13 farmers honoured during Kisan, Pashu Palan melas

On the first day of the Kisan Mela and Pashu Palan Mela, 13 progressive farmers were honoured for their exemplary contributions to modern agriculture, organic farming and horticulture by Punjab Agricultural University (PAU) and Guru Angad Dev Veterinary and Animal Sciences University (GADVASU).

Advertisement

Farmers feted at agri varsity

Gurdeep Singh, from Kot Fatuhi, Mahilpur Block, Hoshiarpur, received the CRI Pumps Award for adopting modern agricultural machinery. With over 15 years of experience, he owns nine acres of land and manages an additional 55 acres on lease. Harpreet Kaur of Manna village, Sangrur, was also awarded the CRI Pumps Award for organic farming. She began organic cultivation on three acres in 2021 and underwent extensive training in sustainable farming techniques. She currently serves as the vice president of the PAU Organic Farmers’ Club. Jasbir Singh, a 71-year-old farmer from Tanda Block in Hoshiarpur, was conferred the CRI Pumps Award for water resource management. With over five decades of farming experience, he efficiently manages 12 acres of farmland, incorporating scientific water conservation techniques.

The Chief Minister’s Award for Horticulture Excellence was conferred on two farmers: Jaskaran Singh, a progressive horticulturist from Kauni village, Gidderbaha, Sri Muktsar Sahib, for his specialisation in strawberry cultivation, and Amaninder Singh of Raedhrana village, Sangrur, for his expertise in vegetable farming. Jaskaran has cultivated 15 acres for over 32 years and has successfully commercialised scientific berry farming, while Amaninder has made significant contributions in mushroom cultivation, seedling production, and precision farming techniques such as drip irrigation.

The Chief Minister’s Award for Crop Production and Allied Sectors was won by Pawan Jot Singh, a renowned farmer from Dhogri village, Jalandhar. With over 42 years of farming experience, he owns 17.5 acres and leases approximately 125 acres for diverse agricultural activities.

Baljit Singh of Kakra village, Sangrur, was honoured with the Sardarni Prakash Kaur Saran Memorial Award for his contributions to crop production and allied agricultural activities. Specialising in mushroom farming, he has been engaged in the industry for over a decade.

GADVASU honours growers

Gurlal Singh from Kararwala village was awarded in the buffalo dairy farming category. He has 60 buffaloes, of which 25 milking buffaloes produce 235 litres of milk daily. He sells milk directly to consumers and also prepares paneer, khoya and ghee.

In the goat farming category, Baldev Singh Sandhu from Manuke Sandhu village was honoured. After completing his college education, he started goat farming in 2021. Currently, he has 200 animals. He has also formed a ‘Beetle Breeders Club’.

In the field of fish farming, two farmers were feted—Amiteshwar Singh Gill from Moga district and Parminderjit Singh from Kapurthala district. Gill is a dentist and has been rearing fish for the last three years. The production capacity of his fish farm is 7 tonnes per year. Parminderjit has been in the business for three years and uses modern techniques. He has combined fish pond and pig farming with an integrated farming system.

In the pig farming category, Harinderpal Singh from Fatehgarh Sahib district and Surinderpal Singh from Ferozepur district were honoured. Harinderpal has sold 500-700 pigs each year for the last three years. Surinderpal also started pig farming in 2016 and sells around 400 pigs every year.