Millets pilgrimage

so its millets time folks..
hope u all know the millets and esp minor millets like varagu (Kodo millet), Thinai (foxtail), saamai (little millet), kuthirai vaali (barnyard millet) that we from restore has always propagated successfully.

Then I get this invitation from the state Planning commission to take lead and move forward a millets mission for the state. The SPC Vice Chairman is an amazing lady who moves things at such a pace and has such broad views and is also so highly respected and regarded. (on her and her achievements- another day)

Now We are organising a Millets mission workshop cum brain storming with lots of top IAS officers of the state govt, agri dept directors, TNAU professors, planning commission HODS and all..thus trying to sensitise all on one side and also to come out with some concrete steps to take this millets mission forward in the state- for nutrition & health sake, farmers' livelihood sake, soil and water conservation sake, etc.

in this context , to get an over all view on production, processing and consumption side, I have been on a week long pilgrimage- so to say.
Visited Coimbatore and saw various personalities in TNAU, some young entrepreneurs in the TNAU (thru their incubators), some fantastic rural engineers who have designed a simple but functional millets de-husking machine at salem, Timbaktu, millets 360 of Anantpur - where Dinesh has just about tried and tested all modes to process millets without losing the bran/nutrition, Tribal Health Initiative who apart from their tremendous work in health in these eastern ghats tribal villages have done fabtastic work in organic farming and millets more importantly, etc..so have been on the Road but have been enjoying..
each of these has been a sooper experience and worth a separate post (may happen some time later)..
for now be informed of the millets forays and pilgrimage and wish me luck..
and you, out there- go and have millets for your own health, for the environments health and farmers livelihood.