PATIALA:In order to keep environment safe and reduce air pollution, the Department of Agriculture and Farmers' Welfare has been sensitizing the farmers under Mission Tandrust Punjab launched by Punjab Government, said Chief Agriculture Officer, Dr Jaswinderpal Singh Grewal. Under this mission, various teams of the department have been contributing through awareness camps, exhibition plants and wall paintings in the district to prevent burning of paddy straw, as a result of which many farmers have come forward to adopt the environment friendly initiatives, he added.
A similar progressive farmer is Kulwant Singh of Jansui village, who has been successfully cultivating about 30 acres of land under his ownership and on lease, without burning straw for the last three years. Sharing his experience, he said that he was disposing of straw waste using newly developed farming techniques like Super Seeder, Zero Till Drill, Rotavator, Harrow and MB Plow. He said that the Department of Agriculture and Farmers' Welfare had also been providing 50 per cent subsidy on Super Seeder.
Kulwant Singh said that the incorporation of paddy straw residue in the field has increased the yield of the crop and has significantly reduced the additional cost of chemical fertilizers, sprays and labour. Also, there has been a dramatic increase in the fertility of the land. He said that he was feeling very proud to save the natural environment from being polluted and was encouraging other farmers to do the same. Besides it, Kulwant Singh also has a handsome earning from the allied activities of dairy.
Endorsing the efforts of Kulwant Singh, Chief Agriculture Officer, Dr Jaswinderpal Singh Grewal said that the massive campaign launched by the department to create awareness about the management of paddy straw residue has started to yield good results. He said that burning of straw adversely affected the fertility of the soil and polluted the environment badly besides harm to human beings. The department also provides various agricultural machinery to the farmers on subsidized rates for the proper management of straw waste so that the mission Tandrust Punjab initiated by Punjab government for a healthy lifestyle and environment could be achieved. He appealed to the farmers not to set fire to the straw and mix it in the fields so that the fertile land of Punjab could be saved.