Mohaful means Kalpa tree for tribals. The mouthful picking season is currently underway in the tribal-dominated Gadchiroli district. Flowers are not only used for making alcohol, but also for making medicine and various foods. Ladoo, gulab jamun, chikki, jam, puranpoli, mohakandy, moh biscuit, jelly, syrup etc. products are being prepared from moh flowers through self-help groups. But now in Gadchiroli district, a mohful cake is being made to eradicate malnutrition.
500 women in the district are being trained by training 500 women in the district with the help of the Managing Director, Shabari Tribal Finance and Development Corporation Limited Nashik, and the Women's Economic Development Corporation Maharashtra State Rural Jeevanonnati Abhiyan through the organization 'We are for our health' through the project 'A tool for the livelihood of Mohful Adivasis'. This training is going on in Kurkheda taluka and these various foods are being prepared here.
As there is many moham trees in Gadchiroli district, after the summer farming season is over, the farmers, farm laborers and tribal communities earn their living by plucking large quantities of moham flowers. As the state government has lifted the ban on mohaful, now the government and NGOs are trying to provide employment for tribals through mohaful. The state government has decided to start a mohaful buying center through the 'Van Dhan' scheme. To raise the standard of living and quality of life of the tribal families, the project 'Mohaful Livelihood Ek Saadhan' is being implemented under the Human Development Programme. Through this project, 5000 families across the district will be trained to prepare various foods from mohaflowers, use mohaflowers in their own diet, along with providing a market for further sale. Currently, 200 women have been trained in four batches.
Nutrient-rich foods are beneficial for malnutrition.
It has been proved by research that Mohafula contains protein 1.40 percent, mineral 70, carbohydrate 22.70, calories 111, calcium 45, iron 23 and vitamin C 40 percent. Through this project, the citizens of Gadchiroli district will get nutritious food from various types of vegetables. Now, as cakes are being prepared from flowers, this is going to be an important and beneficial step in getting rid of malnutrition by definitely benefiting the children.
Sushmita of Chekballarpur giving training to women
Sushmita Rushi Hepat from Chek Ballarpur in Chandrapur district is a highly educated young woman from a farming family. As she had been fascinated by nature since childhood, she developed a special interest in studying various flowers, trees and fruits. She was educated till standard VII at the Zilla Parishad School in the village. Graduated in Food Science from BIT, Bamni. Meanwhile, she started studying the food culture characteristics of Vaidarbha. Internship at Nilons Institute, Jalgaon. Further, he completed his graduation course in Chemical and Food Technology from Government College of Amravati University.
Sushmita Rushi Hepat
During the National Service Scheme camp, Sushmita became closely associated with the Korku community in Melghat. Can anything be done for the tribal community as the rate of malnutrition is high in this area? With this thought, he decided to find traditional recipes for tribals and work on them. From 2021, Sushmita toured the tribal areas of Gadchiroli and observed the food culture. Mohachi flowers are widely available in this area, but she found that they are not used much in food. Now she is preparing food from Mohfula and training tribal women in the savings group here. She is working as a project coordinator on the project 'Sustainable Livelihood of Mohful Adivasi' through the organization 'We are for our health' in Kurkheda. Sushmita, the instructor of the project, believes that the mohaful processing industry will provide financial empowerment to the tribal families and there is a great need for mohaful products to eradicate malnutrition.
