ODISHA, India — Thirty-nine-year-old Kamla Seth grew up in the lush forests of Odisha’s Sundargarh district collecting and marketing nontimber forest produce, or NTFP, to make ends meet.
She, along with the local tribal population in the region, acquired necessities such as wood, oil, and food from the forests, apart from the produce they picked for sale, such as gooseberry, mahua, and tendu leaves used to wrap local cigarettes.
Seth said it was the only life that she and her ancestors knew.
Printing articles to share with others is a breach of our terms and conditions and copyright policy. Please use the sharing options on the left side of the article. Devex Pro members may share up to 10 articles per month using the Pro share tool ( ).
About the author
Cheena Kapoorcheenakapoor
Cheena Kapoor is a Delhi-based independent journalist and photographer focusing on health, environmental, and social issues. Her work has been published by The Guardian, The Telegraph, Reuters, BBC, and Al Jazeera, among many others. Her long-term project "Forgotten daughters" about abandoned women in Indian mental asylums has been widely published and exhibited across Europe. Follow Cheena on Twitter and Instagram.
