India - UP govt to install drip irrigation plants in 30,000 hectares of sugarcane area between 2021-22

By Samarth Srivastava

The Uttar Pradesh Sugarcane Development Department is going to set up drip irrigation plants in 30,000 hectares of sugarcane area during 2021-22. This will be done using subsurface drip irrigation technology to save water for the farmers and increase the yield.

With the help of this technology, farmers will be able to reduce the amount of water required for irrigation in sugarcane cultivation, which will help more than 2500 farmers across the state.

"Drip irrigation technology is one such endeavour of the Sugarcane Development Department which, in the long run, will make farmers prosperous with the technology of saving water," an official statement said.

According to the sugarcane department, as many as 2,566 farmers of the state have been selected for the drip irrigation scheme who will benefit from it. Through drip irrigation, 50 to 60 per cent of water will be saved in the use of irrigation water.

"This technology will significantly reduce the exploitation of groundwater. In the crushing season 2021-22, it is planned to set up drip irrigation plants in 30 thousand hectares of sugarcane area. After this, the scope of the scheme will be expanded,"Sanjay Bhoosreddy, Additional Chief Secretary, Sugarcane Department, said.

The small sugarcane farmers, including Below Poverty Line (BPL) card holders, scheduled caste and tribal farmers will benefit from this scheme.

"Better management of water resources will increase the income of the farmers. The government plans to implement this scheme on a large scale. The idea behind it is to link the farmers with technology so that their yield and in turn their income will increase," Bhoosereddy added.