Village communal oil press machine (India)

This very noisy diesel-powered press was used by the villagers to crush some sort of seeds that they grow (not sure what seed it is), and produce oil. They then sell the oil and the residual pressed seeds (that looks like a thick paste).

If you can identify what seed they are crushing (based on the village location), please post a Comment!

This seems to be the only production of this village that is being sold outside (other than occasional livestock).

The villagers were very proud of this machine.

This photo is part of a series that I took in a small rural Indian village.

For more info about this village and to view the other photos of this village, go to the photo album.