Kudumbashree's homegrown Onam veggies a big hit

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Pre-Onam vegetable market started by Kudumbashree in 33 panchayats satiates the hunger for ‘safe to eat vegetables’ in the capital. ‘Nadan’ vegetables from amaranth to bitter gourd and fruits from pineapple to guava produced by women were on sale. On Saturday markets were held at Aanad area near Nedumangad.  Around 73 of over 132 markets planned in the city have already taken place.  They will continue until Onam using the vegetables produced by the Joint Liability Groups (JLG)

“Three panchayats each from 11 blocks in the capital were a part of the project. Markets happen one to two times every week in each of this panchayats,” said a Kudumbashree official. Vegetables sold at a panchayat would have been produced in houses in the same block panchayat. “This cuts down transit cost. Also, produces fetch the standard retail prices in the market. So there will never be losses in vegetable farming,” she added.

A special Joint Evaluation Agent (JEVA) group containing expert farmers used to visit the farms for quality control and troubleshooting periodically. “In the coming months we plan to launch rice, also locally produced,” a coordinator said. Though organic pesticides and organic fertilisers were encouraged, sometimes chemical pesticides had to be used in moderation, a coordinator said. While markets through Community Development Societies (CDS) programme have been happening since over half a decade, pre-Onam vegetable markets were being organised for the first time across the state by Kudumbashree.