Chandigarh, June 5 - Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan today interacted with a group of farmers in Patiala and motivated them to adopt crop diversification. He said that the need of the hour is to cultivate such crops, which besides giving profit also reduce water consumption.
Referring to the decision of the Centre to suspend the Indus Water Treaty after the Pahalgam terror attack, Chauhan said that efforts will be made to use the water of Indus, Jhelum and Chenab rivers for Punjab, Haryana and Rajasthan. He stressed that the solution to the issues of the farmers is possible through discussion and negotiation.
Under the Centre's 'Vikasit Krishi Sankalp Abhiyan', the Union Agriculture Minister visited village Kheri Gandiya in Rajpura, Patiala, where he met a group of farmers. The group apprised them of their problems. Chauhan was accompanied by Punjab Agriculture Minister Gurmeet Singh Khudian, Punjab Agricultural University Vice Chancellor Satbir Singh Gosal and scientists from the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR).
Lauding the role of Punjab farmers in the country's food grains, Chauhan said that the country has registered record production of wheat, paddy, maize and soybean this year. Chauhan said, "Punjab played the biggest role in this and I bow to the land of Punjab."
The Union Minister said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi's aim is to increase crop production and reduce costs. He said that farmers should get remunerative price for their crops and if they suffer any loss, they should be compensated.
Chauhan said that he was impressed by the direct sowing technology of paddy being adopted by the farmers and he would appeal to other farmers to adopt DSR for less water consumption. “I was introduced to good cropping practices including direct sowing, mushroom cultivation or making silage,” he said.
Silage is a type of safe green fodder which is a nutritious and balanced diet for animals. Regarding the nationwide campaign ‘Vikasit Krishi Sankalp Abhiyan’, Chauhan said that he is meeting farmers and understanding their problems. Responding to a question, Chauhan said that crop diversification programme is the need of the hour.
“We should sow crops which are profitable as well as consume less water,” he said. Earlier, he also called upon farmers to experiment with fruits, vegetables and other crops.