Punjab News Express/Gurpreet Singh Mehak
FATEHGARH SAHIB: Strongly condemning the reported statement of Punjab Agricultural University (PAU), Ludhiana Vice-Chancellor’ statement wherein he blames farmers for whitefly attack on cotton in south Punjab, Bharatiya Kisan Union (Ekta-Dakauda) today said that the statement is nothing than more a candid confession of failure of his own institute and battery of hundreds of scientists and extension workers deputed by it across state of Punjab.
BKU also condemned PAU VC Dr B S Dhillon’s remark that farmers expect a lot from university but are not ready to pay even a single penny for research.
Quoting PAU VC Dr BS Dhillon’s remark wherein he said that farmers believe more in arhtiyas (middleman) while using seeds and sprays than PAU scientists, union’s state general secretary Jagmohan Singh Patiala and senior office bearer Dr Darshan Pal said, “This may be true that good number of small and marginal farmers, who can’t even read simple publications of university, consult arhtiyas to purchase seeds, fertilizers, insecticides and pesticides. But who is responsible for this? Don’t the university, which was established more than half a century ago, to educate farmers of the state should bear major share of responsibility for this crises?
Questioning the work culture of scientists and extension workers deputed by the varsity at district and block levels, the union leaders added, “Hardly any PAU field staffer bothers to move out to village to make the peasantry aware about such issues, which are highly technical and beyond understanding of naïve farmers. PAU staff deputed in Krishi Vigyan Kendras (KVK) in each district is more concerned about organizing annual agriculture fairs and selling routine seeds than educating farmers.”
The leaders also reacted to VC’s statement that “it has become farmer’s nature to expect everything from the government when they themselves are not ready to pay for research and termed it insensitive gesture towards crises ridden peasantry.
“His statement is highly insensitive and clearly indicates disconnection between agriculture scientists and debt-ridden peasantry. Head of one of the most sacred agriculture institute is demanding money from farmers to conduct research. This despite the fact that his own institute has conducted several surveys and proved that Punjab peasantry is in neck deep crises and is committing suicides at a large scale. Moreover, the grant that is being given to PAU is money of people of Punjab”, they said