Information of Ragi (Nagali, Finger Millet)

Common name: Finger Millet, African Millet, Coracan, Natcheny, Ragi • Assamese: মৰুবা ধান maruba dhan • Bengali: marwa • Gujarati: બાવટો bavato, નાચણી nachni, નાગલી nagali • Hindi: मंडुआ mandua, मंडवा mandwa, मड़ुआ marua, मड़ुवा maruwa, रागी ragi • Kannada: ರಾಗಿ ragi • Konkani: नांचणी nanchani • Malayalam: രാഗി ragi • Marathi: नाचणी nachani, नागली nagali • Punjabi: ਮੰਦਲ mandal, ਮੰਢੁਲ mandhul, ਮੁੰਡਲ mundal • Rajasthani: रागी ragi • Nepali: मड़ुवा maruwa • Oriya: mandia • Sanskrit: मधुलिका madhulika, मट्टकम् mattakam, नृत्यकुण्डलक nrutyakundala • Tamil: ஆரியம் aariyam, இராகி iraki, கேழ்வரகு kel-varaku, கேப்பை keppai • Telugu: రాగి ragi, తమిదలు tamidalu • Urdu: منڐوا mandwa, مڙوا maruwa, راگی ragi 

  

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  

 

• Botanical Name: Eleusine coracana (L.) Gaertn

• Family: Poaceae (Grass Family)

• Subfamily: Chloridoideae

• Finger millet is originally native to the Ethiopian highlands and was introduced into India approximately 4000 years ago. It is highly adaptable to higher elevations and is grown in the Himalayas up to an altitude of 2300 m.
• It is the most important small millet in the tropics (12% of global millet area) and is cultivated in more than 25 countries in Africa (eastern and southern) and Asia (from Near East to Far East), predominantly as a staple food grain. The major producers are Uganda, India, Nepal, and China. Finger millet has high yield potential (>10 t/ha under optimum irrigated conditions) and grain stores very well.
• In India, it is cultivated on 1.8 million ha, with average yields of 1.3 t/ha; The major finger millet growing states are Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu.
• On the basis of inflorescence morphology the species E. coracana is classified into two subspecies (africana and coracana). The subspecies africana classified into races: Africana, and Spontanea, and subspecies coracana classified into races: Elongata, Plana, Compacta, and Vulgaris. The race Elongata is divided into subraces: Laxa, Reclusa, Sparsa, race Plana is divided into subraces: Seriata, Confundere, Grandigluma, race Compacta has no subraces and race Vulgaris is divided into subraces: Liliacea, Stellata, Incurvata and Digitata. 

Nutrition

• Ragi is Gluten-Free. Finger millet is especially valuable as it contains the amino acid methionine, which is lacking in the diets of hundreds of millions of the poor who live on starchy staples such as cassava, plantain, polished rice, or maize meal. Finger millet can be ground and cooked into cakes, puddings or porridge. The grain is made into a fermented drink (or beer) in Nepal and in many parts of Africa. The straw from finger millet is used as animal fodder. It is also used for a flavored drink in festivals.

• Nutritional value of finger millet per 100g

Protein 7.6g

Fat 1.5g

Carbohydrate 88g

Calcium 370mg

Vitamins - A: 0.48mg

Thiamine (B1): 0.33mg

Riboflavin (B2): 0.11mg

Niacin: (B3) 1.2mg

            Fiber 3g