Haryana Agri Dept increases DSR target to 4 lakh acres

To conserve groundwater, the Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare Department has increased the direct seeded rice (DSR) target to 4 lakh acres for the 2025 kharif season.

In comparison, the target was 3.2 lakh acres during the last paddy season and 2.25 lakh acres in 2023.

This scheme would be implemented across 12 major paddy-growing districts, said Dr Wazir Singh, Deputy Director Agriculture (DDA), Karnal. The department has directing all DDAs to make efforts to achieve the target and hold workshops.

An incentive of Rs 4,500 per acre would be provided by the government to encourage the adoption of the DSR, while earlier it was Rs 4,000 per acre. Ambala’s target has been increased to 15,000 acres from 12,000 acres last season, while Fatehabad’s target has increased to 75,000 acres, up from 25,000 acres. The targets for Hisar, Jind and Kaithal have been reduced to 10,000 acres each, from 25,000, 20,000 and 18,000 acres, respectively. The target for Karnal had remained unchanged at 30,000 acres, said the DDA.

Kurukshetra’s target has been increased to 30,000 acres from 22,000 acres, while Panipat and Rohtak’s target has been set at 25,000 acres each, up from 15,000 acres, respectively. Sirsa has seen a major hike, with its target set at 1,40,000 acres, up from 85,000 acres last season. Sonepat’s target has been reduced to 15,000 acres from 20,000 acres last year. Yamunanagar’s target has increased to 15,000 acres from 5,000 acres, the DDA maintained.

Dr Singh claimed that the DSR method does not required flooded fields for paddy seeding. Instead, rice crops are sown like other cereals, pulses and oilseed crops in a “vattar” field, which is prepared after pre-sowing irrigation.

He said the DSR method saved nearly 30 per cent of groundwater used for irrigation, compared to the traditional transplanting method.

“In a review of the last year’s performance, the department decided to increase the target to enhance groundwater conservation. He said the department had set a target of deploying 500 DSR machines this season.