Even in this modern technologically advanced era, there are numerous families who have to struggle day-in and day-out for food in the village panchayat areas of Nagendrapur and Kankandighi. Most families survive on subsistence occupations such as daily wage work. As daily wage workers, there is no continuous flow of work, and there are days of no income. Thus earning a livelihood is tremendously challenging. Their families are deprived of nutritious food, family members are victims of diseases caused by malnutrition and vitamin deficiency. Large numbers of people here are landless, hence they stay near river banks or besides government roads. In this heart wrenching situation, an essential helping hand is extended by the non-profit organization MUKTI to these families of down trodden people. The MUKTI family is hopeful of a chemical fertilizer-free solution to meet the food needs of these landless laborers. MUKTI’s aim is to ensure that these families have access to nutrition, which can be provided through organically grown crops and vegetables. Currently MUKTI is working for approximately 150 such families. Each house has a small garden in front of their house, where 10-15 types of vegetables are grown. Wherever the land is salty, vegetables are grown in earthen pots, vessels, gunny bags, old buckets etc. filled with fertile soil, combined with natural manure and organic fertilizers, thus establishing a vegetable garden. The families are taught the farming techniques that are necessary in this regard. In the current scenario, much of the family’s daily need of food and vegetables are met through the vegetable garden.
Apart from these, in MUKTI’s Mega Plantation programme of 2016, 65 families were provided with 210 coconut saplings. If each of the coconut saplings survive to develop into full grown coconut trees, each of these families will receive Rs. 150 per year for 3 years, hence a total of Rs. 450 at the end of 3 years, along with ownership rights for the respective coconut trees. This will ensure some form of continuous income for the above families.
With the help of other NGO’s, MUKTI regularly conducts training in organic farming techniques. Organic farming is a low cost pesticide-free farming method and MUKTI encourages everyone to consume fresh organic vegetables to promote this low cost farming technique. You can also be part of that by sponsoring such training. Visit our donation page for more details.