A 35-year-old teacher-turned-farmer from a remote village in Mizoram’s Lawngtlai district will receive a United Nations award in Rome for her contribution to agriculture and rural development, after turning strawberry cultivation into a profitable livelihood.
Z T Lalrithangi, popularly known as Pi Mari-i, from Sangau in south Mizoram’s Lawngtlai district, has been selected among the “FAO 100 Women Heroes in Agrifood Systems and Rural Development” by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the UN as part of the International Year of Women Farmers 2026.
Lalrithangi said she is among more than 600 women from 131 countries nominated and among 100 selected for the recognition, and one of two women from India.
Lalrithangi said she was informed about her selection and invited to receive the award by FAO through mail on September 21.
Before this, the state horticulture department had already informed her of her selection for the award, she added.
She will receive the award during the World Food Forum at FAO headquarters in Rome from October 12 to 16.
Lalrithangi began experimenting with strawberry cultivation in 2024 after learning about successful growers in neighbouring Siaha district.
Starting with about 1,000 saplings on a farm around 5 km from Sangau, she expanded the cultivation and now grows more than 10,000 strawberry plants on two hectares, alongside avocado, banana and other fruits and vegetables.
“We started and experimented with the plantation in 2024 in a small area after learning about successful strawberry cultivation by some farmers in Siaha district. After earning about Rs 1.5 lakh in the initial year, we thought it was worth continuing and expanded the cultivation,” said Lalrithangi.
She earned more than Rs 10 lakh from strawberry cultivation in 2025 and also processes some of the produce into strawberry wine for sale in local markets.
She was earlier adjudged the best farmer from Lawngtlai district at the Mizoram Horti Fair 2026.
A postgraduate in Sociology from IGNOU, Lalrithangi had previously worked as a private-school teacher and appeared in several competitive examinations in search of a government job before turning to farming.
“Initially, after my graduation and completion of my master’s degree, I gave several competitive examinations for jobs but failed. Then I thought a government job should not be my only focus to earn a living, as there are other ways to have a good income if a person really works hard,” she said.
“Although my husband can support our family, I asked myself what the purpose of my education was unless I became self-dependent. All these thoughts motivated me to switch to farming,” she added.
Lalrithangi said she initially approached the government for assistance to start strawberry cultivation but was told that the crop was outside the department’s project.
She took the setback as a challenge and decided to proceed on her own, although the government later extended assistance to her in different ways.
Without formal training in strawberry cultivation, she relied largely on farming tutorials on the internet and lessons from other farmers.
She said she often studied cultivation techniques late at night while raising her three children, the youngest of whom is four.
“I used to read and study from the internet, particularly farming technique tutorials available on YouTube. As a mother to three children, I have little time. So, I studied until late at night and sometimes while breastfeeding,” she said.
Her husband, who works at a state-run primary school, and her parents-in-law have supported her farming activities.
Apart from hiring labourers, Lalrithangi and her husband regularly stay at the farm over weekends.
“It is the collective support of my family that brings the farming to fruition and then the global recognition,” she said.
Lalrithangi said she was happy to be selected for the international honour and attributed the recognition to God’s guidance, the support of her family and the state Horticulture Department.
She is currently preparing mandatory travel documents for her trip to Rome.
-PTI
