UN-ADOPTED RAJIAN VILLAGE IN AMRITSAR REAPS RICHER HARVEST

MAJHA

AMRITSAR: Rajian village of Ajnala sub-division is among the six villages of Punjab that have been adopted by the United Nations under a pilot project for stopping the practice of stubble burning.

Like last year, none of the 86 farmers growing paddy over 564 acres burnt stubble. Rather, they are being guided by a team of the Punjab Agriculture Management and Extension Training Institute, deployed there 24x7 under the project, to mix the stubble with soil to make fields more fertile.

Satnam Singh, a farmer with 18 acres, says, “Earlier, most farmers used to burn the fields after the paddy and wheat harvest. In March 2018, our village was adopted by the UN and the agriculture department team provided us machines to manage the stubble. Most of us now mulch the stubble in the field.”

Balraj Singh, another farmer, says, “I haven’t been burning stubble for three years. I have seen a bumper yield of paddy and wheat as the field is more fertile now.”

Research fellow Navjot Singh and demonstrators Jagdeep Singh and Gurinder Singh, comprise the agriculture team, that goes door to door, urging farmers to adopt eco-friendly ways to dispose of the stubble.

Jagdeep says besides causing pollution, stubble burning destroys the nutrient-rich topsoil and crop-friendly insects. “Fertilisers are then needed for the soil, which can hit the income and yield. After mixing the stubble in the soil for two years, farmers won’t need any fertiliser,” he adds.

The other villages adopted by the UN are Bhoewali and Kiampur in Amritsar district and Uppli, Tungaan and Kanoi in Sangrur district.