World Environment Day: Here's How These Women Live Agricultural Life On Own Terms, Popularise Sustainable Farming

India produces about 80% of the world's mint supply, which is grown by as many as one million smallholder farmers. Many of these farmers are primarily subsistence farmers, making mint a valuable cash crop that provides a critical source of income.

To support mint farmers and the local community in Uttar Pradesh, Mars Wrigley in partnership with Tanager, established the Shubh Mint program in 2017. Since its inception, the program has trained 24,000 farmers in Barabanki and Lucknow on good agricultural practices. This has increased their net income by 185 per cent, with over a 20 per cent decrease in input costs and a 55 per cent increase in the yield of Mint for the Shubh Mint farmers.

Additionally, since 2017, Shubh Mint has engaged with over 8,000 women through self-help groups (SHGs) and women-farmer groups. More than 1000 loans have been distributed through these groups, enabling a monetary support system for women. Later, they have been able to start their micro-enterprises and become financially independent. Furthermore, through Shubh Mint's Kitchen Garden intervention, 750 women in the region are now growing nutrient-rich vegetables to support their families through better nutrition and income diversification.

Here are some of these women on which this initiative has left a ground-breaking impact, mostly in Lucknow and Barabanki districts.

Renu

Renu is a member of Virasat Self Help Group (SHG) formed in 2018 under the Shubh Mint project and her husband is also a registered farmer under the scheme. She usually works on the farm during mint cultivation season.

Renu started cultivating in her kitchen garden by growing vegetables in her backyard with some vegetable seeds, i.e., okra, gourd, pumpkin, chillies, spinach, fenugreek seeds, and moringa saplings.

These seeds were distributed as a part of the Shubh Mint kitchen garden intervention. Seeing its benefits, she continued the practice even when she didn't get any seeds in the next phase. She has diligently adopted this practice and enjoys the whole process. She grows all seasonal vegetables in her garden, and now her husband also helps her with kitchen gardening. There are all types of vegetables in her kitchen garden, like gourd, pumpkin, bitter gourd, snake gourd potato, tomato, eggplants, onion, okra, lemon, chillies, and turmeric garlic, etc. She has even planted moringa and lemongrass. Talking about lemongrass she says, "Her family likes the tea made from it."

"Since I started growing vegetables through the Shubh Mint program, I have never bought any vegetables from the market. Homegrown vegetables taste much better, and I know that there is no harmful chemical. My children also like the taste of these vegetables and eat larger portions of food. I am happy that my children are eating nutritious and healthy vegetables," Renu says.

Initially, she did not sell her vegetable in the market and preferred to distribute and share them with her neighbours. However, during the lockdown period, some of her neighbours started the business of selling vegetables in their shops or through street vending carts. Seeing her increased vegetable surplus, they asked to buy vegetables from her for their own business. Now, Renu sells her vegetables to a few vendors and earns from ₹1500-2000 per month. Having her own income has given her a sense of self-confidence and she also wants to open her business or work in some paid positions under the government schemes for SHG women.

Sushila Devi

Living in Karorawa village of Gosinganj cluster of Lucknow district, Sushila Devi is a member of 'Anjali Mahila Samuh' a self-help group formed in 2017 under the Shubh Mint project in cohort one. Her family consists of her husband and three sons.

Sushila's husband was a migrant labourer but returned home after the pandemic struck. She is the primary caretaker and cultivator of their 8 Biswa land. She also leases in about two Bigha of land for mint cultivation. Along with being engaged in mint farming, she has also worked as agricultural labour in others' farms for some extra income.

Before Shubh Mint, her struggles were immense as she had to take care of her family and the farm without her husband. At the time, her never-ending difficulties became more aggravated when her husband couldn't send any money home, and she had to borrow from her neighbours or relatives.

As a result of paying a lot of rent to the lessor of her leased land, her agricultural income barely met her basic needs.

After being registered as a farmer in Shubh Mint and mint cultivation, she also started growing stolon. This was after she received the training. Now her husband is also supporting her in mint and stolon cultivation. Last year she earned about ₹1,30,000 from selling high-quality mint.

"The stolons we grow are sold in the name of the 'Shubh Mint' program. People purchasing these stolons are confident of its variety and believe that it is a good quality product," she said.

Due to a storm in early April 2021, her rooftop collapsed, and three newly constructed walls were also damaged. She didn't have any monetary resources to build a habitable abode for her family. When SHG came to her help, she took a loan of ₹20,000 for the damage repair and put a tin shed as a roof. She planned to have the 'Pucca' rooftop after the lockdown was over, and requested SHG to lend her ₹20,000/- more for this and members agreed to the request. Last year, she took a loan of ₹30,000 from SHG and had her rooftop constructed.

"Today I have a habitable place for my family, only because of SHG. If it wouldn't have been for the Shubh Mint program, I don't know what I would have done," she said. Sushila wants to open her own business and run it with the support of her husband as part of a seasonal agricultural income.

Instead of working as agricultural labour in the other crop seasons, she feels her own business would provide her with a more stable means of livelihood.

Ragini

Ragini is a member of Anjali SHG promoted under the Shubh Mint project, which she joined in 2017. She has a husband and a 3-year-old daughter. In cohort one of Shubh Mint, Ragini's husband was a farmer. Together, they used to cultivate their family land. Since the family also grew mint stolon, the cultivation contributed substantially to their household income.

However, the income wasn't stable and sometimes, they suffered huge losses due to quality and lack of variety in the crops. Associating with Shubh Mint brought an unanticipated change with their mint oil production increasing by more than 100 per cent and the stolon production in 0.3 acres of land earning them about ₹80,000.

After two years of associating with the program, the entire situation took a downturn. Due to some family conflict, her father-in-law dispossessed them of their right to their family land and willed all their land to her brother-in-law, her husband's younger brother.

Having no land to cultivate, her husband worked on daily wages as shuttering labour under a contractor. But he wasn't getting enough work to make ends meet, so to support her family, she took a loan of ₹3,000 from SHG to purchase a sewing machine and started earning.

During the COVID-19 lockdown, their situation worsened. They then decided to start their shuttering work and for this, Ragini took a loan of ₹20,000 from her SHG. They purchased the shuttering material and started their own business with the money. Due to the lockdown, they couldn't get many projects, but now conditions are becoming stable.

"We lost our land which increased our financial difficulties, and only because of the support of my SHG of Shubh Mint program I was able to make a living. I feel things are on the right track now and everything will turn out fine," Ragini says.

"My husband also appreciates my SHG. It was his idea that I borrow money from it to support our business. I was so excited that he asked me for help to contribute to our family business financially, and we together planned to repay it in time," she added.

The group supported Ragini in applying for the 'BC Sakhi' under a joint scheme of Banks and NRLM. This is for recruiting SHG members as 'Banking Correspondent' to extend banking services like money

deposit, withdrawal, etc. at the 'Gram Panchayat' level or in remote areas. She has already finished her training and received a loan of ₹75,000 at a 4% yearly interest rate. She plans to increase her income by opening a parlour as she has some space in her house and simultaneously, she will continue her sewing work too.

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