Aryavaidyan (Special Issue on Millets) Vol.36 No.3

Cultivation and consumption of millets in India dates back to Bronze Age. These are evidenced by the archeological findings of both Early and Late Harappan civilizations. Some of the millets are considered to be travelled to India from China through historical trade routes. The name ‘cheena’ for proso millet is perhaps indicative of this. The terms like priyagava, anaava and shyamaka mentioned in Yujurveda are interpreted as foxtail millet, porso millet and Branyard millet respectively. These were the staple food in ancient settlements at Central and Middle Gangetic plains. There are references about millets in the writings of Greek historian Megasthenes (350-290BC). Though many millets came to India from China, Africa and Central Asia, India is also the origin for many like little millet, kodo millet and pedda sama.
Later, the use of millets spread to Central and South India. It was in the diet of people in South India since Sangham Era (BC 300-CE 300).
Ragi was important food during Vijayanagara empire (1336–1646). Fernao Nuniz, a Portugese traveller, mentions that millets occupied an important position among the staple foods of South India. Porridge, fermented products etc. were prepared out of millets. Mughal emperor Jahangir (1569-1627 AD) in his autobiography mentions the good taste kiccati made with pearl millet. Hyder Ali Khan (1720 – 1782 AD), the Sultan of the Kingdom of Mysore was fond of roti prepared with ragi.
Increased facilities for irrigation facilitated the agriculture of rice, wheat etc. Slowly these occupied the diet of rich. Millets became the food of lower caste. Kannada poet Kanakadasa in his Ramadhanya Charithe presents an argument between rice and ragi. It is actually an allegory of conflict between higher and weak castes.
Colonial rule was a blow to millet cultivation. They promoted the cultivation of spices, cotton, indigo and paid little attention to food grains. Even after independence, decline of millet corps continued. Some of the experts are of the opinion that Green Revolution did not considered food diversity and this attitude also reduced the importance of millets. There was a drastic change in food habits in the modern period which made us neglect the indigenous foods. Thus millets were discarded as something primitive. Policy emphasis shifted to increased food grain production and productivity using high yielding varieties of wheat and rice.
Currently the attention towards millets increased a lot due to many causes. Negative impacts of climate change are the major one. Cultivation of these can be done even in drought prone areas with poor soils. Millets are saline tolerant. They can withstand temperature upto 50 Celsius. All these reduce the risk of farmers. Due to these, millets are being considered as ‘future crops’. Health benefits of millets are well documented. COVID-19 also made both urban and rural population choose millets for nutrition and immunity.
United Nations declared 2023 as International Year of Millets. It was proposed by India with specific objectives. Making the societies aware of the contribution of millets to food security and nutrition is the foremost one. The stakeholders should be given enough motivation. More investment has to be put in the research, development and extension services to achieve the earlier mentioned aims is also a key point.
India as the largest producer of millets in the world has initiated the efforts to promote millets many years ago. The ICAR institute at Hyderabad was upgraded as Indian Institute of Millet Research during 2014. Persons like Dr. Khader Vali, seriously do attempts to propagate millets through cultivation, use in medical treatment and publication of books.
Millets are classified as trinadhaanya in Aayurveda. Trna means grass which truly represents the family they belong to. kshudra-dhaanya is another term used indicating the minor status when compared to other dhaanyas. Seeds of millets are comparatively small. That also made them ‘kshudra’. Kudhaanya is another synonym. It denotes its inferiority to other cereals.
The land where a plant is grown or cultivated well contributes to its guna (properties) and karma (bodily effects). Cultivation of millets is mainly in dry lands. Irrigation needed is also less and that makes them drought resistant. These makes them laghu and rooksha. The former affects in easy digestion. Smaller size of the grains contributes to this. Rooksha-guna reduces snigdha dominant body factors like kapha, medas etc.
Though all the samhithas mention the trna-dhaanya as a group, later nighantus describe the individual properties. As ingredient in yogas, therapeutic diet they are in aayurveda since centuries. The year is an occasion for the ayurvedic fraternity to understand more on the use of millets and incorporate them into practice.

References:-
1.https://www.fao.org/millets-2023/en
2.https://www.millets.res.in/pub/2018/The_Story_of_Millets.pdf
3. https://www.millets.res.in/
4. https://www.nabard.org/international-year-of-millets-2023.aspx
5. https://aarogyamastu.in/