Borahi Bari, Mouta Gaon, is on the historical Dhodor Ali under Nazira Agriculture Block. The name Dhodor Ali is significant for the fact that those who built the road, which starts from Kamargaon in Golaghat to Joypur in Dibrugarh, were among the ‘laziest’ of workers during the reign of Ahom king Gadadhar Singha. However, the work ethics of Nripen Tamuly, a native of Borahi Bari, is in exact contrast to those who legend says constructed the road that passes through his village.
The story goes back to the year 2003-2004. Nripen’s marriage was being discussed in his household. During a routine medical examination, he was diagnosed with a tumour in his brain. The family then decided to sell a few agar trees from their backyard to meet the cost of the operation. Post the success of the operation, and the medical recovery, Nripen had an awakening.
If the tree in his backyard could act as a lifesaver for him, their importance was something to take note of for the society. A new thought process took roots in his life.
The agar trees, which saved the life of Nripen, and which is now also a claim to his fame, have made an indelible contribution to the cultural history of Assam because it is on the leaves of the agar tree that several cultural and historical episodes of the State, and its composite life, have been written.
As one enters the agar tree garden spread across four bighas of land that Tamuli has carefully cultivated, one can see betel nut, king chilli, lemon, turmeric, gourd, banana plants jostling for space giving the farm the look of a carefully curated organised space.
“It was a small tea garden earlier. Tea plantations demand a lot of capital for sustenance. It also need chemicals. It was hard work, while the corresponding returns were minimal. I was fast losing interest. It was then that I started putting in place a dream I had been nurturing for 10 years of having agar tree plantations,” Nripen told Asom Barta.
In 2016, he started with a small agar tree garden, ably supported by his wife Mrinali (She passed away on August 26 just when this publication was slated to go to print.) “She has been a pillar of strength for me. I cannot imagine this farm without her.”
Tamuli said that this farm has shown him the door to livelihood and prosperity. The Covid-induced lockdown of 2019 and 2020 allowed Tamuli to spend a significant part of his time in the farm and nurture it to his satisfaction. “It was during these two years that I started planting king chilli at the roots of the agar trees. It boosted my income significantly. It was then that the idea of an agro-forestry took shape in my mind,” Tamuli told this reporter walking through his garden.
He now meets his daily household necessities by selling king chilli and other vegetables, and only in the event of a big ticket expenditure he puts one of the agar trees up for sale.
Agar tree flowers in the summer season. Once these agar plants mature after due process, ambrosia beetle, which live in nutritional symbiosis with ambrosia fungi, facilitates the aroma that is present in the agar trees. It is for this aroma that agarwood/trees are valued so highly in the international market. “It is because of the specific geographical and topographical features of our region that the fungi settle down on the agar trees. We make pores in the trees which are planted away from the main garden so that these plants, too, can attract the fungi,” Tamuli told this reporter about nurturing the garden for maximum returns.
Suren Tamuly, a native of the village, with agar plantation, recently sold a few agar trees for ₹ 16 lakh. “If we cultivate agar trees properly, we can extract impressive financial returns from them. Nripen has encouraged all of us to tread that path. He has even helped me cultivate lemon, king chilli, etc.,” Suren told this newsletter.
Another beneficiary of agar plantation in the Namti-Amguri area is Ratneswar Tamuly. “Nipen has been a guiding light for all of us. Since agar plantation has a gestation period of a few years, it is important that we work on other activities around it to run our households with ease and comfort,” Ratneswar said.
Nripen has more than 300 mature betel nut trees in his farm, something which Ratneswar, too, is hopeful about. “Since betel nut is in demand across Assam, it will be easier for me to earn extra money in due course by cultivating it like Nripen does.”
Nripen was all praises for Amrit Brikshay Andolan meant to create a tree economy in the State. “This is a positive step. There are several commercial plants in Assam which can help in the growth of a healthy agroforestry ecosystem,” Nripen said while advocating a Government-procurement mechanism for these commercial trees, especially agar, to help people like him get the best returns.
