Question

study by Institute for Social and Economic Change, Bangalore, said in its 2015 report that people in rural Punjab spend Rs 7.6 crore every year on treatment for ailments caused by stubble burning. The amount does not include expenses on productivity loss due to illness, monetary value of discomfort and utility and additional fertilizer, pesticides and irrigation, which would inflate the loss much more. It is not that farmers don’t want safeguards against or alternatives to crop residue burning. It is simply a question of cheaper, easily available means, and willingness to understand the dynamics of soil health. There are initiatives where a few farmers from the state with the help of experts have embarked on a much healthier practice. Like Jagmohan Singh, a farmer of Jai Singh Wala village in Moga district. He has started sowing potatoes on his 60 acres by adopting the raised bed technique. He first ploughed the land thoroughly without burning the paddy straw and then raised the beds with the help of a bed planter to sow the potato seed. “I have also put up sprinklers on 25 acres to save water,” he said. Another farmer, Jagroop Singh of the same village, has collected paddy straw as dry fodder for livestock and animal bedding for the ensuing winter season. He has also decided to sow wheat without burning the straw. There are others from Rode and Cheeda villages who have started sowing beetroot by adopting the raised bed technique without burning the paddy residue. The state agriculture department in the Government Seed Farm at Raonta village in Moga has also carried out many experiments in the past decade on direct sowing of crops without burning the wheat or paddy straw. One of such experiments was conducted by Dr Jaswinder Singh Brar, in-charge of the government seed farm, between 2012 and 2015. He burnt only the loose straw without operating reaper, which according to him reduced air pollution by 80%. Dr Brar says burning only the loose straw helps in retaining essential micro-nutrients and micro-organisms. The organic material left after harvesting in the form of decomposed straw helps in reducing the intake of fertilizers in the next crop. “Post paddy harvest, about 40% of nitrogen, 30-35% phosphorus, 80-85% potassium, 40-50% sulphur and a significant amount of zinc are left in the vegetative parts. These should be utilized to retain the soil nutrients,” he said. Answer the folloeing questions : about rupees 7.6 crore every year is spent on. 2. Farmers burn paddy because

Answer 1

Answer:

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