Beauty of Butea Palash (Butea Monosperma)

Rukshana Praveen*
Introduction
Reliance Foundation (RF) came with an aim to facilitate marginal farmers focusing on
institution building, livelihoods and biodiversity. Villages across Seoni were cutting
down a particular species of trees on their farms which was disturbing the balance of
nature. A strategy was thus required to stop this practice. This case is about how in a
particular village of Seoni, Madhya Pradesh the VFA and RF came together and made
them realise that Palash which they thought were useless was actually not the case.
Context
Chikhla is predominantly tribal populated village of Seoni district of Madhya Pradesh,
with 74% (49 HHs out of 66HHs) of the population belonging to the Gond tribe. This
village is situated in the Kurai block of Seoni district and is in the fringes of the buffer
zone of the Pench Tiger Reserve. Before the 1990s the villagers were engaged in
livelihood activities like livestock rearing, agriculture followed by NWFP collection.
After the announcement of Pench Tiger Reserve in Seoni in 1992, the villagers were
faced with restriction of accessing the forest. The trees and shrubs near the village
which were used by the villagers to collect fuel wood, grazing purposes and collection of
NWFP now came under the Tiger Reserve and hence were out of bounds. The pressure
then came upon agriculture for their livelihoods which necessitated the expansion of
cultivable area. For fuel wood, the available option that the villagers saw were trees on
their farms which were naturally grown as well as planted such as Khamer, Bamboo,
Mango amongst others. Among these trees is Palash (Butea Monosperma) which is
abundantly found in the village. The farmers used the trees for fuel wood, leaves for
making dona a leaf saucer and flowers for making gulal (colours) for the festival of
colours i.e. Holi. The trees are resilient as they regenerate every year from their shoot
even when they are cut off.
RF came to the village in the year April, 2012 with the aim of promoting livelihoods.
While analysing the livelihood portfolio, it made a participatory assessment of the
villages available resources. After the analysis it was decided that the activity which
needed most attention was agriculture as it was the suffering the most. During the
assessment, it was witnessed that the villagers practiced uprooting of Palash shoots and
shrubs. An interaction with the farmers told us that the farmers considered the trees a
nuisance as they did not contribute to the farming activity but used up resources like
land and nutrients available in the land. They occur in random in the land and hence
make it difficult to cultivate the land around them. The practice was not only seen in this
village but also in nearby villages.
It was therefore important to intervene here as the major part of the intervention of RF
is preserving biodiversity. Uprooting trees was a blatant violation of that theme. After
much deliberation and brainstorming with the RF team, it was concluded that if the
palash trees were to somehow link with a financial gain which was not in case of dona

patta making, then only the farmers would consider them worth saving. The idea of lac
cultivation was hence born.
Intervention
The Beginning
Chikhlas story begins in April, 2012 with the formation of a village level producers
institution called Chikhla Krishak Vikas Sangathan (Village Farmer Association i.e. VFA).
The reason to form such an association was that a ground level institution working at
the village level would be the axis of all the development activities and interventions to
be done in the village. Various capacity building activities such as exposure visits,
trainings and meetings were conducted to reveal the VFA members to the development
activities which were for them but about which they had no access or knowledge.
Once in August, 2012, the RF representatives was once interacting with the farmers in
their fields. The interaction led to the understanding that the farmers were felling the
Palash trees which they considered of no use. RF was astounded by this practice. While
discussing with the RF team about this development in the village, the idea of lac
cultivation was born.
Box 1 Lac in Seoni

The principal lac hosts in Seoni are Palash and Ber of the Rangini strains and the Kusum
for Kusmi strains. The cultivation of lac consists of the host trees being pruned in proper
season and when the new shoots come out, two or three sticks of brood lac (seed)
containing living insects are tied on to branches near them. The larvae swarm out, settle
on the shoots and go on producing the resin. After the infection of the trees with brood lac,
the crop needs little or no attention till the time of harvesting. The crop is cut, and after
keeping a portion apart to serve as brood lac for the next crop, the rest is scraped off from
the twigs and sold in the market as Stick lac. Freshly scraped stick lac contain plenty of
moisture and is usually left in the shade to dry. In the present case, the strains used in Seoni
were the Rangini strain. The main crop of Rangini Baisakhi comes to the market in AprilMay. The corresponding Kartki crop which comes in October-November is mostly used as
brood lac for the next Baisakhi crop.

The Journey
Before he could pitch the idea to the VFA, RFs representative in the village decided that
he had to build his knowledge base first. For this purpose, he researched this activity
thoroughly by reading journals and articles which were dedicated to lac cultivation.
During the research it was found that Seoni is a major production centre of lac which is
cultivated on palash and kusum trees1. As the village in question here was abundant in
palash, the strain of lac which can be cultivated on palash was put in focus. While
researching he came upon an article2 about the lac activity practised by a Joint Forest
Management (JFM) group known as Aadarsh Lac Utpadak Samiti of a village called
12004,
2

Department of Public Relations, Madhya Pradesh

Lacquered Dreams, PRADAN publications

Janamkhari in Barghat block of Seoni. In September, 2012, he went there and found that
the group was formed by the Forest Department of Barghat block and the same
department had helped them in installing a Lac Processing Unit. This unit was the only
one available in the vicinity of Seoni and Kurai blocks of Seoni district.
While interacting with the JFM group, he came to know that the group is cultivating lac
in palash forest along with managing the community forest comprising of Bamboo and
Indian Gooseberry. The group is engaged in purchasing and primary processing of the
raw lac. He also discovered that many villagers and brokers from Seoni and Kurai blocks
sell their lac harvest to this processing units only. This was like a tailor made scenario
for the VFA. RF then decided to go back and put his idea for the VFAs consideration.
The Planting of Idea
After coming back from Janamkhari, RF went and asked the VFA to arrange a meeting of
the members of the VFA. RF debriefed them about his visit to the farmer members of the
VFA and asked if they would be interested to initiate this activity in their VFA. The
farmers were doubtful about it as it involved high initial cost. Some of the farmers were
uncertain about the future of the activity. Less awareness was also a contributor to the
reluctance.
RF had to convince the VFA members that
Box 2 Returning the Seeds
palash trees were not useless and in fact
were very useful trees. The relationship
The idea of returning 1.5 times the seed
between soil erosion, biomass and trees
was derived from the system of barter
was explained to them and how they were
already established in the village
essential for the very important part of
whereby the farmer who borrows seeds
agriculture i.e. rainfall. Apart from
or grains from any farmer would return
ecological benefits, the tree was also
the same to the tune of 1.5 times the
providing them with economic benefits.
original quantity.
Adding to this, lac cultivation was like an
additional source of income. The VFA members deliberated over the idea and proposed
an exposure visit to Aadarsh Lac Utpadak Samiti in Barghat. It was decided that in
October, 2012 they would visit the group in Barghat. 20 members of the VFA went to
Janamkhari and observed the activity first hand. The enthusiasm with which the VFA
members were interacting with the JFM group was captivating. The whole journey was
filled with enthusiastic exchanges between the VFA members about the whole visit.
After the exposure visit, another meeting was held at the VFA, it was discussed that they
were sold to the idea of lac cultivation and would now strategise as to how they would
move ahead with the idea. They then explained to RF that they had evaluated all the
pros and cons of the idea and have devised a strategy that would help in cultivate lac
economically. The initial investment on lac seed or brood lac was high namely Rs
35,000/Quintal in current market price, considering the paying capacity of the VFA
members whose annual income revolves around Rs 30-40,0003. Hence a strategy was
devised by the VFA members that one farmer would initiate the process and the seeds
provided after the harvest would be used by other farmers to propagate the same
3

Primary Data Collection

without involving the initial cost. As to why the VFA would invest such an amount on a
single member, the VFA members said that as it was a one-time investment for the VFA
and the same would be used for others without purchasing from outside, thus this
amount was justified. It was laid down in the rules and regulations of the VFA during the
meeting that the farmer in question would return the seeds to the tune of 1.5 times the
seeds provided to him to the VFA in the course of three years which would in turn be
used as seeds for other farmers. The same applied to all the farmers who would benefit
from the same. After much deliberation in the meeting, the VFA decided that Mahadev
Daheriya, a farmer member of the VFA would be the first farmer to pilot this activity in
the VFA.
The Initiator
Mahadev Daheriya is a marginal farmer in Chikhla, having 2 hectare of land which had
over 300 palash trees4. When RF asked the reason behind selecting the particular
farmer, the VFA members replied that Mahadev had a history as well as required
number of trees for the purpose of lac cultivation. He had leased out his palash trees to a
private contractor for lac cultivation in 2010. He did not have any experience prior to
this contractual cultivation of lac. After the harvest though the contractor did not leave
any brood lac on the trees so that they could propagate and the economic benefit that
Mahadev got, according to him, was Rs 10,000 which was modest considering the profit
the contractor earned from the lac harvest which was around Rs 50,000. The market
rate at that time of lac harvest was Rs 300 per kg which means he harvested around
1.60 quintals of lac from 100 trees. When asked why he did not continue with the same
and why he was interested now. To this he replied that he had no exposure, experience
or means (funds) to continue with the cultivation and hence had no inclination to do the
same. He also said that he saw an opportunity here as the required funds and technical
assistance would be provided with the help of the VFA and he was ready to contribute
through labour in this activity.
After finalising Mahadev as the pilot subject, the process of lac cultivation was initiated.
Lac Cultivation
In January, 2013, Mahadev identified 300 mature trees that were ready for the
cultivation of lac. After this, Aadarsh Lac Utpadak Samiti i.e. the JFM group from
Janamkhari was contacted and requested to provide some consultancy and inputs
regarding lac cultivation to the VFA. The brood lacs and technical assistance was thus
provided by the group to the VFA. The trainers from the group came to Chikhla and
provided a hands on training to Mahadev and 5 other VFA members as to how they
should cut the twigs of brood lac, how to club or bunch then into small bundles and how
and where to tie the brood lacs in short, the inoculation process of lac. The whole of the
training cost Rs 1,920 to the VFA which included both training and conveyance
expenses of the trainers.
4Primary

Data Collection

The initial brood lac provided was to the tune of 2Q at the rate of Rs 35,000/Q; thus
totalling an amount of Rs 70,000 initial investment in addition to the cost of
transportation of seeds which was Rs 1,500. The VFA provided the necessary funds for
the brood lacs, training and transportation. The lac was procured from Aadarsh Lac
Utpadak Samiti, Janamkhari. It was decided that 2 quintals of brood lac was required as
one palash tree of 10 feet height requires 0.5 to 1 kg of brood lac depending upon its
canopy. As Mahadev had 300 mature trees, it was estimated that he would require 2
quintals of brood lac. Three members of his family, his father, his wife and mother, were
engaged in the whole labour intensive activity of inoculation of the brood lac which was
completed in 6 days. The rate of labour in the village was Rs 120 per day. Thus the
labour work amounted to Rs 2,160. After the inoculation of the brood lac, Mahadev had
to wait for the harvest patiently but the wait was not a peaceful one.
In March, the farmers of the
village practiced burning their Box 3 Bordeaux Mixture
fields to prepare it for Kharif
season which can burn the trees. Bordeaux mixture, commonly known as Neela
Mahadev had to be cautious that Thotha in the village is used as a fungicide. It is a
no harm came to the trees. He mixture of Copper Sulphate (CuSO4), lime and
used to clear the areas of dead water in the ratio of 5:5:50. It is applied on the
grass near the trees so that they bark of the infected part of the plant or tree.
didnt catch fire. The ants which
are a natural predator for the lac insects were also a threat. He used to sprinkle methyl
parathion, an insecticide, to ward off the ants which is commonly used in agricultural
practices. A chemical mixture known commonly as Neela Thotha (Bordeaux mixture) to
the farmers was used on the trees trunks as a precaution to ward off any fungal attack
on the trees. Heavy rain was also a problem for the lac insects as they fall off the
branches when it rains heavily. The rainfall in Seoni in 2013 which was a record as it
rained over 1300 mm was a setback for the crop5. As this was not foreseen by the
farmer, he could not plan for the same.
Despite these adversities, Mahadev managed to touch the mark of Rs 1,00,000 with 4.8
quintals of procured lac within a year i.e. October, 2012 to October, 2013, is evident
from the following:
Table 1: Income of Mahadev
Harvest (in
Rate (in
#
Timeline
Income (in Rs)
Quintals)
Rs/Quintal)
1 January, 2013
0.40
50,000.00
20,000.00
2 May, 2013
0.40
35,000.00
14,000.00
3 October, 2013
4.00
23,000.00
92,000.00
Total
4.80
1,26,000.00
Source: Personal Interview with Mahadev

The first phase of income came in January, 2013 when the brood lacs were discharged
of the larvae, the sticks were removed from the trees) and the remains of the lac on the
brood lacs were scrapped off the sticks. The total harvest came at 40 kg which was sold
5

Meteorology Department, Jabalpur Division, 2013

in the market at the rate of Rs 500/ kg fetched Rs 20,000. The market described here is
the Barghat market which is nearer to the said village and is the hub of lac produce in
the vicinity of the village. Including this, the stick which came out of this activity
amounted to 4 bullock carts which was estimated to be worth of Rs 2,000 is sufficient
for the family to compensate the use of fuel wood for 4 months. The next phase of
income came in the month of May, 2013. The first crop of the season came 40 kg which
was sold in the market at the rate of Rs 350/ kg. As the market was low it fetched Rs
14,000 only.
In the second season i.e. in October, 2013, he procured 4 quintals of lac which he sold
the produce in Barghat at Rs 230/kg equalling Rs 92,000 in total. Also as October was
the peak season of the harvest, the market was flooded with lac produce hence reducing
the price of the lac in market. He returned 60 kg of brood lac to his VFA and sold 361 kg
to 2 VFAs viz. Dhutera Krishak Vikas Sangathan (333 kg@230/kg) and Sargapur
Krishak Vikas Sangathan (28 kg@230/kg).
Development So Far
As per the decision of the VFA, Mahadev had to return the brood lacs at the rate of 1.5
times provided to him to the VFA in the course of three years. This year only two
farmers of the VFA were selected for the activity as the plants in their farm were the
only one which were mature enough for the cultivation of lac. Of these farmers one had
50 trees and another had 10 trees procuring 50 kg and 10 kg of brood lacs respectively.
Hence, instead of returning 1Q brood lacs, Mahadev returned 60 kg of seeds. The trees
of other farmer members of the VFA are still growing and in the course of three years all
these farmers would eventually benefit from the activity.
Outcome
The immediate outcome of this intervention was the safety net of financial resource. It is
the risk mitigating mechanism of the farmer by providing him with cash, loan
requirements and increasing the fertility of the land by providing biomass.
Tree Felling to Money Spinning: The immediate output of the intervention in the
village has been the cease in the felling of
Palash trees. More than 200 farmers are
Box 4 Money Spinning
now focusing on developing the trees on
The term money spinning here is
their farm for lac cultivation. The activity
derived from the fairy tales of Grimms
has caught the interest of the villagers
Brothers, Rumpelstiltskin. In this story,
like wild fire. Many farmers are now
the magician Rumpelstiltskin could spin
developing their palash trees for the next
gold from straws. This case is also about
crop in 2014. Till October, 2013, the VFA
spinning money but from trees rather
has identified 518 trees of 20 farmers
than straws.
which are in the process of maturing
which could be used for lac cultivation.
The major change that the village has seen now is that they no longer see the palash
trees as a burden but as a gift. Mahadev has proved to the villagers that lac is a
profitable activity.

Increased Income: Mahadev have demonstrated to the villagers that by saving his
trees, he has honestly earned the benefits. Lac cultivation has not only saved the trees
but also provided income in the form of lac. Last year and this years comparison of
Mahadevs income from all sources indicate that his income has risen considerably. In
2012, his income was Rs 28,000 and that in 2013 it is Rs 1,66,000 6. From this increased
income Mahadev can finally fulfill his aspirations. He recently bought a motorcycle
during the Deepawali festivities in November, 2013.
Stories of Success Reach Far and Wide: During the period of May, 2013 to October,
2013, 15 VFAs of the operational area of Reliance Foundation have visited Mahadevs
farm and witnessed the activity themselves and are now stimulated to initiate the
activity in their respective villages themselves. As of November, 2013, 37 farmer
members of 7 VFAs including Chikhla in Seoni have initiated the process of lac
cultivation with 850 kg of brood lac procured from various sources at the rate of Rs 200
to Rs 230 per kg7.
Palash for Prosperity: RF plans to replicate the activity and the process in all the
operational villages wherever the VFA members are interested and the trees are
available. There is also a plan to establish a primary processing plant for lac in the
village that would cater to the needs of the operational villages in Seoni. This would
bring employment as well as business to the village which would ultimately lead to the
prosperity of the village. Ultimately this activity would fulfill the 3 pillars of sustainable
livelihood
a.

Ecology It would help in maintaining the ecological balance by improving the

biodiversity. More trees would be saved by this intervention enriching the tree
cover of the area thereby enriching the biodiversity.
b. Economy This activity would enhance the capacity of the farmers to build upon
their earning capacity. This would help them in creating new avenues of income and
the ultimate result would be a sound economy of the village.
c. Aspirational Needs (Equity) The enhanced earning capacity ultimately would
lead to a better way of lifestyle fulfilling the aspirational needs of the farmer.
Learning
I like to listen. I have learned a great deal from listening carefully. Most people never
listen. Ernest Hemingway
The objective of writing a case is that when someone reads it, they learn from the
mistakes in the case and are less likely to repeat the same mistakes. This case is also not
an exception. Following are some of the learnings of this case:
Seeing is Believing: Convincing the farmers for lac cultivation was a major challenge.
Mahadevs prior experience was like a boon to the intervention. His presence helped in
convincing the VFA members about the concept of lac cultivation. The exposure visit to
Aadarsh Lac Utpadak Samiti in Janamkhari, Barghat added icing to the cake. Entering
6
7

Personal Interview with Mahadev

Seoni Fortnightly Report(November 1st FN), 2013, Unpublished

into the activity with the proper channel like a person who has prior experience in the
activity along with sites such as Janamkhari could be identified first before proposing
any activity to any VFA.
Compatibility is Essential: Palash in the operational villages are of two varieties viz.
dark barked and lighter barked. It was observed during the inoculation process that the
lac larvae did not swarm the young branches of lighter barked palash whereas it was
not the case in dark barked palash which affected the production. It is hence necessary
to identify the strain of lac which is compatible to the varieties of palash in the
operational area.
There are Alternatives, One Only Needs to Explore: Many VFAs in the operational
area, after witnessing the success of lac cultivation, want to adopt the activity but the
lack of palash trees are dampening their desires. There are many Ber trees (Ziziphus
Mauritiana) are also available in many villages which also can be used to cultivate lac.
Rangini, the strain of lac used in Palash, can also be used to inoculate in Ber trees.
Building on the Foundation of Tradition: The village Chikhla is an agrarian village.
The practice of barter is still prevalent in the village. There is a system in the village
whereby the farmer who borrows seeds or grains from another farmer has to return the
same at the rate of 1.5 times the borrowed quantity. While laying the rules and
regulations for returning the brood lacs to the VFA, it was decided that the tradition
which was already in place in the village would be apt for this situation. It proves that
building a system of return based on already practiced system in the village helps in
higher acceptance than introducing a new system.
One Needs to Work along the Value Chain: Lac market is a highly fluctuating one. The
prices of lac can vary a lot within a year. It was not foreseen in case of selling price of lac
that the prices would dive so low. During harvest season in October, the prices of lac is
lowest. To mitigate such risks, it would be prudent to device strategies that would fetch
better prices. Scientific methods could be adopted to add value to the harvested lac so
that they fetch better prices in future.
Conclusion
The intervention done for saving the trees in Chikhla was not only interesting but also
educating. The participation of VFA members, their decision making process and the
prospect of lac cultivation in other villages in the operational area were the high points
of the intervention. This case shows that livelihoods promotion is not just about
increasing the earning capacity but also about increasing their knowledge base, building
upon their social customs and the natural resources of the village. They all are
interrelated. RF understood this relationship and built upon it to avail this activity
which bore a favourable fruit. The future of this activity in other villages hence lies with
the team to replicate it sans the difficulties faced in Chikhla.
***
*Rukshana

Praveen is an Assistant Project Manager associated with Reliance Foundation

since last 2 years. Currently she is placed in Seoni district of Madhya Pradesh.