To put the State’s agricultural economy on peak, especially in the wake of present slowdown due to conventional wheat-paddy cycle, Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal on Monday exhorted the peasantry to come out of this rut to adopt crop diversification in a big way.
Addressing a gathering at 25th death anniversary of Sant Baba Avtar Singh, Badal said that State’s ambitious crop diversification program was aimed at supplementing farmers’ income, especially the small and marginal farmers, besides checking the alarmingly depleting groundwater due its ‘over exploitation’.
Chief Minister pointed out that agriculture, which once happened to be a prosperous preposition till a few years back, was now on decline due to marginal profits which were further squeezing every passing day. “With the Centre extending a slew of incentives to non-paddy growing States, the message is loud and clear to the State farmers that either they should resort to crop diversification to ensure their existence or perish,” he added.
Badal categorically asked the farmers to refrain from growing paddy and shift to alternative crops like Basmati, Maize, Sugarcane, vegetables and fruits, the cultivation of which was not only highly profitable but was also less water intensive than paddy. Assuring fulsome support and cooperation to the farmers, Badal said that all out efforts were being made by the State Government to bail out the beleaguered peasantry of the state from the ongoing crisis through crop diversification. “State government has already urged the Centre to evolve a fool-proof marketing mechanism for the promotion of Maize cultivation by announcing minimum support price (MSP) on it like wheat and paddy,” he added.
Chief Minister further added that with the aim to increase 25 per cent water supply in the rivers and minors by preventing its wastage through leakage or seepage, the State Government has embarked a major program of strengthening the canals and minors in Punjab.
“In the coming two years, state’s entire canal water irrigation system would be completely transformed so as to save groundwater by reducing pressure on the tube wells.