Chandigarh: In a significant advancement of Punjab Government's efforts to conserve groundwater through sustainable agricultural practices, the Punjab has seen 11.86% increase in area dedicated to Direct Seeding of Rice (DSR) as compared to the previous year, revealed S. Gurmeet Singh Khudian, Minister of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Punjab.
Divulging details, S. Gurmeet Singh Khudian informed that paddy has been sown using water-conserving DSR technique at over 2.83 lakh acres so far this year, up from 2.53 lakh acres in last year. He expressed hope that the area under DSR will rise further as paddy sowing is still going on.
The Agriculture Minister said that the Chief Minister S. Bhagwant Singh Mann-led Punjab Government has been offering Rs. 1,500 per acre to farmers adopting the water-saving Direct Seeding of Rice method. He further informed that the financial assistance was transferred into the bank accounts of 24,032 farmers who adopted the DSR technique during the Kharif season 2024.
S. Gurmeet Singh Khudian reaffirmed the CM Mann-led Punjab Government's commitment of encouraging farmers to adopt water-conserving and sustainable agricultural practices in the state. He also congratulated the Agriculture department officials for promoting the water saving method.
The Administrative Secretary Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Dr. Basant Garg stated that the Agriculture department has taken various proactive steps to promote the Direct Seeding of Rice. The department has been organising awareness campaigns and farmer training camps to provide hands-on knowledge, besides conducting field demonstrations to showcase the technique's effectiveness and sensitise farmers about the advantages of DSR.