By Saiñkupar Syngkli
Ri Bhoi has always been known as the Granary of Khasi Hills for its fertile lands. Till today, most of Ri Bhoi is covered in forest and farms, with the cultivation of rice, white, maize, chilli, pineapples, ginger, gourds, areca nut, rubber and Khasi mandarins, among others, making the region rich in produce. Despite how productive the land is, like many places in India, trouble brews within Ri Bhoi’s abundance.
Marsing, an ageing farmer from Raid Nongtluh, says “Our district is the food plate of the State of Meghalaya. In Ri Bhoi, we don’t even sow; we just throw the seed and wait for the harvest time to come and reap. That is the fertility of Ri Bhoi”. Even the many folktales of the region centre around fertility and farming.
Clans from different tribes in Ri Bhoi have long cooperated and collaborated to make the region sustain its small population. However, in more recent times, the granary has started to crack. The soil is no more as fertile – some say the reason is soil erosion and the overuse of fertilisers and pesticides. Others say rampant development in an attempt to create a “modern civilisation”, unchecked pollution and especially plastic pollution has affected the quality of the soil.
Kamai Nongmalieh, Principal of Ri Bhoi Synod College, is also a farmer. He says, “Farming is our identity. If we lose our land, we lose our identity and our ownership of the soil. In the Bhoi community, the paddy field is our safety. Only when we have food grown from our fields do we have anything. We can satiate our hunger. In the past two years of the pandemic, many people rushed to buy food during the lockdowns. For us farmers, we felt safer because we could harvest rice and vegetable from our fields and milk and chicken from our farm”.
Given that the state is part of a hill range, agricultural land is limited, making conservation of farmland as important as conserving forests. Land use remains poorly regulated and commercialisation is rampant. Paddy fields and other agricultural lands by highways and motorways are most at risk of being absorbed for trade and business. Echoing this gobbling up of fertile lands, J. Makdoh from Umsning says, “In our district, farming is the most common activity. That is how we earn our living. What will happen if we lose this land?”
Nongmalieh says, “The government should introduce an agricultural land protection act in order to stop these lands from being converted into commercial enterprises. We also need to reduce our dependency on chemical fertilisers because it affects the fertility of the soil”. Nongmalieh believes that, at this point in the fight against climate change and unchecked development, more natural means of farming, such as the use of organic manure, should be promoted wherever possible.
Shadap, another farmer, believes that a concerted effort toward organic farming could hold the potential to revive the flora, fauna and soil of Ri Bhoi. “It is high time for the government to encourage farmers to practice organic farming and provide incentives and support. We can have money, but without food, we will die. Even if we have no money, food can keep us alive”.
“In the past two years of the pandemic, many people rushed to buy foods during the lockdowns. For us farmers, we felt safer because we could harvest rice and vegetable from our fields and milk and chicken from our farm.” Kamai Nongmalieh, Principal of Ri Bhoi Synod College and farmer.