MSP for maize, monetary incentive to wean farmers away from paddy

KURUKSHETRA: Amid concerns over decreasing ground water level due to paddy cultivation, Kurukshetra administration on Saturday held a meeting with farmers to urge them to adopt crop diversification and sow maize, arhar (pigeon pea) or soybean for the coming season in place of the paddy.
Kurukshetra deputy commissioner (DC) S S Phulia said, “We have set a target of reducing around 7,000 hectares of land under the paddy and sow maize, arhar, or soybean instead in Thanesar block. The government will be giving free seeds of these crops to the farmers adopting the crop diversification, along with additional incentives of Rs 2,000 per acre.”
“Rs 200 per acre will be given at the time of registration under crop diversification scheme and Rs 1,800 per acre after a farmer sows crops other than paddy. For the first time in Haryana, the minimum support price (MSP) of maize, arhar, and soybean will be determined by the government and these crops will be procured,” Phulia said.
Kurukshetra deputy director for agriculture Pardeep Meel said, “In Thanesar block under this pilot project of crop diversification, 59 villages have been identified, where farmers will be motivated to move away from paddy.”
On the hand, Bharatiya Kisan Union (Haryana) president Gurnam Singh Charuni said, “It is good that government is now thinking of the groundwater problem whereas this should have been started nearly 20 years ago. The groundwater is our stock and it should be used in emergency situations only. The government has spent no budget on rainwater harvesting and strengthening the canal water irrigation system. The rainwater is being wasted entirely whereas every single drop needs to be conserved for utilisation in agriculture.”
“This scheme of crop diversification will be successful only if such efforts are made continuously. Moreover, in the past government never procured the maize at the MSP. We even went to the high court, where government claimed that maize never reached the grain markets so they could not buy it. Our fields are ready with maize crop which will be harvested in June. Let’s see if the government buys it. The farmers will only think of shifting to some other crop if they get better MSP than the paddy and if the government procures the early harvested crop of maize.”