How this duo is sowing the seeds of self-sustenance in Sri Lanka

Last year after living for years on end in an Indian refugee camp, repatriated women and those widowed by the war in Neduntheevu, sowed the first seeds of self-sustenance. Taking them along the way were their children. 

Located in the northern province of Sri Lanka, Neduntheevu—also known as Delft Island—is home to a large population of Tamils. By the end of 2022, when Sri Lanka was battling its worst economic crisis in nearly 74 years, the UN estimated that 2.3 million children were in need of humanitarian assistance and approximately 56,000 children were suffering from acute malnutrition. Almost 70% of families were reducing meal sizes, figures showed. 

It was around this time that T Vasanthagumar, a divisional officer in Delft Island reached out to Poongkothai Chandrahasan—founder of  Serendip be the Change Foundation in Sri Lanka for food and nutrition assistance for their preschool children.

“The government was bankrupt. And just sending food would not be a sustainable solution to a massive economic crisis, which was going to take years to rectify itself,” says Chandrahasan, who is the granddaughter of late Sri Lankan Tamil political leader, SJV Chelvanayakam.

Today, she, along with Chennai-based nutritionist Divya Sathyaraj, are helming 'Green School Green Revolution' under which organic gardens have been set up in six government schools.

"We decided upskilling these children to grow their own food was the best way to ensure their diet was nutrient-rich,” says Chandrahasan. “But as a larger vision, it was also a lesson for them on self-sustainability and living in harmony with the environment".

The produce grown in the garden is used in the school’s nutrition kitchen. 

Preschool gardens set up in Neduntheevu are tended to by the mothers. They also contribute to the school kitchen. In most of these gardens spanning 600 to 1,000 square feet, meal staples such as tomatoes, okra, and beans, and greens including spinach are cultivated. “I’ve always believed in vitamin therapy as opposed to drug therapy. If these children get a diet that is fortified in calcium, iron and all the vitamins, it will boost their immunity,” says Sathyaraj.

Through the idea of a student-led cooperative, these communities can sell the surplus vegetables and use that money to sustain their gardens, reducing their dependence on further funding.

Identifying the crisis

Sathyaraj's own research with families in rural India showed that most children between the ages of 10 and 13 years had a Vitamin C deficiency. "When we get a cold for a while, it may, at the most, last two to three weeks. But, some of the young kids I met in these areas had been living with a cold or a cough for almost a year,” says Sathyaraj. 

She recalls the instance of a ten-year-boy who mentioned that he had been coughing for as long as he could remember.  "When a child grows up without important nutrients, they are susceptible to various infections, common colds, flu, fatigue, iron deficiencies and anemia. The growth of the child also gets affected. I met ten-year-olds who were no taller than four-year-olds. Most children in Sri Lanka also seem to have anemia and a Vitamin C deficiency, because neither parents nor the schools have the money to provide them with a balanced diet during this economic crisis," Sathyaraj says. 

Government support

The Sri Lankan Northern Provincial Council's agriculture and education departments are supporting Chandrahasan and Sathyaraj to set up vegetable gardens in 15 schools comprising close to 10,000 children. The government agricultural instructors for the schools falling under their jurisdiction advise the team on the nature and quality of the soil, and the vegetables and fruits that can be grown there. They also conduct weekly training in organic cultivation for the students.

In the coming months, Chandrahasan and Sathyaraj are putting together a whole host of fundraising initiatives, including an exhibition of green products made by vulnerable Tamil women in Sri Lanka, and concerts in Chennai, besides an online crowdfunding campaign to expand the Green School Green Revolution initiative.  

"In Sri Lanka, about 30 schools come under a medical officer and a public health inspector. We  are in the process of reaching out to them to derive medical data on the children, based on which we can do a detailed assessment, understand the nutritional deficiencies they have, and list out the best fruits and vegetables to grow," says Sathyaraj. 

"We also plan to hold seminars with agricultural instructors to keep them aware of these needs so that they can take the programme forward,” she concludes.