Aizawl, Jun 26 : When the rat army devours acre after acre of crops in Mizoram, one granary overflows with philanthropy.
Lalbiakdiki, wife of state chief secretary Haukhum Hauzel, has set up a granary with her own funds to help starving villagers during mautam or the dreaded famine following rats devouring and destroying crops and grains.
Once in every 50 years, when the bamboo plants flower, hordes of rodents feast on the fruit, which experts say increases their fertility. They multiply at an alarming rate and attack farmlands for food.
Though the catastrophe strikes once in five decades, its is impossible for the government to pre-empt the disaster even with meticulous planning.
Since you can’t stop the rats, Lalbiakdlki decided that stocking up for the calamity would be the next best thing to do.
So Joseph Buzum (buzum meaning granary) was born out of one woman’s foresight and generosity.
Lalbiakdiki said she named the granary after the biblical figure of Joseph, the confidante of a Pharaoh, who built a granary for Israelis who suffered miserably during a famine in ancient Egypt.
Around 300 villages spread across three most affected districts of the state have benefited from Lalbiakdiki’s project. “The idea struck me after seeing the poor villagers who used to come to my husband seeking help. Initially, I started it with my own contribution. Soon, other friends and relatives chipped in with donations,” Lalbiakdiki said.
In the fifties, Laldenga’s “famine front” helped hundreds of impoverished souls in Mizo villages.
More than 50 years later, Lalbiakdiki is trying to single-handedly manage what a whole “front” struggled to do.
Telegraph India
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