This is something that has not been seen before in the state. The youth in a place taking
it upon them to farm on land that has remained fallow for over twenty years.
This has now become known. But there is a story beyond. On how a people’s
Priest and teacher convinced the young to join the fallow to fertile movement
They have been
inspired by a man who has been urging the youth in the state to recognise the
value of what they have that is Goa and ensure they do not lose it. Fr Bolmax
Pereira the parish priest of Chicalim spent time and effort convincing the
owners of the plots and later the youth to take it upon themselves to do this arduous
task.
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Speaking about the
experience Father Bolmax said he had talked about it in his sermons. He said” I
spoke about taking care of Mother Nature and reviving the fields. I came to
this parish in June two years ago and noticed the fallow land. I put up the
proposal a year ago and spoke at the level of social activists like Captain
Viriato Fernandes , Cyril Fernandes. We could see the land lying uncultivated”.
The first step was to
check with the owner of a strip of land who he knew. The owner gave a positive
reply. This was a wonderful development. He had around 10,000 sq mtrs of land,
seeing this, other owner’s started giving positive signals. They received
verbal confirmations but since the Chicalim Youth Farmers club was a registered
body they decided to take a NOC from the farmers. There was some hesitation
from some owners. The club issued a letter stating that they would only farm on
the land but the land would always remain the property of the present owners
for perpetuity, this led to the club receiving letters from everyone. The size
of the land ballooned to around 20,000 sq mtrs that had to be cultivated.
While all this was taking place Father Bolmax was also talking
to the youth on the importance of contributing to the effort. He said “I knew
nobody would be ready if they were not getting anything. I explained to them
that whatever bhaji they cultivated it would be distributed to them free of
cost. The club of course pays for the seed which in turn is funded by people
from the village who wish to remain unnamed.”
He said the youth were happy with the proposal. Everyone he said
was excited with the work and was happy to work in the fields. The only problem
at times he said was that not everyone would come every day. He felt if
everyone came it would be better. He hoped as the pandemic dies down, the
response will get better. The youth who number 35, he said, had formed teams
and they decided who would come at what time. Father said the spirit was such
that even if one person was present he or she would continue to do what was
assigned to them because everyone believed that their job was important in the
larger picture. This, my father said, was a fantastic development.
Officialy there are around 50 members in the club but due to the
pandemic some were inactive. Responsibilities have been divided amongst the 25
who have teams. Some sit in the store, some run around, some go to Margoa to
book the tractor. They also have a media team to prepare posters and reports
for the press. If on some days people are missing there are always people there
to back up. There is no pressure on the youth, this does not disturb the jobs
some may be working in. This effort is completely voluntary.
With the monsoons expected they are growing rice which will be
distributed amongst the youth. Father Bolmax said they did not know how much
would grow so they had not decided how much each would get. However, any extra
produce like the organic vegetables would be given to an agricultural NGO
called Seed Foundation headed by David D Souza who received the India Achiever
Award 2021 on World Environment Day. This was an attempt to increase their
reach around the state.
Father Bolmax mentioned that they were taking slow steady steps
increasing their reach around Goa. Their produce was available in a store in
Calangute, Margao, Anjuna and Chicalim.
Since this was the first year a check on the quality of the soil
revealed it did not need any artificial fertiliser to grow anything. They
intend to be organic and avoid anything artificial. But for Father Bolmax it
was about enthusing the youth to take up this responsibility and they seem to
be meeting his expectations.
His actions seemed to have caught the attention of people living
in the area. They have tied up with the Sikh community who have expressed their
willingness to work in the fields.
Time will tell if this small spark will spread around the state.
But with a Priest in charge of the young, its truly a Blessed movement
This is something that has not been seen before in the state. The youth in a place taking
it upon them to farm on land that has remained fallow for over twenty years.
This has now become known. But there is a story beyond. On how a people’s
Priest and teacher convinced the young to join the fallow to fertile movement
They have been
inspired by a man who has been urging the youth in the state to recognise the
value of what they have that is Goa and ensure they do not lose it. Fr Bolmax
Pereira the parish priest of Chicalim spent time and effort convincing the
owners of the plots and later the youth to take it upon themselves to do this arduous
task.
Speaking about the
experience Father Bolmax said he had talked about it in his sermons. He said” I
spoke about taking care of Mother Nature and reviving the fields. I came to
this parish in June two years ago and noticed the fallow land. I put up the
proposal a year ago and spoke at the level of social activists like Captain
Viriato Fernandes , Cyril Fernandes. We could see the land lying uncultivated”.
The first step was to
check with the owner of a strip of land who he knew. The owner gave a positive
reply. This was a wonderful development. He had around 10,000 sq mtrs of land,
seeing this, other owner’s started giving positive signals. They received
verbal confirmations but since the Chicalim Youth Farmers club was a registered
body they decided to take a NOC from the farmers. There was some hesitation
from some owners. The club issued a letter stating that they would only farm on
the land but the land would always remain the property of the present owners
for perpetuity, this led to the club receiving letters from everyone. The size
of the land ballooned to around 20,000 sq mtrs that had to be cultivated.
While all this was taking place Father Bolmax was also talking
to the youth on the importance of contributing to the effort. He said “I knew
nobody would be ready if they were not getting anything. I explained to them
that whatever bhaji they cultivated it would be distributed to them free of
cost. The club of course pays for the seed which in turn is funded by people
from the village who wish to remain unnamed.”
He said the youth were happy with the proposal. Everyone he said
was excited with the work and was happy to work in the fields. The only problem
at times he said was that not everyone would come every day. He felt if
everyone came it would be better. He hoped as the pandemic dies down, the
response will get better. The youth who number 35, he said, had formed teams
and they decided who would come at what time. Father said the spirit was such
that even if one person was present he or she would continue to do what was
assigned to them because everyone believed that their job was important in the
larger picture. This, my father said, was a fantastic development.
Officialy there are around 50 members in the club but due to the
pandemic some were inactive. Responsibilities have been divided amongst the 25
who have teams. Some sit in the store, some run around, some go to Margoa to
book the tractor. They also have a media team to prepare posters and reports
for the press. If on some days people are missing there are always people there
to back up. There is no pressure on the youth, this does not disturb the jobs
some may be working in. This effort is completely voluntary.
With the monsoons expected they are growing rice which will be
distributed amongst the youth. Father Bolmax said they did not know how much
would grow so they had not decided how much each would get. However, any extra
produce like the organic vegetables would be given to an agricultural NGO
called Seed Foundation headed by David D Souza who received the India Achiever
Award 2021 on World Environment Day. This was an attempt to increase their
reach around the state.
Father Bolmax mentioned that they were taking slow steady steps
increasing their reach around Goa. Their produce was available in a store in
Calangute, Margao, Anjuna and Chicalim.
Since this was the first year a check on the quality of the soil
revealed it did not need any artificial fertiliser to grow anything. They
intend to be organic and avoid anything artificial. But for Father Bolmax it
was about enthusing the youth to take up this responsibility and they seem to
be meeting his expectations.
His actions seemed to have caught the attention of people living
in the area. They have tied up with the Sikh community who have expressed their
willingness to work in the fields.
Time will tell if this small spark will spread around the state.
But with a Priest in charge of the young, its truly a Blessed movement
