Goan Reporter: Melvin Pereira of Solva Raia Displays Summer Creativity with Kokum & Organic Farming

Melvin Pereira from Solva Raia displays his creativity, which he practices every summer season. This year, he focused on Kokum (binda). He collected fallen and broken fruits, dried the outer part, and strained the inner seeds to collect the juice, known in Konkani as ogol. However, this year he faced challenges due to early rainfall, which affected the drying process. He has around 10 to 12 Kokum trees and still has a lot of fruit on them, but due to the rains, he had to leave them. He always prefers using traditionally grown fruits from his plot or the mountains. Today, he is happy because the sun is out, giving him time to dry his collected Kokum. Along with this, he also likes to collect and dry black pepper. He has developed a small farm where he grows many saplings, regularly waters them, and uses organic manure. His collection includes grafted mango, coconut trees, betel nut trees, jackfruit saplings, banana plants, ramphal, breadfruit, chickoo, cashew, and many more.