March 25, 2023
By Rohan Mukerjee, Programme Coordinator, Networks & Alliances
On an early spring morning in March, I accompanied young Amit Jamuda for a trek through the Darka Daa forest area surrounding Mamar village, in the Saranda forest, Manoharpur Block, West Singhbhum district, Jharkhand. Amit is Keystone’s Community Resource Person who is studying in the neighbouring town of Manoharpur. Born and raised in Mamar, he harbours vast knowledge of the diversity of trees and plants in the forests here. On the trek, he enthusiastically pointed out a variety of wild foods, trees and plants that provide Non-Timber Forest Produce (NTFP), highlighting their uses and benefits.
Saranda, once Asia’s largest Sal forest is currently under threatened by intensive mining activities, principally for iron ore. This entails negative implications for the ecology of the region, and indigenous communities like the Ho people, who have depended on these forests sustainably for thousands of years. Fortunately, some forest areas remain rich and diverse, like the Darka Daa forest area.
We admired a small pond adjoining the forest, where Chatom Aah, a perennial uncultivated green leafy vegetable, was growing abundantly near the waters. We passed a giant Banyan tree whose canopy glowed red as a result of the tender new red leaves that were sprouting amidst older green and yellow leaves. The young leaves appear red because of a pigment called Anthocyanin which is a major class of phenolic phytochemicals. Higher concentrations of phenolics as well as higher visibility to predators deter leaf eating insects from damaging these juvenile leaves. Anthocyanin also protects leaves from harmful UV radiation.
In a clearing beyond the Banyan, we were treated to a far more extravagant leaf flushing phenomenon – a few Kusum trees had lit up the area with their bright red new leaves. When most other trees in the forest are leafless during the dry season, the Kusum tree stands out. Also known as Baru in Ho, it is a very important tree, with multiple uses. Amit’s uncle, Inda Jamuda, shared that the bright red tender leaves are boiled and eaten as a vegetable. The small, berry-shaped fleshy fruits are eaten and are a favourite among children, who enjoy its tarty flavour. Oil extracted from the seed is applied on the body and used in cooking. When cooking with Baru tel, they heat the oil and before cooking they add a little water which immediately turns to steam after which the oil is ready for use.
As we made our way deeper into the forest, Amit pointed out a number of different wild foods and NTFP trees and plants for which he shared names in the Ho language. These included –
- Serali – a thorny plant, whose tender leaves are made into a vegetable preparation.
- Ranu Redh – a climber whose root is used to make local rice brews like Rossi and Hadiya. Sadly, such natural fermenting agents are being replaced by harmful chemicals in most areas.
- Loaa (Ho) or Dumar (Hindi) – they use the fruit as a vegetable when raw and also eat it ripe.
- Hootar Baha (Indigofera tinctoria) also known as Jirhul across Jharkhand and Odisha – currently the shrubs had a profusion of pods and a few remaining leaves and seed pods. This shrub has vibrant pink flowers that bloom at the beginning of the year, and are often eaten as a vegetable.
- Kukui Sanga – a wild tuber whose climber tends to dry up during this season.
- Drung Sakam (Ho) or Siali Patta in Odisha and Mahul Patta in MP (Indigofera tinctoria) – this thick and sturdy vine bears leaves that are used to make plates, bowls and packing material.
- Kita or Wild date – the mature leaves are harvested and used for making mats for drying paddy.
- Jono – a wild grass used to make brooms.
- Bachom – a grass used to make the rope for Khatiya.
- Bhurui – a shrub that bears edible fruit.
Amit knew exactly where to find different species of trees and plants. He asked me if I was up for a climb to look for Bhurui shrubs, which tend to be found on hill tops. I agreed, and after slipping and sliding up rocky slopes and making our way through dense undergrowth, we made it to a hill top with a lovely view and several Bhurui shrubs bearing beautiful white flowers and new leaves in the process of emerging. Fruiting would commence within a month.
Towards the end of the trail while I was photographing a particularly tall Kusum tree, I came across a substantial quantity of extremely large dried leaves under a leafless tree. Amit informed me that the leaves belonged to the Riyu tree, which has a sour fruit that is used to make sabji and aachar or pickle. Interestingly, a few days later on a visit to Kheria Sabar villages of Bandwan Block, Purulia District, West Bengal, community resource person Jiban Hansda showed me the same tree which happened to be fruiting. The tree had small raw green fruits and a few remaining yellow flowers. This was a slightly confusing specimen as the top half was taken over by a Peepal (Ficus religiosa) or sacred fig, and the small leaves towards the top belonged to the Peepal. Jiban shared that in Santali, the tree is known as Sahar and they also use the sour fruits for vegetable and pickle preparations.
I really enjoyed my time with Amit, exploring the rich diversity of Saranda’s remaining forest areas. It was encouraging to find a young man like Amit who was pursuing studies away from his village but was still well-connected with the traditional way of life and knowledge of his community. However, this is not the case everywhere and in several other areas I have come across Adivasi youth who are lost touch with their traditional practices and knowledge especially with regards to traditional food systems as they gradually shift towards increased market dependence and associated modern food items and diets. There is an urgent need to ensure a balance between modern education and retaining traditional knowledge among youth belonging to indigenous and rural communities.
P.S. Please note that consumption of the oil of the Taiyen Data Janum or Mexican prickly poppy Argemone mexicana can lead to severe health disorders.
