Piggery in Meghalaya is an age old, traditional livelihood activity that has been the sole source of bread and butter for generations of households in the state. For some, this activity has provided fortune while for others, it has been just enough for sustenance. Whatever the case may be, piggery is an intrinsic part of the culture and history of the local people and has been so for many generations.
Typically, people in the state rear one or two pigs in their backyard as a secondary source of income, and sell them off once they mature or when in need of money. Pig rearing sheds in the backyard are a common site when strolling through rural or semi-urban areas. Financially, this activity has an advantage over others, as it is less labor intensive and has profitable returns when compared to most other livelihood activities. Traditionally, pigs are looked after by members of the household and are fed farm and kitchen wastes resulting in minimal input cost. Of course, these days there is a gradual shift to scientific methods of rearing with low cost and higher returns to farmers. Again, the biggest plus point of rearing pigs as a secondary source of income is its easy prospect of being sold off due to high demand for pigs in the market. This justifies that pigs are a quick cash reserve that can aid a family in times of need.
In Wapung Skur, a small village in East Jaintia Hills, a man named Sunshine Ryngkhlem has taken piggery to the next level and has reaped significant benefits from it not only in terms of monetary gains but also the overall development of his community. The village of Wapung Skur is located approximately 10 kms from the Deputy Commissioner’s Office in Khliehriat and most of its residents were directly or indirectly engaged in coal mining activities for livelihood. It may be mentioned that East Jaintia Hills has been a major coal belt for many years and also became a subject of controversy in the last few years due to the impact of unregulated mining in the area.
Ryngkhlem was no different from others in his area. He too worked as a daily laborer in one of the coal mines and roughly made around Rs. 3,000 to Rs 4,000 per month, just enough to support his family. However, as the issues of unregulated mining grew in the state, he became aware of the ill effects of unscientific coal mining and its impact on health. After much thought and consideration, he decided to leave his work in the coal mines. This decision was extremely tough for him as he had no other source of income and a family to feed.
In his younger days, Ryngkhlem spent most of his time helping his parents run a small piggery farm. This taught him a lot about piggery. So after leaving his job at the coal mines, piggery naturally became his first choice of livelihood. In the summer of 2006, he laid the foundation for his new venture on a small plot of land. Ryngkhlem started with two pigs. He reared them using simple approaches: basically relying on traditional methods of pig farming. Back then, many of his piglets would die soon after birth. That was a major setback and he needed to tackle the situation to reverse his loss of revenue.
With that view in mind, he registered himself with the Enterprise Facilitation Centre at Khliehriat on 23rd of September, 2013. Two years later, he was invited to participate in a ten-day training workshop at the Rural Resource and Training Centre (RRTC) in Umran, Ri Bhoi. There he learned about vaccination methods, proper feeding routines and sanitation. He also learned about the stages and lengths of gestation periods of domestic pigs, and the various factors that can affect pigs during these periods. Armed with new knowledge, Ryngkhlem returned home and decided to expand his farm. He started by purchasing fresh piglets from the department. He dedicated two hours in the mornings and two in the evenings to feed the pigs and clean the shed.
Months later, his hard work paid off. His 50 piglets grew up and were ready for sale. Besides that he also had 26 piglets which were also ready for sale. He sold the pigs for Rs. 15,000 each while the piglets fetched him Rs. 3,000 each. By 2015, his business started growing with profit margins in excess of Rs. 2 lakhs. He purchased more pigs and hired two workers who were paid a monthly salary of Rs. 3,000. Their work involved feeding the pigs twice daily, collecting locally available plants, wasted vegetables and water. Feed for the pigs included vegetables, fruits, kitchen waste and local plants.
Ryngkhlem owns more than 80 pigs in his shed including fully grown pigs. Death of pigs usually occurs during the months of May and June, caused typically by diseases or an unanticipated epidemic break out. In cases of sickness, Ryngkhlem consulted local veterinary doctors and bought prescribed medicines from Shillong. This aside, he has since developed his own medicinal remedies by making use of locally available herbs such as ‘sla Burma’, ‘sla soh priam’ and ‘sla sohphoh’ to treat wounds and diseases.
So far, there has been no pressing difficulty with the process of marketing related activities. Most of the consumers include farmers from the nearby villages of Pasyih, Sutnga and Lumshnong; while others visit his farm and buy pigs directly. One piglet is sold at Rs. 3,000 while a fully grown pig, depending on its size, is priced between Rs. 12,000 and Rs. 18,000.
As far as future plans are concerned, Ryngkhlem hopes to upscale and expand his mini farm, and turn it into a bigger facility cum training institute where aspiring entrepreneurs can enroll to be trained on the many facets of pig farming including productive farm management. He also hopes to set up poultry and beekeeping as additional activities. The long-term goal is for graduated trainees to become a part of this thriving piggery market complete with matching market linkages not limited to entrepreneurs in the district, but which can be accessible to all pig farmers from across the state.