Old, but toddy tappers say no to 'climb down'

"Toddy is good for health, clears kidney stones. It has more demand in the summer season, as it soothes the body in this season," affirms Manda Srinivas Goud, a toddy tapper as he walks to the nearest palm tree to extract sap and sell it fresh to locals or passers-by.

Srinivas Goud is one amongst the few toddy tappers who are from the older generation, still stuck to their ancestral profession, which still amuses the onlookers.

Early in the morning along with his gear, Goud prepares to ascend the tree top and climbs down slowly with fresh toddy.

Palm toddy, locally known as 'thati kallu,' is one of the traditional beverages that people still prefer to cool off the summer stress. Drinking fresh toddy is not just a tradition in Telangana, but is also considered to be very healthy – when consumed in limited quantities. Of course, there's no medical data to corroborate such claims. Neighborhood people form the core customers for tappers. People from city flock to nearby districts to savour the much-cherished drink either as Neera (fresh sap) or Kallu (palm wine).

Even as rapid urbanisation is wiping out palm trees in the city limits, Goud, who hails from Karimnagar, has 6 trees as his share in Quthbullapur. Each tree yields 3-4 litres a day and he sells it for Rs 100 a litre. He earns around Rs 1,000-1,500 a day during the season. There are only 30 trees in the area and 5 people share 6 trees each. While organised sales take place at toddy compounds in towns and urban areas, many tappers carry on independently.

Sales were hard hit for over a year due to lockdown curbs. Toddy tappers struggled hard to eke out a living and support their families in those crunch times. However, people like Goud cannot give up their profession, though he has 3 children who are engineers. However, he sighs as his would be the last generation to dwell amid toddy trees.

In urban areas, during March to June, toddy tappers sell 'thalli kattu' in the morning and engage in daily wage works like construction labour to boost their income.

Srinivas Goud sadly says that due to urbanisation trees are reducing. The community got nod to plant saplings on government lands and on roadside. However, they not enjoy the fruits of their labour as it takes long for the trees to grow.