Understanding Millets and the Green Revolution
● Online | 16 May 2024 | 5:30–7:00
The demise of millet cultivation in India is largely attributed to the Green Revolution. But just how deep are its impacts? What is the political history that primed the landscape for the Green Revolution and hence a shift away from a millet-based diet? How did the Green Revolution impact indigenous cultivation systems?
Building upon our Beyond the Plate session titled ‘Millets and Marginalisation’ in August 2024, we convened a panel of experts to uncover just how nuanced the history of the Green Revolution and millet cultivation in India is.
Meet Our Panellists
Dr. Richa Kumar, Associate Professor of Sociology, Science and Technology Studies, IIT Delhi
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Dr. Richa Kumar specialises in the Green Revolution and monoculture farming. You can read more about the political landscape leading up to the Green Revolution in this piece.
“With pulses, grams, and millets disappearing from our farms, they have also disappeared from our plates.”
Dr. Richa Kumar stated that in crafting policies during the Green Revolution, politicians failed to recognise the heterogeneity in Indian diets. For these policymakers, the idea of what constituted food, due to the lack of gender- and caste-based representation, became very parochial. Additionally, while rich farmers had storage facilities for grains and cereals, marginalised and landless farmers had to forage, hunt, and fish to sustain themselves.
While she acknowledges the Green Revolution’s democratisation of the access to rice and wheat, Dr. Richa stated that, post-Green Revolution, the diversity of farmlands, and our diets, has shrunk. Furthermore, the processing technologies brought in by the Green Revolution adversely affected our nutritional intake. For example, the existing technology used to process wheat flour strips away essential fibres. When advocating for better millet-processing technologies, we must be mindful of the impacts mechanisation has on nutrition.
Pema Yangden Lepcha, Research Associate, Ashoka Trust for Research Ecology and the Environment (ATREE)
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Pema Yangden Lepcha is currently researching agroecology in Sikkim—you can read more of her work here.
“It is important that we grow diverse food crops to not be market-dependent.”
Pema Yangden Lepcha shared how the transformation of traditional agriculture in Sikkim has affected local diets. While the Green Revolution was initiated to fix the problem of food insecurity, “it has led to a gradual decline of the rich agrobiodiversity and traditional crops in Sikkim,” shared Pema. A transition from traditional shifting agriculture to settled cultivation focused on the farming of cash crops like ginger, mandarin, and large cardamom. With this decrease in subsistence farming came an increased reliance on external food systems that neglected local crops. The youth’s preference for “modern” processed food, marks a transition in taste and perception of market-based food, and has led to the erosion of Indigenous knowledge and the practice of seasonal eating. She stresses the importance of restoring the connection to the land and creating a more equitable food system for future generations.
Sudha Nagavarapu, Independent Researcher-Activist
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You can read more of Sudha Nagavarapu’s research here.
“Postcolonial agricultural and food policies were heavily influenced by colonial philosophies and savarna beliefs.”
Sudha Nagavarapu illustrated how colonialism pushed many non-farming natives into farming, making agriculture the dominant commercial activity in India. The British Empire fostered the idea that if the land was not productive, it was wasted. Sudha emphasised that “the seeds of the Green Revolution were sowed in the colonial period. The people who benefited from that colonial era—that is, the savarnas (Brahmins, zamindars, traders)—controlled postcolonial India“.
Sudha stated that such control also trickles down to equitable access to food. There is a need to acknowledge the discrimination faced by marginalised communities in the realm of food accessibility. While the shift to millets has promoted the grain, there is still a need to address aspects of privilege when it comes to who produces and consumes millets.
Discussion
• The colonial roots of the oppressor caste and its influence on the Green Revolution.
• A myopic view of food security during the Green Revolution was informed by the lack of diversity among policymakers.
• The shift in diet from millets to rice and wheat, and ways to preserve indigenous food cultures.
• Building solutions informed by traditional wisdom, multisectoral policy solutions, and creating consumer awareness.
Learnings
• The colonial philosophy that land had to be commercially viable for agriculture, and that traditional agricultural methods were backward, primed the landscape for the Green Revolution. Resulting policy measures looked at food security through a narrow framework, focussing on foods like rice and wheat instead of the ecosystem surrounding our food.
• The policies of the Green Revolution led to a decrease in diversity on farmlands and on our plates too. Subsequently, this created a loss of indigenous knowledge systems, marking a decrease in subsistence farming and more reliance on market-based inputs and food.
• In the mission to revive and promote millets, there is still a need to address aspects of privilege when it comes to who produces and consumes millets.
This session was a collaboration between The Locavore and Rainmatter Foundation for the Millet Revival Project.
Beyond the Plate is an initiative by The Locavore where we engage in meaningful conversations, live events, and dining experiences that look at food beyond the sum of its parts. It is our attempt to narrow the divide between what’s on our plate, where it comes from, how it’s produced, and the deeper stories around it.
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