Saving water: Agriculture Dept plans to give a big push to DSR technique

Tribune News Service

Jalandhar, May 2

The Agriculture Department is gearing up to encourage farmers to adopt direct seeding of rice (DSR) method after the government announced to give Rs 1,500 aid to the farmers who would sow paddy by using DSR technique. The aim is to prevent groundwater depletion. Unlike traditional method, DSR doesn’t need much water and it also cuts labour cost.

In Jalandhar, 25,000 hectares of paddy was sown with DSR technique last year, while two years ago, around 15,000 hectares of paddy was sown using this method.

As per the information, last year, due to fear of failure of the technique, some farmers who used DSR technique destroyed the paddy sown on around 5,000 hectares.

Chief Agriculture Officer Surinder Singh said the farmers who tried using the technique but could not succeed would be given special attention. “We will focus on them so that they use the technique again this time. The departmental staff will help them,” he said.

This year the department is determined to increase the paddy sowing up to 50,000 hectare with DSR. Camps to sensitise the farmers have already started at village level.

In DSR technique, the seed is sown directly and no puddling is required which ultimately saves labour cost.

Lakhwinder Singh, a farmer from Turna village in Lohian, said he adopted the method four years ago. “If done properly, the yield using this method is very good,” he said adding that the government’s announcement of giving Rs 1,500 would also give a push to more farmers towards adopting this technique.

Recently, a district-level farmer training camp and farm exhibition was held by the Agriculture and Farmer Welfare Department, Kapurthala, where it was discussed that the responsible use water as a natural resource, direct paddy seeding was the need of the hour.