Raipur: Millet Cafe near Natwar School in Raigarh is a one-of-its kind cafe that serves delectable dishes made from millets like Ragi, Kodo, Kutki, combining nutrition with taste. This cafe has the distinction of being the first millet cafe in the state that is operated by women.
It is a matter of pride for the state that prime minister Narendra Modi mentioned and praised this millet cafe and Chhattisgarh Government’s initiative to promote millet in his radio program ‘Mann Ki Baat’. He asked the listeners that whenever they get a chance to visit Raigarh in Chhattisgarh, they should visit Millet Cafe and enjoy the cuisine there. Pasta, Cheela, Idli, Manchurian, Momos, Pizza, Noodle, Dosa made from Ragi, Biryani made from Kodo can be tasted in this cafe.
Meanwhile, the year 2023 is being celebrated as the International Millet Year to encourage production and consumption of millets. Mission-Millet has been launched in Chhattisgarh to boost the production of coarse grains and minor grain crops like Ragi, Kodo, Kutki, to ensure good arrangements for procurement of these millet crops and to take these to the city markets after processing. Besides fixing the support price of Kodo, Kutki and Ragi, the state government has also included them in the purview of Rajiv Gandhi Kisan Nyay Yojana.
Besides,14 districts of the state have been included under this mission. For this, an MoU has been signed with the Indian Institute of Millet Research, Hyderabad. Under the MoU, the Indian Institute of Millet Research Hyderabad is providing cooperation and guidance for increasing the productivity of Kodo, Kutki and Ragi in Chhattisgarh, besides rendering the expertise on technical know-how, availability of high quality seeds and establishment of seed bank.
Kodo, Kutki, Ragi are being procured in Chhattisgarh at the support price
Significantly, Chhattisgarh is the first state in the country, where production and consumption of millets are being promoted continuously. Chhattisgarh Government is procuring Kodo, Kutki and Ragi at the support price. With this initiative, the area under millets in Chhattisgarh has increased by one and a half times and the production has also increased significantly. On the initiative of the chief minister, a special luncheon was organized in the Chhattisgarh Legislative Assembly for the MLAs and the media to promote dishes made from millets. In Chhattisgarh, the biggest processing plant of millets has also been set up at Nathia-Navagaon in Kanker district. To promote millets, millets processing plants are being set up in rural industrial parks as well.
Centuries old healthy eating habits are being revived again
For many generations, grains like Ragi, Kodo were a major part of our diet. But over the period of time, the consumption of these grains became less and less popular. These grains are rich in many nutrients that are essential for health. State Government is taking important steps to encourage consumption of these grains in daily diet. Millet cafe is one of the many initiatives taken by Chhattisgarh Government in this direction.
Women entrepreneurship is getting boost from Millet Cafe
This cafe has been started with the initiative and cooperation of the district administration and is being operated by the Vikas Sangh Women’s Group. Women and Child Development Department and the Transforming Rural India Foundation is providing the technical support. Through this millet based cafe, women self-employment and entrepreneurship is also being promoted.
