Viyyur Prison farms success with 50-tonne veg harvest

THRISSUR: Become self-sufficient and provide the inmates a chance to be with nature. Those were the twin aims when the Viyyur Central Prison in Thrissur began promoting vegetable farming with the support of the Kerala Agriculture University. The efforts by the prison authorities and the inmates have turned fruitful as close to 50 tonnes of vegetables have been harvested this fiscal.

The Viyyur Central Prison — which currently has 1,120 inmates — turned the unused land within its compound into a productive farmland. The major crops cultivated include a variety of peas, snake gourd, amaranthus, papaya, tapioca, Chinese potato (koorkka), cucumber, tomato, curry leaves, ladies finger, pumpkin, and cabbage. Small quantities of pepper, coconut, and irumban puli were also harvested.

“Farming activities serve to ease the prisoners’ stress. It also ensures a livelihood for many on their release from jail after completing their terms,” Viyyur Central Prison superintendent K Anilkumar told TNIE.