Other collected foods

अन्य बटोरा हुआ खाद्य पदार्थ

Other categories

With extensive wetlands, forests and swathes of fallow agricultural land, local families had access to a wide range of wild and uncultivated foods. Wild rice of the tinni and pasahi varieties grew in wetlands, and were gathered by the quintals by local communities for consumption or sale. Tubers, lotus stems and mushrooms were also harvested from wetlands, forests or fallow lands. Cultivated lands provided foods such as sanai ke phool, the flowers of the hemp plant and patua ki bodri, the seeds of the roselle plant. Both these plants were cultivated for their fibre (which was used to make ropes), and fruits and seeds could be collected freely. Scrubland and low lying land provided jharua ka daana - wild browntop millet, and bamboo rice was collected after the bamboo flowered, especially in times of scarcity. The bark of trees like semra were considered famine foods, and older people still retain knowledge about them. Many of these foods have disappeared, as has interest in them.



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आम तौर पर माना जाता है कि बटोरे हुए खाने सिर्फ भुखमरी के समय में एक मजबूरी की लाठी थे। लेकिन हमारे अध्ययन से यह पता चला कि बटोरना कई समुदायों के भोजन का साल भर का हिस्सा था, ना कि केवल भुखमरी के समय में। आजादी के समय पश्चिमी अवध में जंगल, झाबर (आर्द्रभूमि) और परती जमीन का क्षेत्र काफी मात्रा में था। लोगों को इस वातावरण से कई खाद्य पदार्थ मिलते थे, जो एकत्रित किए जाते थे। जंगली चावल की किस्में ‘तिन्नी’ और ‘पसाही’, झाबर में बहुतायत में उगती थीं। मजदूर परिवारों की औरतें इन्हे इकट्ठा करती थीं, स्वयं के लिए भी और बाजार में बेचने के लिए भी। सवर्ण परिवार, तिन्नी का चावल त्योहारों के समय व्रत में खाते थे। कंद की फसलें, कमल गट्टा, कमल ककड़ी और धरती का फूल (मशरूम) जैसे खाद्य पदार्थ भी जंगल झाबर या परती जमीन से बटोरे जाते थे जो सभी समुदाय के लोग शौक से खाते थे। सनई और पटुआ अपने रेशों के लिए उगाए जाते थे जिनसे रस्सी बनती थी। सनई के फूल और पटुआ की बोड़री (बीज) लोग खेतों से मुफ़्त में तोड़ के ले आते थे। यह सब अलग-अलग मौसम में भोजन की विविधता को बढ़ाते थे, और पोषण भी देते थे। भुखमरी या अकाल के समय में बटोरना, गरीब परिवारों के लिए और भी महत्वपूर्ण हो जाता था। महिलायें स्क्रब (झाड़ी झंकड़) की जमीन और निचली जमीन से झरुआ का दाना और बाँस का धान बटोरती थीं। सेमरा (सेमल) के पेड़ की छाल भी लोग खाते थे जिसे पकाने की जानकारी अब सिर्फ बड़े बुजुर्गों के पास है।



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जानकारी जल्द आ रही है

Information Cards
Caste:
Geography:
Seasons:
Media Type:

Caste: Dalit

Geography: Water bodies

Western Avadh was replete with wetlands, as a result of low-lying land that would be flooded seasonally or perennially. In this video, a landless farmer couple share their memories of the wetland near their home, its gradual disappearance and the various foods it provided.

Caste: All

Geography: Water bodies

From: Pathak, M.D., 1991. Rice production in Uttar Pradesh: progress and suggestions for improvement. Int. Rice Res. Inst..

Caste: Dalit

Geography: Water bodies

From: Neville H. R. 1905. Sitapur, a Gazetteer being Volume XL of the District Gazetteers of the United Provinces of Agra and Oudh

Caste: Dalit, OBC

Geography: River bank

"We used to collect jarua ka daana (browntop millet), which grew wild. We pounded it to remove the husk and make rice."

Caste: Dalit

Geography: River bank

"Patua was grown to make thick rope from its stem. We collected and used the flowers and seeds. The flowers added sourness to any food, and the seeds were roasted for chabena or setua"

Caste: All

Geography: Fields

"Sanai was grown to make thin rope. We collected the flowers - sanai ke phool - and cooked them."

Caste: Dalit

Geography: Fields

"Patua ki bodri (roselle seeds) were ground and cooked with salt, chillies and turmeric"

Caste: Dalit

Geography: Fields

"We harvested akra ki Dal (a type of wild legume) from wheat fields."

Caste: Dalit

Geography: Forest

"Earlier, we used to get ber, kareliya, karaonda, jamun, kateela parwal and mushrooms from the Bhedaiyya jungle. Mushrooms are still available"

Caste: Dalit

Geography: Water bodies

"We used to collect lotus plants and eat kamalgatta, and also harvested jalghuiyya and other tubers from lakes and rivers"

Caste: Dalit

Geography: Water bodies

"We would harvest quintals of Tinni and Pasahi rice from the nearby jhabar. Tinni rice sold at a good rate because it was consumed on fasting days. We ate the Pasahi rice ourselves."

Caste: Dalit

Geography: Forest

"We collect the small white mushrooms from the nearby forest. They fetch a good rate in the market, so we sell them."

Time Line
1950s

Drainage canals were built on the sides of the main canal to drain off lowlying areas and open them up for cultivation, or for flood control. These wetland ecosystems supported wild rice, fish, aquatic plants and animals etc.

1980s

As the demand for land grew, lands that were low lying and formed seasonal or perennial wetlands began to be parcelled out. Some of the 'pattas' (titles) were issued for a short period. But after they lapsed, farmers continued to cultivate the lands. Where the Patta holders vacated, others encroached and began cultivating. This led to the decline in wetland area

In the 1980s, land consolidation was taken up in Panchayats across the region. Many scrub forests were cleared away - these were the sources of many collected foods

1990s

With the shift towards wheat, paddy and sugarcane many crops that provided byproducts for collection, like patua (roselle), stopped being cultivated

With labourers' wages increasing and payments being made in cash, along with cheap packaged foods available in the market, families shifted to purchased foods and reliance on collected foods dropped

2010s

The canal system continues to be expanded, and some of the new channels have drained wetlands along their path. Recently, one such channel has reduced the area of a huge wetland that spanned 5 Panchayats