He was deprived of salary and eventually starved to death in 1961 during the three-year famine, leaving his wife in hardship alone to bring up their two daughters.

Also, the tubers can be left underground for up to three years, so if drought kills a corn or bean crop, the farmer's family can still fend off starvation.

The famine did not last three years, as is often thought, but five years, starting in early 1958 and ending by late 1962.