Tribal women farmers use app to deliver vegetables

In order to deliver vegetables to the people in containment zones at their doorsteps, a non-govermental organisation Sakha Foundation has come up with a mobile application "Greenline" through which trbial women can sell their vegetables.

Bhubaneshwar (Odisha): The Coronavirus outbreak and the sudden lockdown imposed might have put the human race in crises as many households could not stock up edible items and vegetables in a short period of time, However, the lockdown came as an opportunity for the Tribal women farmers of Koraput district in Odisha as it helped them to give a new shape to their business and carry it on through a new model.

As the restrictions due to COVID were in place, it was becoming difficult for many farmers in the rural areas to send their vegetable products to consumers in the urban areas.

While on one hand vegetables grown by farmers were rotting in their agricultural fields on the other hand people in urban areas like Sunabeda and Damanjodi used to experience a lot of problems in buying fresh vegetables.

In order to find a solution to this problem, Jayadurga Producers Group, an organization formed by tribal women of Gelaguda was given an important responsibility to sell vegetables and other essential commodities in the containment zones in the urban areas which was done under the joint cooperation of the District Administration and ORMAS (Odisha Rural Development and Marketing Society).

While a search was going on at that time to find a solution to the problems faced by women farmers, an easy and simple application named as ‘Greenline’ was developed by “Sakha Foundation” a Non-Government Organisation for use by these women.

According to the Director of “Sakha Foundation”, Jayanti Padman, the app can be used through WhatsApp.

The Coordinator of the Women's Group, Dushila said that rates of different vegetables and other essential commodities have been mentioned in this app as a result of which the consumer families at Damanjodi and Sunabeda while sitting at their homes would be able to meet their requirements.

According to the District Chief of ORMAS, Roshan Kartik, this business which was once limited to only containment zones, has now become the first choice of the consumers after the COVID restrictions were lifted.

Anisha Singh, a housewife of Sunabeda has said that she has been continuing to buy vegetables from these tribal women through Greenline because of the punctuality, honesty and attitude of these women towards their work.