CHANDIGARH: Endorsing the majority consensus emerged after the detailed deliberations with progressive farmers and Agriculture experts from across the state, the Punjab Chief Minister Mr. Parkash Singh Badal today gave a go ahead to fine tune the policy for ‘Management & Utilization of Paddy Straw’ with a thrust on a multi-pronged integrated approach backed by full support for providing necessary farm machinery to farmers on subsidy to promote the concept of in-situ management of paddy straw.

Concluding the two-day ‘Stakeholders’ Consultative Conference on Management and Utilization of Paddy Straw’ jointly organized by the Departments of Science & Technology and Agriculture, the Chief Minister said that the concept of re-incorporation of paddy straw would enormously help the farmers to retain the fertility of soil besides ensuring a environment-friendly solution for efficient disposal of paddy residue which otherwise was posing a major threat to the ecology of the state. He said this farmer friendly approach would relieve them of the problem of paddy burning thereby enabling them to sow the next crop without any hardships.

Mr. Badal revealed that according to the Agriculture experts and Soil Scientists, the in-situ mechanism of paddy straw would result in 25% reduction in the fertilizers consumption thereby accruing a profit of nearly 400 crore annually to the state farmers. Conceding the demand of farmers, the Chief Minister agreed to convene a meeting of combined harvesters manufactures to ensure the installation of Straw Management System (SMS) on the harvesters to facilitate the farmers for making use of happy seeder for sowing wheat without any glitches as the SMS would beneficial in uniform dispersal of paddy straw in the fields.  

The Chief Minister asked the agriculture department to launch a vigorous publicity campaign to familiarize the farmers with the  various ongoing schemes/projects especially related to subsidy on agriculture machinery, drip & sprinkle irrigation besides solar power tubewells so that majority of farmers could be benefited from these farmer-oriented schemes.  Likewise, he also emphasized the need to live telecast of such conferences so that several farmers could update their knowledge by sitting at homes with the experiences and expertise of various progressive farmers and agriculture scientists.   

Mr. Badal also directed the Punjab State Farmers’ Commission to grant subsidy to all the applicants for the purchase of farm implements especially happy seeders, paddy straw reapers and rotavators.  The Chief Minister also directed the agriculture department to get installed small maize dryers across the state so that small and marginal farmers could be immensely benefited. 

Prominent amongst others who were present in the meeting included former Minister Jathedar Tota Singh, Chief Parliamentary Secretary Mr. NK Sharma, Chairman Punjab State Farmers Commission Dr. GS Kalkat, Financial Commissioner Development Mr. Suresh Kumar, Principal Secretary to Chief Minister Mr. SK Sandhu, Special Principal Secretary Mr. Gaggandip Singh Brar, Secretary Science & Technology Mrs. Seema Jain, Commissioner Agriculture Dr. BS Sidhu, Director Agriculture Dr. Mangal Singh Sandhu, Chairman Punjab State Pollution Board Mr.Ravinder Singh,  and Director Horticulture Dr. Lajwinder Singh Brar.