Ringshok society, is a group of concerned individuals in Alang Village under Phungyar Sub-Division, Kamjong District. The society was formed in 2013 by 25 strong educated members with the aim to bring horticultural activities endowed with vast land to producing pure organic fruits and vegetables.
Joy Jajo, the Chairperson of Ringshok Society, said that in Komo area, Eastern part of Ukhrul district, proper paddy field are vanishing hence they have opted for jhum cultivation. But despite all the hard work and labour, there was not enough harvest. This led them on a journey to organic farming.
The farm, spread over 7 to 8 hectares, yongchak (stink beans) and lemon were their first project but Joy said that it takes seven to eight years for these types of trees to bear fruit. Hence, they recalibrated and started mixed cropping in planting papaya and pineapple in between seasons as it mature much faster taking about 9 to 12 months. Soybeans, black-eyed beans (cowpeas) and bananas were also cultivated and brought to market every year along with papaya and pineapple. A the moment, they are planning to produce at least three truckload of ash gourd (maimu) by December. But they are concerned that there will not be enough market to sell their product. Apiculture is also one of their ventures. The entire bee boxes are made by them with their own hands.
Joy Jajo further said that even after much appeal to the government, there has been no proper response or any interest shown to the society’s initiative. We want representatives of Horticulture, VVD or NGOs to officially visit the farm and see the process in person. We also wish to get MOMA’s help and are appealing for it. However, the most important assistance we require right now is proper road connecting the farm.
The farm is located at the bed of Tuyungpi river and it is 7 km away from the main road (Imphal-Phungyar road). “There is an inter village road which is in bad condition and had taken up a lot of time and effort to repair the road for transportation. We had to rent Shaktiman truck to ship our farm products which is a huge burden for us financially,” he added. To solve the shipping challenge, Joy said that a small pickup truck would do the job and that he could generate much better income.
Additionally, government’s assistance in helping Ringshok society in building a reservoir to pump up water for irrigation for fruitful harvest would be appreciated, Joy urged. The society is working with all the recourses available with local tools they can grab on such as spade, tao etc, in the absence of required farm machineries.
The fruits and vegetables produced in the farm are purely organic since no chemicals are used. Use of insecticides or herbicides/weedicides, to get rid of the weed and pest could affect public health, the Chairman Joy said.
“This farming, with the help of government and NGOs, can add a lot to the state’s economy. All that is needed is a attention and encouragement from the government. Project such as post harvest management and value addition can be initiated with financial assistance to bring sustainability to farmers. It will also encourage others to start farming and may increase employment,” Joy concluded.
Alang Village is said to be one of the oldest village in Tangkhul Villages. With people having migrated to different places and inhabited in Kasom Khullen, Tangkhul Hundung, Mawai etc, it has just about 60 household. It has a huge land measuring up to hundreds of hectares available for farming left to them by their ancestors. These vast land in recent times have seen increase in farm activity.
