Farmer Gurpreet Singh from village Tajoke in Sehna block has become the flag bearer of save water campaign by opting for direct sowing of paddy using the latest techniques and covering hundred percent of his field's area under this technique. The village itself has around 500 acres of land sown using the direct seeding method.Gurpreet Singh is owner of 30 acres of land and has taken another six acres on lease and has opted for direct sowing of paddy in 100 percent of the area.Gurpreet said that earlier he used to cultivate paddy using the traditional methods but last time during the covid-19 he could not get enough labour for transplanting paddy manually so he took to direct sowing of paddy.Gurpreet said that by opting for direct sowing of paddy he has not only save money on labour but also save water and precious time.He added that at first Lazer land leveller is used to level the lands and then using DSR technique the paddy is transplanted. The farmers of this village are progressive and have brought 500 acres land of village under DSR technique.Another farmer Buta Singh Tajoke has 26 acres of land. Last year he had used DSR technique in 10 acres of land, which will be 15 acres this season.
Chief Agriculture Officer Dr. Charanjit Singh Kainth said that following covid protocols, village level camps and nukkad meetings were held to promote DSR technique for paddy sowing.Till now 19 special camps have been held to promote DSR technique and department is conducting special field visits to sensitize farmers.He added that except for the sandy soil, the medium category to heavy soil is recommended for DSR technique.Around 1.13 Lakhs hectares of land is under paddy cultivation in district of which around 25000 to 30000 acres of land is expected to be under DSR (which is 20 percent more than last year)He said that around 150 DSR machines were being put to use in district for direct sowing of paddy. Last year super seeder, mulcher, etc were given at a subsidy of Rs 15 cr. This year farmers have applied online to get the subsidy.
More farmers should step in shoes of Gurpreet Singh, Deputy Commissioner
Deputy Commissioner Barnala Mr. Tej Pratap Singh Phoolka said that more farmers should follow Gurpreet's footsteps. He added that Gurpreet was saving mother earth and increased his income at the same time.