Transforming okra (Abelmoschus esculentus L.) waste in to wealth: Empowering farmers through sustainable handicrafts Pant Kiran1,*, Sharma A K2 1Programme Assistant, GBPUA&T, KVK, Dehradun (Uttarakhand) 2Professor, GBPUA&T, KVK, Dehradun (Uttarakhand) *Corresponding Author's Email - kiranpant17@gmail.com
Online published on 3 May, 2025. Abstract Okra (Abelmoschus esculentus L.), belonging to the family Malvaceae, is commonly known as Lady's finger, as well as by several vernacular names, bhindi, okura, quimgombo, bamia, gombo, and lai long ma, in the different geographical regions of its cultivation. Keeping in mind the importance of Handicraft and large production of Okra in the plains of Uttarkhand ,the indigenous technologies of making handicraft products was blend with okra fiber and beautiful products were made. One hundred and fifty women from different villages namely Charba, Atenbag, Sherpur, Bhood and Dhalipur from two blocks of Dehradun district who were already exposed to indigenous technology of handicraft products making of other fibers like Rambaans, Bheemal and Nettle, were given training about the extraction and making of handicraft products of okra fiber. The okra plants were bundled comprising of 70-100 plants. Each of these bundles was immersed in a concrete tank containing soft water and the stalks of the plant were tapped slightly with wooden hammer for removal of soft pulp, the fibers were separated thoroughly from the pulp, washed, combed and exposed to sunlight for two days until the odor was removed from fibers and used for handicraft making. Different parameters for acceptance and further adoption were studied so that further strategies could be planned to popularize among the farming communities. and it was observed that majority of the respondents learned this craft from elder family member (52.00%). Interest in craft and also to utilize free time were the two common reason for learning the craft of handicraft product making. Quality and fineness of okra fiber as fully accepted by majority of the respondents. The obstacle faced while adopting handicraft as occupation were also studied so that future strategies could be made after rectifying the problems. Top Keywords Fiber, Handicraft, Okra, Processing, Sustainable. Top |