The Fact News Service
Ludhiana, September 21
Preparations are afoot at Punjab Agricultural University (PAU) for the Kisan Mela on September 23 and 24. The mela is themed as “Kisani, jawani ate paun-pani bachaea aao ‘Rangla Punjab’ banaea. (Come, let use make Rangla Punjab by saving youth, farming and natural resources).”
Dr. Satbir Singh Gosal, Vice-Chancellor, PAU, said farmers will be acquainted with new technologies through live demonstrations, exhibitions and technical sessions. The question-answer session will address the queries of the farmers, he added.
Dr. Ashok Kumar, Director of Extension Education, said that various departments will put up stalls to provide scientific and technical know-how to the farmers, farm women and youths.
In addition to the newly recommended varieties of crops, namely PBW 826 of wheat and OL 16 of oats, live demonstrations will be given on rooftop/terrace vegetable nutrition garden using soilless media, straw management machinery (PAU Super SMS, Smart Seeder, Happy Seeder, Super Seeder and Chopper-cum-Shredder), sprayers (self-propelled high clearance sprayer and electrostatic sprayer), methods of planting fruit trees, techniques of irrigation/drip irrigation in orchards, etc.
Demonstrations will also be given on resource conservation technologies such as Tar Wattar Direct Seeded Rice, green manuring before rice, zero tillage in maize and wheat, sub surface drip irrigation and fertigation, new cropping systems for crop diversification, narrow spacing of Happy Seeder, Integrated Farming System for income enhancement, etc.
Among exhibitions, stalls of agriculture, horticulture, agricultural engineering and processing, renewable energy technologies, community science, etc. will be put up during the mela. In agriculture and horticulture, farmers will be educated about mushroom cultivation, natural resource conservation, low tunnel technology for vegetables, insect-pest and disease management in fruit plants, pot plants and their arrangement in landscape, beekeeping as subsidiary occupation, wheat varieties and their sowing time under poplar plantations, clones of poplar and eucalyptus, etc.
In addition, farmers will be apprised of solar-powered micro irrigation systems, modified greenhouse, rooftop water harvesting for groundwater recharge, PAU safe food production practices, biogas degeneration from paddy straw, paddy straw bale geyser for heating water, water and food testing kit, food pyramid, value added and health food products, prevention of social evils, etc.
Processing technologies such as red wine production from grapes, vodka production from Kufri Pukhraj and paste preparation from button mushroom, will also be highlighted.
The mela will see competitions in crop produce competition, diya painting and decoration, use of millets for nutritious products, knitting for farmers and farm women, and drawing competition on “A scene depicting happiness” for 8-12 years old children.
Farmers are advised to contact Dr. Yuvraj Singh Pandha (98727-44194) for insect-pest management, Dr. Amarjit Singh (94637-47280) for disease management, Dr. Amit Kaul (81464-00233) for agronomic practices, Dr. Varinderpal Singh (81460-37755) for fertilizer and soil related issues, Dr. JS Brar (99158-33793) for fruit cultivation, Dr. Dilpreet Singh Talwar (95927-72123) for vegetable cultivation, Dr. Arshdeep Singh (97799-41983) for farm machinery, Dr. Tarsem Chand (97799-00640) for agro-processing and Dr. Kiran Grover (94173 -76488) for home science.
