Mahua flowers add aroma to Adilabad forests, create livelihood for tribals

Adilabad: Tender and juicy Mahua (Madhuca indica) flowers are not only adding a tantalizing aroma to the forests of the erstwhile Adilabad district, but also they are significantly contributing to creation of livelihood to tribals and dwellers of forest fringe villages. Mahua trees reach the flowering stage with the onset of summer. Gathering of these […]

Adilabad: Tender and juicy Mahua (Madhuca indica) flowers are not only adding a tantalizing aroma to the forests of the erstwhile Adilabad district, but also they are significantly contributing to creation of livelihood to tribals and dwellers of forest fringe villages.

Mahua trees reach the flowering stage with the onset of summer. Gathering of these yellow-colored flowers, a forest minor product gained momentum in forest fringe villages across Adilabad, Nirmal, Mancherial and Kumram Bheem Asifabad districts. Tribals traditionally collect the fluffy flowers for the purpose of self-consumption as snacks and can generate income by selling dried flowers.

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“We started gathering the flowers a few days back. We collect flowers for a fortnight or three weeks. On an average, a person can collect somewhere between 15 kilograms and 20 kilograms of tender flowers in a day. The activity provides temporary livelihood every year and helps us financially,” Madapa Hanumanthu, a tribal of remote Nandigaon village in Penchikalpet mandal told ‘Telangana Today.’

Thalandi Errabai of Kammargaon village said that the tribals would eat the flowers by drying and frying them in summer. Some of us sell dried flowers in exchange for groceries through barter system at local kirana stores, she stated. The flowers are a rich source of carbohydrates, minerals such as calcium, potassium, iron, phosphorus and vitamins C, according to nutritionist Sujatha Stephen of Hyderabad.

In order to gather the flowers, tribal men and women descend on the forests from 5 am till 10 am. They use wooden baskets in which the flowers are collected. They share the trees among themselves without clashing one with another. They carry water for quenching their thirst and an axe for self-defense in case of attacks by wild animals.

 

 

Mahua Laddu is a hit

As many as 21 members of Bhimbai Adivasi Mahila Sahakara Sangham, a cooperative society of Utnoor mandal centre, earned huge profits by manufacturing Mahua laddu, which received an overwhelming response from doctors, lawyers, professionals and lovers of organic products. They were trained and guided by the Centre for Collective Development, a Hyderabad based voluntary organization.