DSR technique cost-effective, says Amritsar Deputy Commissioner

Amritsar, May 30

Deputy Commissioner Harpreet Singh Sudan encouraged farmers towards using the direct seeding of rice (DSR) technique by visiting agricultural fields near Ram Tirath here on Monday.

While listing the merits of the DSR technique, the DC said it has been scientifically proven that the rice sown with this technique consumes nearly 50 per cent of the water as compared to the traditional transplanting method.

He said the trial results have proven that the DSR fields have given the same yield. “This method of sowing rice not only gives the same amount of yield, but also helps in saving water,” he added.

Sudan said the state government was also giving farmers a financial aid of Rs 1,500 per acre for adopting the DSR technique. With the traditional transplanting method, the farmers have to spend around Rs 3,500 to Rs 5,000 per acre on labour, he added.

The DC added that if the cost of preparing the fields for transplantion is calculated, a farmer ends up spending around Rs 7,000. “On the other hand, the new DSR technique is not only cost effective, but also environment friendly,” he added.

Sudan said field officers of the Agriculture Department were regularly visiting villages to impart technical knowledge to them about the technique. He said the farmers were also welcome to consult senior officials of the Agriculture Department regarding their queries.

Farmers told to adopt water-saving method in Tarn Taran

Tarn Taran: Deputy Commissioner Moneesh Kumar told farmers to adopt direct seeding of rice (DSR) system to help stop depletion of groundwater in the state. He was interacting with farmers in Mallhia village on Monday in the fields of progressive farmers to start the sowing with direct seeding method. The DC said this system not only checks water table from going down, but it saves money on labour expenditure as well. He said the state government was giving a financial aid to the farmers, who are adopting this system by giving Rs 1,500 per acre. He said the state government had launched a kisan web portal http://agrimachinerypb.com to despatch the amount of Rs 1,500 directly to their accounts. Jagwinder Singh, Chief Agriculture Officer (CAO), said the department was asking farmers to adopt DSR as it saves water to the tune of 15 per cent. A progressive farmer, Ravinder Singh Gill, said he was adopting the system as it was proving more profitable with high yield and saving money as well. OC