Farmer shows the way to smart stubble management
Amandeep Singh of Jatana village is among farmers who believe that practice is better than precept. He not only gave up stubble burning for good, but also improved crop quality in the process and doubled his income, besides saving water. Amandeep owes his success to CII Foundation and Krishi Vigyan Kendra, Samrala, who not only convinced him but also made him practice the latest technology in his fields.
The progressive farmer got engaged in family farming on 20 acres of land and cultivates recommended varieties of paddy and wheat as major crops. Amandeep always wanted to do farming in a scientific way and was keen to learn and update himself with new techniques and technology. Due to his learning temperament, he attended Kisan Melas and agricultural camps organised by the Punjab Agricultural University.
Amandeep got associated with Krishi Vigyan Kendra, Samrala, in 2016 when a KVK team conducted a camp in his village.
He trained himself in crop seed production and crop residue management. He took keen interest in the farming practices followed by KVK. Amandeep observed different trials and demonstrations of the technological park and practices of KVK in seed production.
He started following crop residue management practices and adopted in-situ residue management technologies. In his initial years, Amandeep incorporated paddy straw into the soil ahead of wheat sowing on 1 acre and slowly increased the area to 20 acres.
“The paddy straw improved the soil health and increased the crop yield. But this method needed a lot of tillage operation, which I was afraid might raise the sowing cost. In order to observe the real difference, I watched the trial of wheat sowing with happy seeder at KVK farm in 2016. I sowed wheat with the conventional method on my farm the same day. I observed that wheat sown with happy seeder was better in quality and quantity,” he shared.
“I used happy seeder on 10 acres in 2018 and did the rest of the wheat sowing with conventional methods. I observed that the results with a happy seeder were better as compared to conventional sowing. In conventional methods, even after burning, the field needed to be prepared for wheat sowing, which cost Rs 2,000-2,500 per acre approximately. But with happy seeder, no field preparation was required as wheat was sown directly in the field containing straw, saving costs for me,” Amandeep added.
“In the happy seeder plot, the weed count was less compared to conventional methods. Less irrigation was required in the happy seeder plot as compared to the one where conventional methods were used, resulting in 25% saving of water. The yield with happy seeder was comparatively more than the conventional method,” he claimed.
He shared that the soil health of his fields also improved after in-situ residue management and fertiliser use also came down.
Convinced with happy seeder, Amandeep also made his fellow villagers adopt the technology. He, along with other farmers of Jatana village, bought 16 happy seeders on subsidy in 2018. Ever since there has been no stubble burning in the village. “Had it not been for the continuous help and assistance of the CII Foundation and KVK, I would have remained a conventional grower,” he added.
On November 14 last year, a delegation from the Ministry of Agriculture and the Commission for Air Quality Management especially visited Amandeep’s village. The delegation was convinced that the use of advanced machinery by Amandeep and his other farmers has enhanced soil health, reduced air pollution and boosted agricultural productivity. It was impressed by the village’s commitment to sustainable practices and the tangible results achieved.
Agronomist from Punjab Agricultural University Dr Jasvir Singh Gill opined that Amandeep has become a role model and source of inspiration for other farmers of Jatana and nearby villages.
“He is contributing to preserving the environment and soil health by not burning the crop residue. Due to his motivated thought and close association with the Punjab Agricultural University, he is a key person and our frontline campaigner,” Gill added.
Head of CII Foundation Sunil Kumar Mishra shared that the Confederation of Indian Industry is supporting interventions to mitigate crop residue burning in Punjab and Haryana.
“CII has adopted 300 villages in the two states where, with the support from corporate partners, it provides necessary machinery and financial support, besides organising various awareness building and training programme to motivate farmers to adopt “zero stubble burning” approach. Amandeep and his fellow farmers have been provided mechanical help and Jatana has now emerged as a model village with no reported cases of stubble burning for the past 6 years,” the foundation head added. Amandeep Singh explains crop residue management in his fields at Jatana village to a team from Agriculture Department and CII Foundation.
