Badal monitors arrangements for cotton sowing

Chandigarh, Mar 19 (UNI) Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal today reviewed the arrangements for the sowing of Kharif cotton crop and gave directions for a coordinated action plan to ensure timely supply of adequate and quality inputs and infrastructural support to the cotton growers.

Presiding over a high-level meeting, Mr Badal directed the Agriculture Department and Markfed to adopt one block each in the cotton belt for training of farmers and dissemination of latest technology so that the knowledge gap between the agriculture scientists, extension functionaries and the farmers could be minimised. The will also encourage the farmers to diversify and use more land for cotton cultivation.

Mr Badal directed the Punjab State Electricity Board to ensure at least 6 hours of power supply in a day in the cotton belt from April 1.

He also asked the Principal Secretary Irrigation Kusumjit Sidhu to ensure timely desilting of canals to ensure adequate water supply at the tail-ends by first week of April.

Director Agriculture Balwinder Singh Sidhu said the department had fixed a target to bring 6.5 lakh hectares of cultivable land under cotton during the following Kharif season and for this purpose 15.35 lakh packets of approved Bt cotton hybrids have been arranged to the farmers at a reduced price of Rs 760 per packet.

Meanwhile, MD Markfed GS Grewal informed that 80,000 packets of Bt cotton hybrids shall be supplied to the farmers through primary agriculture cooperative societies in the state.

Mr Badal directed the Financial Commissioner Development G S Sandhu to make adequate arrangements for timely supply of fertilisers and quality pesticides.

Mr Badal also asked the Chairman PSEB YS Ratra to include Muktsar district besides Bathinda, Mansa and Faridkot for single point motor connection to the identified scheduled caste farmers under the special scheme approved by the state planning board for which funds of Rs 10 crore had already been allocated.

Underlining the need to eradicate water logging in the cotton belt especially in the Malwa region, Mr Badal asked the Irrigation department to evolve a time bound frame work to eradicate this problem permanently as it had resulted in the substantial loss to the farmers in terms of their health, property and crops.

UNI