Kerala’s ‘tuber man’ roots for model farming

The winner of many accolades has ceaselessly conserved and popularised a wide array of tubers

N.M. Shaji looks upon 307 varieties of edible tubers, some of which are medicinal and aromatic, on his two acres of land with a sense of pride and achievement. The 43-year-old farmer from Mananthavady in Wayanad is also known as the “tuber man of Kerala” for his relentless efforts in conserving and popularising a wide array of tubers.

Mr. Shaji has received many accolades, including the 2014 Plant Genome Saviour Farmer Award; a special Indian biodiversity award in 2018; the 2021 India Biodiversity Award; and several State awards.

Till a few decades ago, tubers like cassava, sweet potato, greater yam, taro, and elephant foot yam, filled the food basket of settler farmers and tribespeople in Wayanad, who would cultivate them. However, tuber cultivation has declined drastically owing to various reasons. As a new generation of farmers abandoned the cultivation of traditional tuber crops, Mr. Shaji and his family began conserving tuber seeds for the next generation.

“I have experienced poverty in my childhood and wild tubers helped us satiate our hunger in those days. Those experiences have driven me to collect and conserve the tubers,” Mr. Shaji said.

“A considerable increase in the number of cancer patients in Wayanad district was another reason for me to conserve and distribute tubers. In a study, we found that change in dietary habit was one reason for the increase in cancer cases,” Mr. Shaji, who is also secretary of the Mananthavady Pain and Palliative Clinic, added.

He has also established a network of farmers via an informal seed distribution mechanism by which a farmer transfers seeds to anybody on condition that the same amount is returned the following year.

“When I started to collect seeds of tuber crops nearly 26 years ago, many of my friends made fun of me. Now, they propagate the seeds, seeing the significance,” Mr. Shaji says.