Priyanka Gandhi visits Padma Shri Cheruvayal Raman

Wayanad (Kerala), Sep 15 (PTI) Congress leader and Wayanad MP Priyanka Gandhi visited Padma Shri awardee Cheruvayal Raman at his residence in Mananthavady here on Monday.

According to Congress sources, she spent nearly two and a half hours at the home of Raman.

Raman, a tribal rice farmer, is famously known as ‘Nellachan’ for his in-depth knowledge on agriculture, especially paddy cultivation.

He preserves over 50 indigenous varieties of paddy.

This year, he was designated as ‘Professor of Practice’ by Kerala Agriculture University, and he teaches students about traditional agrarian practices.

Priyanka walked through the vast paddy fields and observed traditional farming methods. She also listened to native folk songs.

Later, she examined around sixty different varieties of seeds and enquired about the cultivation methods.

Before leaving, she tried out the traditional bow and arrows of the tribal community that Raman held at his house.

Priyanka is in Wayanad as part of a week-long visit.

On Sunday, she had met several prominent personalities from cultural, literary, and religious spheres in her constituency. PTI CORR/TBA TBA KH