Chandigarh, June 9:
Punjab’s crop diversification efforts got a major fillip with cotton cultivation witnessing around 20% surge, taking the area under cotton from 2.49 lakh acres last year to 2.98 lakh acres this year, an increase of over 49,000 acres, informed S. Gurmeet Singh Khudian, Minister of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Punjab.
While chairing a meeting to review the ongoing Kharif season and departmental projects here at Kisan Bhawan on Monday evening, S. Gurmeet Singh Khudian stated that Fazilka district leads in cotton cultivation with 60,121 hectares, followed by Mansa (27,621 hectares), Bathinda (17,080 hectares), and Sri Muktsar Sahib (13,240 hectares).
The Agriculture Minister said that the Punjab government would provide a 33% subsidy on cotton seeds to growers, with over 49,000 farmers have already registered online. He directed Chief Agriculture Officers to ensure all cotton growers complete online registration by June 15.
The Agriculture Minister S. Gurmeet Singh Khudian expressed satisfaction over the enthusiastic response of the state’s farmers towards Kharif maize cultivation, with over 54,000 acres already sown in just nine days since sowing commenced on June 1 across the state.
The Chief Minister S. Bhagwant Singh Mann-led Punjab Government will give incentive of Rs. 17,500 per hectare to farmers for shifting from paddy to Kharif maize under a pilot project covering six districts- Bathinda, Sangrur, Pathankot, Gurdaspur, Jalandhar and Kapurthala. The project aims to bring 12,000 hectares under Kharif maize, promoting agricultural diversification and groundwater conservation. To facilitate this transition, the state government has appointed 200 Kisan Mitras to guide and encourage farmers.
The state’s agricultural sector is showing positive trends, with these numbers reflecting the combined efforts of farmers and the state government’s initiatives to promote crop diversification and boost agricultural productivity.
The Agriculture Minister also reviewed the status of Direct Sowing of Rice (DSR), fertilisers availability, and other projects, while directing district agriculture chiefs to ensure quality agricultural inputs to farmers as safeguarding the farmers’ interests remains the top priority of the Punjab Government.
The Administrative Secretary Agriculture Dr. Basant Garg, Special Secretary Ms Baldeep Kaur, Agriculture Commissioner Ms. Babita, Director Mr. Jaswant Singh and other senior officials of the department were also present in the meeting.
