In Uttar Pradesh's Bahraich district, arranging enough green fodder for livestock used to be one of the toughest challenges cattle owners faced, but an administrative initiative has completely changed that picture. Thanks to an effort led by former District Magistrate Dr. Dinesh Chandra, American Napier grass now grows lushly across dozens of villages in Bahraich, and farmers are calling it nothing short of a boon.
When finding green fodder was a daily struggle
Until a few years ago, farmers in Bahraich found it difficult to arrange enough green fodder to feed their animals. Recognising this problem, the then District Magistrate, Dr. Dinesh Chandra, personally stepped in, supplying American Napier grass seeds to farmers and encouraging them to take up its cultivation. His efforts gradually began to pay off, and more and more farmers came forward to adopt this new crop.
Ziaul Haq of Bhatpurwa showed the way
Inspired by Dr. Dinesh Chandra's push, Ziaul Haq, a farmer from Bhatpurwa village, was the first to plant Napier grass on his land. Seeing his results, other farmers in the area followed suit, and today the grass has spread across the entire district. Dr. Dinesh Chandra has since retired and is no longer posted in Bahraich, but the green gift he left behind continues to bring greenery to the district's fields.
Growing Napier grass is remarkably simple
Cultivating Napier grass is not a difficult task at all. It only needs periodic fertiliser, water and a little regular care. A number of farmers are even using poultry manure to get a good yield from it. The biggest feature of this magical grass is that once it is planted, cutting it from the top only makes it grow back faster from below. Except during the harshest cold spells, the grass stays green in the fields all year round, ensuring animals get green fodder for almost the entire year.
One bigha, three animals and buckets of milk
According to farmers, if Napier grass is planted on just 1 bigha of land, it can provide enough green fodder to feed 2 to 3 animals to their fill for the whole year. Eating this fodder keeps the animals healthy and fit, and also boosts their milk-giving capacity. Farmers say their animals are now filling buckets with milk, which has doubled their income. Any farmer still struggling with a shortage of green fodder can solve the problem simply by planting Napier grass.
