The Cereals. 



89 



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Ragi. 



Eleusine coracana, Gaertn. 



Ifintf. — Natclini, Nachani, Nagli, Mandua, Maruya. Beng. — Mania, Modua. 

 Oud/i^-M.\nA\ia.. Punjab— Ma.nA&\, Chalodra. Punjab and Bengal Hills— Koda., 



Kodom. Himdlaya — Koda. 

 Deccan and South India — Ragi. Tamil — Kaywur. Telugu — Kawaru, Sodi, 



Ponassa. Sinhalese — Puta-tana, Kurakkan. 

 Sanskrit — R aj ika. 



This semi-erect to decumbent native grass belongs to the 

 tribe Chloridese. It is a fairly productive rainy-weather crop 

 for light soils ; it may be grown almost upon stones and gravel. 

 It yields from 5 to 6 maunds of grain per acre upon the hills, 

 12 to 14 maunds in the plains, if carefully cultivated and weeded. 

 It is the staple grain of the Mysore country ; sometimes it is 

 there stored in pits and will keep good for years. It is frequently 

 grown with summer-rice, ripening sooner, and thus affording 

 earlier relief in times of scarcity ; the straw is used as fodder. 



Eleusine aegyptiaca, a closely-allied species found wild on 

 the road-sides of the Punjab and North-West Provinces, and 

 indeed throughout Upper India, yields a poor unpalatable grain 

 which, in times of scarcity, is occasionally collected and eaten. 

 This species is common in the warmer parts of Ceylon. 



Composition of RAof. 



The nutrient-ratio is here 1:13, the nutrient-value 84. The 

 percentage of phosphoric acid in the whole grains is about o"4. 



Generally, this millet is sold at a cheaper rate than any 

 other; in some places, in ordinary seasons, 130 to 140 lbs. of 

 it are procurable for about two shillings, and it is looked upon 

 as a famine food, to which recourse is had only in times of 



