THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: When the soot-laden winds blow across the crowd of men and vehicles, at the eastern end of the Putharikandam Maidan, a rippling green wave could be spotted these days. The Maidan has again worn its annual disguise of a namesake paddyfield to submit at the feet of Lord Sree Padmanabha Swamy, the harvest season’s first crop. The ripe paddy, planted on 14 cents of land, measuring up to one ‘para’, would be reaped, cleaned in the Padmatheertham and handed over to the head of the Travancore royal family to be offered to the deity on the day of ‘niraputhari’ festival, which falls on August 5. The once-prosperous field that lost out to the inroads of a consumerist community has seen a revival of the tradition for two years in a row. Putharikandam, the whole of which was a paddyfield, used to cater to the requirement of the temple and the Kowdiar Palace in its days of glory. When it was renovated in 2010, a portion of the sprawling ground was earmarked for the cultivation of paddy. This year, as a natural progression facilitated by citizens who long ceased to be believers in the faith of tilling, the ritualistic cultivation received a high-tech boost. The land was tilled using a mechanised plough and sprayers supplied the necessary fertilizers and pesticides in intermittent gaps. Karshika Karma Sena, a team of trained agriculturists sponsored by the Kudappanakkunnu Krishi Bhavan, was entrusted with the duty of the bonsai field. Says Mini C M, Agriculture Officer, Kudappanakkunnu Krishi Bhavan, “The Sena is in charge of all the activities, right from land preparation to harvesting. The workers transplanted the saplings manually since they are short of machines for that, as paddy cultivation literally does not exist in any part of the Corporation. We adopted ‘line sowing’, where the ‘njaru’ was planted in a row with the help of ropes. The tilling, spraying and weeding were all done using machines.” The high-yielding variety ‘Uma’ was used for the crop. Mayor K Chandrika had taken a personal interest in keeping alive the tradition, which was only revived during her predecessor’s tenure last year. “When it was noticed that the sowing was not yet done in April, I gave orders for the activities to start immediately. I was present during the planting ceremony and have monitored the progress of activities. Thankfully, the crop has come up well and we hope to have a grand harvest probably on August 4, so that ‘niraputhari’ can be offered to the Lord at the break of dawn on August 5,” she said.
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