“Our hard work was going to waste.”

Every year after the harvest, farmer Verazo Rhakho from Thuvopisu village in Nagaland would watch crates of leftover kiwi, tomatoes, and plums spoil.

“We had no electricity to run dryers or refrigerators. Watching all that produce rot was heartbreaking,” he shares. For Verazo and many like him, the emotional toll was only part of the loss. The financial damage from spoiled produce cut deep.

In nearby Dzulhami village, 74-year-old Nepruzu Keyho recalls his own struggle. “We used to dry turmeric, chillies, and medicinal plants under the sun. But rain or insects would ruin everything. It was a long, tiring process that often ended in disappointment.” Their stories reflect a larger reality — traditional methods of drying and storing harvests are failing, especially in villages without steady electricity.

In many parts of Nagaland’s hilly terrain, poor infrastructure leaves farmers with few options. Crops are grown with care, only to decay before they can be sold. But in the village of Porba, a gentle shift is underway. One young man is helping change the story.

At just 26, Swuyievezo Dzudo has built a low-cost solar dryer — a simple, electricity-free device that’s helping farmers preserve their produce, reduce waste, and earn better incomes. His idea is offering a path forward that relies not on power grids or big machinery, but on sunlight, local materials, and listening to the needs of his community.

From botany to the barnyard: A scholar returns home

When Swuyievezo Dzudo came back to his village of Porba after finishing his postgraduation studies from St Joseph University, Dimapur, he wasn’t looking for a job in the city — he was looking for ways to help farmers like the ones he grew up around.

Back in Porba, he began spending time with farmers, listening to their daily struggles. And somewhere in those conversations, he asked what they did with the leftover harvest. “Most told me they had no reliable electricity, making it almost impossible to preserve their surplus crops properly. This led to huge losses, as the excess would simply rot or be turned into compost.”

With infrastructure lagging far behind, many hilly parts of Nagaland still face severe power shortages — and when electricity is available, it’s often too erratic to rely on. As Swuyievezo listened to the farmers, this recurring challenge kept surfacing. Over time, it became clear to him that any real solution would need to work without relying on power at all.

That’s when he began exploring the idea of building a solar dryer — something simple, affordable, and effective that could help

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