Innovative interventions to address malnutrition and enhance the livelihood of ST communities

The center is working to establish a dedicated Science, Technology, and Innovation (STI) Hub at Mokhada, Palghar district of Maharashtra under the DST-sponsored project to implement innovative interventions for addressing malnutrition and generating livelihood opportunities for Scheduled Tribes (ST) communities.

About 92% of the total Mokhada block population belongs to the ST communities. This remote area faces severe water shortages during summer affecting livelihoods, socioeconomic status and access to nutritious food. These challenges combined with the unique lifestyles and cultural beliefs of tribal communities have led to acute malnutrition, particularly among women and children. This project introduces two technological interventions to address malnutrition and lack of livelihood sources. The interventions are as follows:

• Single Cell Protein (SCP) sources: Training and capacity building for the production, and integration of SCP sources into the daily diet/fodder and establishing forward market linkages.
• Cultivation of Aromatic plants and extraction of essential oils with forward linkages to the markets as a yearlong source of livelihood

Over the next 2 years, TERI shall implement these interventions through a medium of self-sustaining STI hub which would help to create capacity building, provide additional livelihood sources with assured buyback and introduce protein-rich sources such as Mushroom and Azolla in food and fodder respectively.