Workshops held at Khalsa College to promote use of ‘black gold’ in farming

Amritsar, December 14

A team of agriculture experts at Khalsa College has been conducting a series of workshops-cum-training sessions for teachers, students and farmers to promote vermicomposting and adoption of sustainable practices of farm waste disposal.

“Vermicomposting can be applied to kitchen gardens, potted plants and other processes,” said Dr Mehal Singh, Principal, Khalsa College. The eight-day workshop was conducted under a programme on environmental education in collaboration with Punjab State Council for Science & Technology, Chandigarh, and the Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, in which about 350 government school teachers of the district were given training in making vermicompost. Technical and working methods were highlighted by experts from different institutions.

Highlighting the main changes in the farming environment of Punjab, Dr Saroj Arora, agriculture scientist from GNDU, said such workshops are the need of the hour. Dr Rajan Bhatt from Farmer Development Centre, Nag Kalan, and Dr Saroj conducted the workshop. “Earthworms eat cow dung, vegetables and agricultural residues and convert them into good compost which is called black gold. Since cow dung, shade, an airy place and water are the primary requirements for vermicomposting, it can be easily done and is suitable for our environment,” she said.

Dr Rajan, who has been conducting workshops for farmers, said that they are small in size and live on the upper layer of the land but their fertility rate is high. “They live for about 28 months. It consumes 90 per cent organic matter and 10 per cent soil. Their functioning remains good at 25 to 30 degree Celsius temperature and 30-40 per cent humidity. These factors make them good replacement for the otherwise polluted farm waste disposal methods.”

Another expert, Dr Jasjit Kaur, Chief of Zoology Department, and Dr Jaswinder Singh, Programme Coordinator and Principal Investigator, urged the farmers to acquire proper knowledge regarding the said method and adopt it. He said that the fertiliser prepared from it will help in the growth of plants. “Along with the increase in crop yield, we are talking about improvement in the physical structure of the soil, development of plant roots, increase in water holding capacity of the soil, elimination of organic waste, increase in fertility of soil and also an increase in the number of microorganisms in soil here. Benefits accrue like freedom from overcrowding, toxic chemicals, abundance of nutrients and prevention of plant diseases etc,” said Dr Jaswinder Singh.