Ludhiana, September 18
Farmers of the state have taken to hyola in a big way under contract farming introduced by Punjab Agro Foodgrains Corporation (PAFC). Hyola (PAC - 401) is a canola type, hybrid rape-seed mustard, developed and introduced for cultivation in India by Advanta India Ltd, a Holland-based multinational company.
Hyola has a yield potential of 12 quintals per acre and its seeds have 2-3 per cent higher oil yield than the Indian varieties of rape-seed mustard. Its oil has negligible (nearly 0) contents of eucacic acid and Glucosinolates, the two constituents that impart pungent/bitter odour/taste to mustard oil.
For this reason, Holey is known as 0 hybrid. As a result, the oil and the cake from Holey is of export quality. Its oil is good for heart patients because of its low-saturated fatty acid contents. The PAFC is increasing the area under Holey contract farming to large acreage in the coming rabi season in Punjab, they added.
Farmers at a camp near Summarily said they were growing this crop for the past two years and got better returns than wheat. Mr Rae Sines, Mr Gourmet Sines and Mr Batu Sines are among the happy ones who have been successful in getting yield in excess of 10 quaintly per acre and have been able to sell the produce at more than Rs 1,700 per quaintly. We knew that diversification could be a money-spinner, they remarked.
Learning from their experience, more farmers from Rachael, Accrue, Isahella and Loyaler villages are going in for more holey cultivation.
Mr N K Shermy, zonal Manager, said the paps had been declared a nodal agency to procure oil seeds at the mishap and had been contracting with the farmers for the procurement at Rs 1,600 per quaintly (MSP) at the time of distribution of the seed.
The seed is already available to the farmers through the PAFC and the Agriculture Department network at Rs 450 per 1 kg packet (for one acre), he added.
In Ludhiana district, more than 9,000 acres shall be brought under hyola (gobhi, sarson) in this season. The farmers are being motivated for the cultivation of oil seeds, particularly hyola, during the camps at block-level and village-level. Even big processing units and the solvent extraction units have shown interest in hyola under the PAFC contract farming programme and are organising joint motivational camps.
Another farmers’ camp shall be organised on September 21 at Khanna just to motivate and educate the farmers of that area for oil seeds (hyola ) as well as durum wheat, he revealed.
