eight jumbos and two persons were killed in the past two weeks following Elephant-Man conflict.

Wildlife expert Biswajeet Mohanty said the Odisha forest department must identify the cause behind elephant intrusion into the human habitation and take appropriate measures to solve the problem before introducing projects to combat the menace. Mohanty said shooing away elephants with the help of bees has been successful in Africa but added that it was not successful in Kerala due to several factors. 

Non Utilization Of Fund Leads To Dysfunction Of EDCs, VSS In Angul Satakosia Wildlife Division

By SANTOSH MOHANTY

Apathetic attitude of forest officials has left a number of Environment Development Committees(EDCs) and Van Surakha Samities (VSS) in the Satakosia Wildlife Division in Angul district non-functional  over the years.

This has left thousands of forest dwellers in Satakosia Wildlife region jobless forcing them to go to neighbouring states in search of employment. But, the coronavirus pandemic has forced them to come back to their villages and stay unfed for days due to lack of income.

Some EDC and VSS members who did not wanted to be identified alleged that over Rs 1 crore fund has remained idle in banks and other financial institutions since 2020. The forest officials, they alleged, are resorting to the subterfuge that due to the deadly coronavirus, the department has withheld the work in EDCs and VSS.

The members said the forest department stopped bamboo cleaning and cutting work in Satakosia wildlife forest region. They went further and stopped kendu leaf collection putting a break on the income source of most to the forest dwellers. Then comes a ban of pisciculture and collection of minor forest produces (MFPs).

Environmentalists and members of community based organizations working in Satakosia region alleged that the forest wing has systematically destroyed the livelihood of forest dwellers and are responsible for their mass exodus from the region due to lack of employment opportunities.

The Assistant Conservator of Forest S Behera said lack of grant has forced the closure to work in EDCs and VSSs. He said the situation will improve only after flow of grant. He, however, brushed aside the allegation as false and frivolous that the forest officials are knowingly hampering the livelihood aspects of the people who depend up EDC and VSS work to earn a living.

Worthwhile to mention here that the wildlife division has as many as 30 EDCs and 40 VSS in which cent per cent participation by villagers was ensured. The villagers contribute their bit by helping the forest officials for protecting precious forest resources and wildlife. Most villagers also earn their livelihood through various work undertaken by EDCs and VSS.