Nepal Magar Sangh Madhesh Samiti is the Madhesh Province committee of the national federation of the Magar, one of Nepal’s largest Indigenous nationalities, based at Hariwan Municipality-8, Purano Bazar, Sarlahi. Its DGM Nepal second-batch sub-project commercialises marcha, the traditional herbal fermentation starter used across Nepal to brew millet and rice-based beverages. Marcha is made by blending rice or grain flour with a mix of wild and cultivated plants; documented Nepali practice draws on dozens of species, with studies in the western Terai recording around twenty plants used by local communities. This makes marcha a genuine non-timber forest product enterprise rooted in Indigenous knowledge. The grant is expected to fund a hygienic production space, drying and packaging equipment, quality standardisation and market linkage. The sub-project aligns closely with DGM Nepal’s stated interest in promoting Indigenous traditional skills and livelihoods, while adding value to forest plant resources without destructive harvesting.
