Shifting cultivation was declared dangerous for environment but it is the only source of income for tribal people in Tripura. Though shifting cultivation is declared not environment friendly but the shifting cultivation is the only way among tribal people in Tripura to live their life. A good numbers of tribal people still depend on shifting cultivation in the hill area of Tripura.
The tribal women are also associated with this shifting cultivation and the tribal women are doing there level best to produce Agricultural production on the Jhum land. A market is there at Khumulwng area, this market is adjacent to TTAADC headquarter and this area is tribal dominated area in Tripura. The tribal women are being run by the local market. A tribal woman- Sabita Debbarma, 49 years old has come to market in order to sell vegetable product in the local market at Khumulwng said, “ I have run my family and there are three family members like one son, husband and me. I sell the vegetable product here at the market and earn at amount of Rs:500 to 600 per day. This is the main source of family income to run the family”.
Uma Debbarma, 35 years old young lady other vegetable seller of the same market said, “We are habituated with shifting cultivation which is also called Jhum and we do the shifting cultivation. This technique is mainly followed by the hilly tribes who don’t possess much of plain lands for extensive farming. They will use the land for four or more varieties of crops and the manures they use will be either animal manure or plant extracts. Jhum cultivation is one of the most common forms of agriculture in the hills of Tripura. The products of Jhum are being sold at here in the local market and it is the only way to earn
the income in Tripura for maximum tribal people”. The locals’ vegetable seller in the Khumulwng market said there are many problems because there is not any proper place to sell their product. The marketing channel is not developed by the authority. As there is not any proper marketing system so the tribal are not getting the actual price of their product.
A government officer doing here at TTAADC said there is a centre of ICAR and scientists are doing in the office but they don’t know about the actual agricultural system in Tripura. Tribal are producing different verities of paddy on Jhum land but there is not any initiative of ICAR scientists in Tripura to conserve these traditional verities of paddy, added an officer of TTAADC. (UNI)
