Jalandhar district administration to give Rs 10-crore subsidy for crop residue management

Tribune News Service

Jalandhar, September 11

To eliminate the menace of stubble burning by providing hi-tech machinery to farmers on subsidy, the district administration will give subsidy of more than Rs 10 crore to the farmers to get hi-tech machines for in-situ management of crop residue scheme this year.

With the Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare Department extensively sensitised the farmers to shun stubble burning and manage the stubble with the machines, the department this year received 888 applications from farmers and 909 applications were submitted by farmers’ groups. Last year 287 applications were submitted individually and 232 were submitted by farmers’ groups, he said.

Divulging details, Deputy Commissioner Ghanshyam Thori said a draw was organised by the department in which 444 applications of individual farmers and 460 applications of farm groups/cooperative societies were selected.

He said the state government had started this scheme where the subsidy was being given to farmers on farm machinery used for managing paddy straw.

Under the scheme, individual farmers would get 50 per cent subsidy for purchase of happy seeders, paddy straw chopper, multure, hydraulic reversible MB plant, zero till drill, super SMS rotary slasher/shrub cutter.

There is a provision of 80 per cent subsidy for registered farmers groups or co-operative societies for opening custom hiring centres so that machinery can be used on rent by the farmers.

The Deputy Commissioner said the objective behind providing these types of equipment was to decompose the stubble in the field rather than burning as it would save the environment and improve the soil health.

Chief Agriculture Officer Dr Surinder Singh said due to the burning of paddy straw several major nutrients and other micro-nutrients of soil were destroyed adding that the burning of paddy straw produces several poisonous gases which harm human health.

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