Paddy sowing to be done in 4 phases starting June 10: Bhagwant Mann

Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann announced on Monday that paddy sowing will be carried out in the state in four phases this year starting June 10

Farmers adopting the DSR technique for sowing to get incentive worth ₹1500 per acre, says CM

Farmers adopting the DSR technique for sowing to get incentive worth ₹1500 per acre, says Mann. (HT File Photo)

Chief minister Bhagwant Mann announced on Monday that paddy sowing will be carried out in the state in four phases this year starting June 10.

Mann said the decision has been taken as per the suggestions received from the farmers during the two kisan-sarkar milni (government-farmers meeting), and the government is fully prepared for ensuring smooth and hassle-free sowing of paddy crop during the upcoming Kharif season across the state. “The state has been divided into four zones, and paddy sowing will commence from June 10, 16, 19 and 21 in various parts of the state,” he said in a statement.

Giving details of the sowing schedule, the chief minister said that to ensure smooth irrigation for paddy cultivation in a staggered manner, the first phase of transplantation in the areas beyond the fence across the international border will start on June 10. He said uninterrupted power from June 16 will be ensured in the second phase to seven districts of Ferozepur, Faridkot, Pathankot, Fatehgarh Sahib, Gurdaspur, SBS Nagar and Tarn Taran. In the third phase, paddy transplantation will be ensured from June 19 in Rupnagar, SAS Nagar, Kapurthala, Ludhiana, Fazilka, Bathinda and Amritsar, whereas in the remaining nine districts of Patiala, Jalandhar, Moga, Muktsar Sahib, Hoshiarpur, Sangrur, Malerkotla, Barnala and Mansa paddy transplantation will commence from June 21.

Mann said that to save groundwater, the power supply for the DSR technique will start from May 20 across the state, and a notification in this regard has been issued by the state government. Direct Seeded Rice (DSR) is a process of establishing a rice crop from seeds sown in the field rather than by transplanting seedlings from the nursery.

He also exhorted the farmers to refrain from sowing paddy before these dates. The chief minister said four hours of power supply will be made available to the farmers for routine irrigation needs, including paddy nursery transplantation and vegetables.

Reiterating the firm commitment of the state government to ensure uninterrupted power to the farmers during the paddy season, Mann said that a minimum of eight hours of regular power supply will be ensured by all means. “Like the previous year, the farmers will get a regular supply of water during the paddy season. The state government has 45 days of coal stock with it to supply power to farmers,” the CM added. He said that in a bid to effectively check the fast-depleting water table, DSR technology will be promoted in a big way during the current Kharif season. He urged the farmers to refrain from planting the PUSA variety of paddy and shift to the economically viable DSR technique, which will go a long way in saving the groundwater up to 15-20% and nearly ₹3000 per acre on input costs, including labour. The farmers opting for the DSR technique will get an incentive worth ₹1500 per acre from the state government, he said, adding that the farmers must adopt the PR varieties of paddy recommended by PAU.