Patiala News:Important role of Cooperation Department in stubble management

– Special efforts are being made from awareness raising to providing CRM machinery to farmers.

-Farmers should take advantage of modern agricultural machinery and facilities available through cooperative societies instead of burning stubble – Sangram Singh Sandhu

Special efforts are being made by the Cooperation Department at the ground level to prevent incidents of stubble burning and proper management of crop residues in Patiala district. The Primary Agricultural Cooperative Societies of the district have been made an important part of this campaign by the Department to establish direct outreach to the farmers, so that besides motivating the farmers not to burn stubble, the facilities of its alternative management can also be extended to them.

Giving this information, Deputy Registrar, Cooperative Societies, Patiala Sangram Singh Sandhu said that under this campaign, farmer awareness camps are being organized in cooperative societies, through which farmers are being made aware about the adverse effects of stubble burning on the environment, soil fertility and human health. The managing committees of the societies are also being included in this campaign and resolutions are being passed to motivate farmers not to burn stubble.

The Cooperation Department is paying special attention to the biggest need of the farmers, i.e. availability of agricultural machinery for stubble management. Under this, a list of super seeder, baler and other crop residue management machinery available in the cooperative societies is being prepared and flex boards are being installed in the societies, so that the farmers can easily get information about the machinery and facilities available near them.

The machinery is being provided to the farmers on a first come, first served basis and priority is being given to small and marginal farmers to provide CRM machinery without rent. Along with this, daily usage of the machinery is also being monitored and reported on the relevant portal.

To effectively implement this entire campaign, the Deputy Registrar, Cooperative Societies, Patiala has activated all the Assistant Registrars and field staff of the district. The Assistant Registrars are visiting the cooperative societies under their jurisdiction and monitoring the awareness activities, availability of machinery and facilities being provided to the farmers.

Deputy Registrar, Cooperative Societies, Patiala Sangram Singh Sandhu said that cooperative societies have direct contact with farmers at the village level and hence their role is very important in making the stubble management campaign successful. The aim of the department is not only to make farmers aware of not burning stubble but also to connect them with the necessary facilities for proper management of stubble.

Sangram Singh Sandhu appealed to the farmers to take advantage of the facilities being provided through modern agricultural machinery and cooperative societies and to lend their support for the conservation of the environment instead of burning stubble.