To battle labour crunch, modify wheat sowing machines: Dept to farmers

Tribune News Service

Moga, May 13

To meet the challenge of paucity of labour, the state Agriculture Department and farm experts have adviced farmers to modify happy seeders, zero till drills and other drill machines to sow the paddy directly from June 1 onwards.

The government has asked the farmers to begin direct seeding of paddy from June 1 and transplantation of paddy seedlings from June 10 onwards.

Dr Kahan Singh Pannu, Secretary, Agriculture, said 2 lakh machines used for sowing of wheat in the state could be modified and used to directly sow paddy.

At present, by and large, the farmers use traditional method, wherein the seedlings are first sowed in nurseries and later transplanted into fields flooded with water. The method involves huge manpower.

Dr Pannu said the department had conducted experiments to modify the wheat sowing machines to sow the paddy directly, and were successful. “It costs Rs1,500 to Rs2,000 per unit to make them compatible for direct paddy sowing,” he said.

Dr Jaswinder Singh, a senior agro-scientist with the state Agriculture Department, who is also working as a Plant Protection Officer in Moga district, said the basic objective behind modifying the wheat sowing machines was to reduce the seed distribution from 40 kg of wheat per acre to 8-9 kg of paddy, and to save the labour cost.

Some farmers were purchasing new machines, which costs between Rs70,000 and Rs1 lakh per unit, for direct sowing of paddy. The state government was giving a subsidy of 40 per cent on such machines, but for small and marginal farmers, it is still costly. “It’s better that the cooperative societies purchase the machines for the benefit of a larger group of farmers,” Dr Pannu said.

Punjab Agricultural University (PAU), Ludhiana, in collaboration with the state Agriculture Department is developing a machine for direct seeding of rice (DSR), for which 175 units involved in manufacturing agricultural implements have been roped in.

PAU experts had also advised the farmers to opt for DSR technology in the ensuing kharif season to meet the challenge of labour crunch in the wake of the pandemic.

On the other hand, the varsity has recommended PR126 variety of paddy as the direct seeded rice variety which could be sown with DSR technology by leveling and irrigating the fields.

Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh has directed the Food and Civil Supplies Department to test the PR126 variety of paddy to ensure its efficacy.