Organic basmati sown on 700-acre, farmers to get bonus from exporters

Fazilka, September 18

Organic basmati was sown in about 700 acres of land here by using a fertiliser prepared from paddy stubble. The farmers responsible for it shall get an additional bonus of Rs150 per quintal by the exporters.

A seminar on the production of chemical-free basmati, vegetables and wheat was organised here today by farmer-friendly Sampuran Agri Ventures, which promotes chemical-free production. To its credit, the company has introduced the chemical-free fertiliser made of paddy stubble using Nitrogen water. The motive behind it is to persuade the farmers to shun stubble burning.

The organiser of the seminar, a farmer, Sanjeev Nagpal said the basmati variety of paddy and wheat carrying high chemical content had been rejected by some countries, including Nepal. The grains produced by using chemical-free fertilisers would be offered a green mark, which had been made mandatory for its export by the World Health Organisation (WHO).

The DC said the farmers who would use these fertilisers would be offered separate counters in the grain markets to get remunerative price of their produce. A special camp would be held on September 23 here to apprise the farmers in this regard. — OC