50% Sultanpur Lodhi farmers go for direct seeding of paddy

Our Correspondent

Kapurthala, June 11

Known for the production of vegetables across the state, Sultanpur Lodhi has again showed the way to the farming community with nearly 50 per cent of direct paddy sowing during the current season. Under the technical guidance of agriculture and farmers’ welfare department, the upbeat farmers from this area have changed the whole scenario of traditional method of paddy transplantation as they brought nearly 16,000 hectare area out of total 34,000 hectare paddy area, under direct paddy sowing.

Agricultural Development Officer at Sultanpur Lodhi, Dr Jaspal Singh Dhanju, said the farmers of this belt are very keen to adopt new techniques and seeds, resulting in the production of many cash crops like potato, tomato, maize, bell pepper etc. This year they went for direct sown of paddy and that too with a little modification in zero till drill, which was mainly used for wheat sowing, he added. Terming it as a giant step to control the cultivation expenses as well as to save the ground water, Dr Jaspal Singh said the biggest challenge was to provide a sense of security and belief in the success of direct paddy sowing and for that the department has established direct contact with all the progressive farmers in the area besides ensuring the physical presence of department official in the fields at the time of sowing. Baldev Singh from Talwandi Chaudriyan village said he started the direct sowing seven years ago and this time he opted for direct sowing in 450 acres. Working on the successful trials of direct paddy sowing, farmer Harman Singh of Nurowal village said he used this technique in his entire land holding. On the other hand, the owners of paddy sowing machines, Ajaypal Singh and Yuvraj Singh of Sarai Jattan village, term it a great success story as they have sown more than 650 acres on rent basis. Dr Jaspal Singh further said after the sowing of paddy, farmers must remain vigilant to control the weed in field.