Villages not burning stubble to be rewarded

Tribune News Service

Ambala, July 22

DK Behera, Director, Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Department, Haryana, said on Friday that the villages that don’t burn the crop residue would be rewarded by the state government.

Besides this, the government would also reward the farmers who mix the residue back into the soil using advanced agricultural machines instead of burning it.

He was addressing farmers and Revenue Department officials on the occasion of a crop residue management programme organised by the department at Krishi Vigyan Kendra in Ambala city.

Earlier, he handed over the keys of a tractor and agricultural equipment to farmer Gurdeep Singh of Dhanauri village who has established a custom-hiring centre.

Behera said that 900 custom-hiring centres are being set up in the state this year to ensure the availability of modern agricultural machinery for straw management. So far, 850 such centres have been set up, he said.

He said that the Centre has provided a budget of Rs 137 crore to Haryana for crop residue management. Out of this, Rs 72 crore are being given as grants to the groups and farmers buying such equipment.

On an average, 70 lakh tonnes of straw is produced in the state every year. Of this, 40 lakh tonnes belong to basmati varieties and 30 lakh tonnes to other varieties.

The production per acre can increase by 20 per cent if, instead of burning the straw, it is mixed in the soil with the help of the agricultural equipment, reports have indicated.