Climate change and its manifestations are affecting the household level food and nutritional security of the villages of Wayanad. The objective of this project activity was to ensure household production of vegetables in all seasons by providing small rain shelters within an area of two cents. The rain shelters are supposed to protect the crops from heavy rain and also ensure minimum usage of water and manures. The project has selected eight beneficiaries for the activity from the agrarian tribal communities who were completely depending on their farm products for food and livelihood as part of the Integrated Village Development Project of HDFC Bank.

Suresh in Idiyam vayal uses the rain shelter for production of native vegetable seeds. Chandran at Panamaram village use it for germinating seeds including rice. His age old father said ‘ rice seeds germinating in a uniform manner while we are keeping them inside the rain shelter’.

The households selected were individual farmers from Kurichya and Kuruma tribal communities. They were completely dependent on rainfed cultivation of rice and irrigated cultivation of vegetables in summer. This project has introduced protected farming ensuring the production of vegetables for consumption in all seasons. The rain shelters have helped the beneficiaries to cultivate cucumber, chilli, tomato, beans, long pea, cabbage, amaranthus etc. in small qualities. Farmers have also come up with their own innovative ways to use the rain shelters as nurseries for paddy, vegetables, areca nut and tubers and also has started propagating pepper wines and banana seedlings. One of the beneficiaries, Mr Chandran from Panamaram village has earned Rs7,000 per season by producing and selling seedlings out.