Punjab CM lauds farmers for successful crop diversification

Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh on Monday lauded the state's farmers for successful diversification of crops over nearly 2.28 lakh hectares area out of the traditional paddy cultivation cycle in the current Kharif sowing season.

The success of the farmers in their diversification efforts, even amid the COVID pandemic, has also been recognised by the Ministry of Agriculture, Cooperation and Farmers' Welfare, the government of India, said the chief minister.

The diversification across 2.28 lakh hectares will help save nearly 2.7 billion cubic metres of ground water and about Rs 200 crore power consumption in the state, thus supporting the Punjab government''s efforts to preserve the scarce water resources, said Singh in an official statement here.

While reviewing the sowing activities in the state here on Monday, the CM said that despite migratory labour shortage in the ongoing kharif season, the state has not only completed its Kharif sowing but has also continued to fulfil its objective of diversification even in these difficult times.

The CM directed the Additional Chief Secretary (Development) to accord top priority to diversification of agriculture, particularly in the light of the diminishing returns on farmer''s produce.

Farmers should be motivated to go for crop diversification in a big way by opting for crops like sugarcane, basmati, pulses, fruits & vegetables, he said, adding that this would make the state's agrarian economy more financially sustainable and economically viable.

Additional Chief Secretary (ACS), Development, Anirudh Tiwari informed the CM that Basmati sowing has been completed across 6.50 lakh hectares, against 6.30 lakh hectares last year.

It is expected that acreage under Basmati will touch about 6.75 to 7 lakh hectares in Punjab this year.

The state government's concerted push to use the direct seeding of rice technology is expected to save both ground water and power consumption, along with the natural resources of Punjab, said Tiwari.

Around 5.50 lakh hectares of Paddy sowing had been undertaken this year through DSR.

The ACS informed the meeting that cotton cultivation has been carried out across 5.01 lakh hectares, which is 1.09 lakh hectares more compared to previous year acreage of 3.92 lakh hectares. Last year, the state recorded its highest cotton productivity of 806 Kg lint per hectare.

Acreage under maize too has seen an increase of 0.83 lakh hectares from the previous year. Last year, Maize was sown in 1.60 lakh hectares in comparison to 2.43 lakh hectares for the current season.

Similarly, the state has achieved an increase of 5,000 hectares under pulses cultivation and 1,000 hectares under sugarcane cultivation.