PAU holds kisan mela at RRS, Ballowal Saunkhri

Fri, Sep 8, 2017 at 6:00 PM

Drip irrigation technique can be benefit farmers of Kandi area: Dr. Gosal

Ballowal Saunkhri: 8th September 2017: (Punjab Screen Bureau)::

The series of PAU Kisan Melas kick started with the first mela at Regional Research

Station, Ballowal Saunkhri (Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar) today. Farmers and farm

women in big number thronged the mela to see the live demonstrations, purchase

planting material and farm literature, and discuss their farm related issues with the PAU

scientists. The mela aimed at urging the farmers to not burn paddy straw, save

environment and cut expenses on social functions. Dr S.S. Gosal, Member, Board of

Management, PAU, was the chief guest while Dr Baldev Singh Dhillon, Vice-Chancellor,

PAU, presided over the inaugural session. Sh Chaudhary Darshan Lal Mangupur, MLA,

Balachaur, was the special guest on the occasion.

In his inaugural address, Dr Gosal said, “Farmers repose full faith in the Regional

Research Station, Ballowal Saunkhri. This station was established in 1982 and has

served the farming community tremendously.” Expressing concern over water shortage

in the Kandi region, Dr Gosal said the use of drip irrigation technique can benefit the

farmers of this area. He also called for judicious use of fertilizers, saying no to paddy

straw burning, saving environment and regularizing agricultural income. Dr Gosal urged

the farmers to avail the subsidy on tractors, being provided by the Department of

Horticulture, Punjab.

In his presidential remarks, Dr Dhillon said, “With 206 per cent cropping intensity,

the yield of various crops in Punjab has seen a rise.” He called upon the farmers to use

good quality seed, make fertilizers’ use as per requirement, use biofertilizers for good

soil health and maintain farm records for economic sustainability. He stressed on the

farmers to not indulge in paddy straw burning and instead adopt its management

technologies. Dr Dhillon further said the PAU scientists are making all-out efforts to

address the issues of the farmers of Kandi region. Voicing concern over farmers’

suicides, he highly praised the students of Gursewa College of Nursing, Garshankar, for

their theatrical skills while enacting a play, which aimed at spreading the message

“Suicide is not the solution, rather fight against all odds of life.”

The special guest, Sh Mangupur expressed his sincere gratitude to the

agricultural experts for focusing on the Kandi region. He advised the farmers to seek

University’s technical expertise regarding agriculture and its allied occupations. He also

talked about the developmental activities.

On the occasion, S. Jagjit Singh, SDM, Balachaur, was also present.

Dr M.S. Dhaliwal, Additional Director of Research (Horticulture), PAU, while

highlighting research priorities, said, “The University is conducting research on nearly

100 crops. A total of 809 crop varieties and hybrids have been developed and

recommended by PAU till date, out of which, 173 are at the national level.” The focus

area of PAU’s research is on the development of crop varieties requiring less

water, fertilizers and resistant to various insect-pests and diseases, he added. Dr

Dahliwal also apprised farmers of several newly released crop varieties and their

production- protection technologies.

Earlier, Dr G.S. Buttar, Additional Director of Extension Education, PAU,

welcomed the dignitaries and the farmers, farm women and the rural youth. He said the

number of farmers participating in this mela is seeing an upward trend. The challenges

of Kandi region are different from all, he added. “About 34 per cent of population of

Punjab is having less than 5 acres of land. This Regional Research Station came up

with the special objective of serving the small farmers of the Kandi region

(Nawanshaher, Hoshiarpur and Ropar),” he added. In addition, four Krishi Vigyan

Kendras are established at Langroya, Bahowal, Ropar and Pathankot

to address the issues of the farmers, he told. Dr Buttar urged the visitng farmers to reap

benefits by receiving trainings in various aspects of agriculture from these KVKs.

Dr Manmohanjit Singh, Director, Regional Research Station, Ballowal Saunkhri,

proposed the vote of thanks. During the mela, as many as 116 stalls were put up by

various departments of PAU and other organizations. Huge rush of farmers was seen at

the seed sale centre of this station. The students of Gursewa College of Nursing also

enthralled the gathering with their giddha performance.

PAU hold Kisan Mela at KVK, Amritsar

Dr Satbir Singh Gosal was the Chief Guest of the occasion

Ludhiana: March 10, 2017: (Punjab Screen Bureau)::

A heavy inflow of farmers was witnessed at the Kisan Mela of Punjab Agricultural University held at the Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK), Nag Kalan-Jahangir, Amritsar on Friday March, 10, 2017. The theme of the Kisan Mela “PAU de beej beejo, sahaik dhande apnao, mandikaran suchaja karo, lekha jhokha lao” aims at guiding the farmers to sow improved seeds of PAU and adopt new production – protection technologies for various crops, to achieve success in farming.

Dr. Satbir Singh Gosal, Member, Board of Management, PAU was the Chief Guest of the occasion. The mela also saw the presence of Dr Pushpinder Singh Aulakh, Additional Director of Extension Education; Dr Sarvjeet Singh, Additional Director of Research (Crop Improvement) and Dr Dalbir Singh Chhina, Chief Agriculture Officer, Amritsar.

Teeming with more than a 100 stalls, the Kisan Mela served as a befitting platform for the quick redressal of agro-problems of farmers. An interactive question-answer session with PAU experts, live demonstrations and sale-purchase of quality seeds recommended by PAU were the chief highlights of the day. PAU varieties of vegetables, fruits and flowers were also discussed and emphasized upon by the scientists. A long queue was witnessed at the stall exhibiting various PAU farm publications.

Dr Aulakh, while welcoming the dignitaries and the farmers, called upon the farmers to follow PAU recommendations and also advised them to keep themselves abreast of the latest farming techniques and attend various trainings, organized at the 17 KVKs across Punjab from time to time.

In his address, Dr Gosal suggested the farmers to opt for hybrid seed production, go for soil testing, adopt subsidiary occupations such as beekeeping, mushroom cultivation, food processing etc., focus on cooperative marketing and mechanization and make use of fruit fly trap technology. He asserted that the rural women could also contribute significantly and help in raising substantial income by opting for allied agricultural occupations. He also stressed upon the need to purchase quality seeds from PAU which ensure improved yield and assured profit to farmers. Dr Gosal highlighted that PAU had developed more than 757 crop varieties out of which 150 have been recommended outside Punjab. He observed that the cultivation of fruits, vegetables, turmeric and sugarcane offers a good alternative and can reap benefits to the farmers of this area. Encouraging the farmers to go for cooperative marketing and use of farm machinery, he said that this could result in a 35 per cent cut in the input and labour costs. Dr Gosal also urged the gathering to maintain their proper farm records in order to earn profits and to reduce expenses. He called upon the farmers to conserve water and adopt resource conservation technologies, like laser land leveler, tensiometer, etc., developed by PAU. Reposing full faith in the farmers of Punjab, he motivated them to share their farm issues with the PAU experts, without any hesitation, at various KVKs. “Your feedback helps in devising the research programmes of PAU,” he added. Dr Gosal lauded the efforts of KVK Amritsar in the organization of the mela.

Dr Sarvjeet Singh, Additional Director Research highlighted the research priorities of PAU and told the farmers about recommended varieties of Paddy, Basmati, Summer Moong, Mash etc. He also informed the farmers about the recently developed/released varieties namely Punjab Basmati 4, Punjab Basmati 5 of Basmati; CoPb 92, CoPb 93 & CoPb 94 of Sugarcane and PR126 of Rice. He said that PAU’s research was focusing on judicious use of water and on developing heat tolerant varieties. He also advocated the use of biofertilisers and integrated pet management technologies.

Dr Dalbir Singh Chhina, Chief Agriculture Officer, Amritsar, appreciated the efforts of PAU in resolving the issues of farmers by devising effective research programmes. He highlighted the farmer-friendly services provided by the Government of Punjab. Dr Bhupinder Singh Dhillon, Associate Director, KVK Amritsar, proposed the vote of thanks.