Delay in getting labour on time during sowing season is making paddy farmers in the district adopt farm mechanisation techniques for carrying out the activity on their land.
The Dhamtari district is already one of the principal growers of paddy crop using developed irrigational resources during both Kharif and the Rabi seasons. With the problem of not getting labour on time during the sowing season, farmers in the district are now utilising ‘paddy transplanter machines’ for sowing seeds in their farms, an official release here stated.
Most farmers in the district follow the traditional ‘Katar’ and ‘Ropa’ techniques to sow paddy seeds. The machine utilised for sowing paddy seeds completes the entire sowing work in 15 to 20 days. The machine can carryb out sowing in 2.5 to 3 cares of land in a single day with the minimal cost of Rs 1000 to Rs 1,200, an official release here informed.
The machine helps farmers save cost in the range of Rs 1,500 to Rs 2000 per month. During 2012, the machines were utilised by farmers in Kurud and Magarload Development Block to carry out sowing in 60 hectares of land. The State Government had extended a grant of Rs 3,000 per acre to the farmers for carrying out mechanised sowing activity on their land.
A large number of farmers in the district are now keen on using the machine for carrying out sowing operations on their land, it stated.