Progressive farmers aim for zero-burning tag for villages

Chandigarh: With paddy harvesting set to pick up, many progressive farmers who have been scientifically disposing of crop residue in the past are trying to convince fellow farmers to achieve zero-burning status for their villages this time.
What has helped the cause is the growing availability of balers by industrial units, besides some farmers offering custom hiring of crop residue management (CRM) machines to others in their villages.
Palvinder Singh, a farmer from Balonga village in Amloh, Fatehgarh Sahib, said he stopped putting his fields on fire in 2008 when his son, then a two-year-old, developed respiratory problems during paddy harvesting season. “I started using a happy seeder and later tried using other equipment like a super seeder also. This time, we will also be using balers,” he said.
“We hope our village will have zero stubble burning this season. Most farmers had cultivated short-duration varieties of paddy like PR-126 and almost 33% harvesting has been done. There have not been any farm fires in our village so far. I am also involved in custom hiring of happy seeders and offering the service to other farmers,” said Palvinder. “When I gave up the unhealthy practice, people used to ridicule me. We cannot keep waiting for the state govt to offer us financial aid to give up stubble burning,” he added.
Harminder Singh, a farmer from Bathli village in Rajpura, Patiala, said most farmers in his village were now turning paddy stubble into bales. “An industry from Zirakpur has set up a collection centre for stubble in our village and it has helped. I have been facilitated by the district administration for spreading awareness about the harmful effects of stubble burning. The village is spread over 400 acres and youth have taken the initiative to make CRM machines available for everyone in the village,” said Harminder.
“I was motivated after an incident involving my son, who was caught in a farm fire, but managed to escape unharmed. Since then, I have taken upon myself to advise my fellow villagers. I cultivate paddy on 20 acres and take 80 acres on lease,” he added.
Harjinder Singh, a farmer from Kalsana village in Nabha, said incidents had reduced in his village since last year as industrial units were now offering free service of balers that collect paddy straw. “There are still some farmers who justify stubble burning due to the small size of their farms. Ours is a small village with 550 votes and we hope the practice will gradually come to an end,” he said. Satguru Singh, a farmer from Hirdapur in Patiala, said this season, the agriculture department had offered to turn stubble into bales, but a section of farmers was still apprehensive. “I gave up stubble burning in 2018 and the number of those who will opt for balers is likely to go ,” he said.