Ludhiana: Khudian announces

The second Kisan Mela of the year started with a great pomp and flair at the Punjab Agricultural University while Pashu Palan Mela kicked off at Guru Angad Dev Veterinary and Animal Sciences University (GADVASU) here on Friday. Both the melas were inaugurated by Punjab Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare minister Gurpreet Singh Khuddian.
Khuddian hailed the PAU for making an ‘indelible impression’ in the field of agriculture and allied sector across the globe. Assuring the State government’s full support to the farmers, he observed, “Punjab will be happy only if its zamindars (farmers) will be prosperous. This mela is a place which should be worshipped by the farmers as it caters to their needs concerning seed and knowledge enhancement,” observed the Minister.
₹500 crores for paddy straw management
The minister announced that that ₹500 crore have been allocated by the central and the state governments for paddy straw management this year in comparison to ₹350 crore last year. He appealed to the farmers to shun stubble burning and adopt paddy straw management technologies for the pollution-free environment and welfare of humanity.
Punjab Agriculture director Jaswant Singh informed that 6,000 stubble management machines have already reached the farmers’ fields, He asked the farmers to avail themselves of the benefit for in-situ paddy straw management.
Switch to less water guzzling paddy varieties
He urged the farmers to be conscientious of the sinking groundwater table resulting in water scarcity and called for switching to less water-guzzling paddy crops for conserving water, he urged the farmers.
PAU Vice-chancellor Satbir Singh Gosal, called upon the farmers to diversify their cropping pattern by cultivating PBW 826 of wheat “which has spread its wings from Jammu to Kolkata; PBG 10 of chickpea for export purpose; GSC 7 of gobhi sarson to compete with Canada-based canola oil; TL 17 of toria; BL 42 of berseem; and other alternate crops.”
In total, six progressive farmers and one farm woman were rewarded for exhibiting excellence in agriculture, horticulture and entrepreneurship. On the occasion, five PAU scientists, namely GK Sikka, BS Sekhon, GS Manes, Mandeep Singh and Karamjit Sharma were also felicitated for making tremendous contributions to agricultural research and extension.
Pashu Palan Mela of Guru Angad Dev Veterinary and Animal Sciences University saw the various departments put up stalls showcasing all their research and extension programmes for the benefit of the livestock farmers. This two-day event at the mela ground will provide a platform for farmers, scientists, extension workers, dairy-fodder-fisheries officers, various veterinary pharmaceuticals and agribusiness firms and banking sectors for showing their experience and information about the latest technologies and schemes which has come up in the livestock sector.
Extension education director Dr Parkash Singh Brar revealed that a large number of farmers showed interest in taking up goat, pig and fish farming and especially enquired about their training programmes. University publications on different subjects of livestock farming were also available.
A special interactive session on livestock rearing in the scientific way was organised consisting of live lectures from experts and questions-answers for participants.
An endeavour by the College of Fisheries was the stall having various carp fishes, ornamental fish, azolla, duckweed cultivation and integration of fish farming with other livestock farming. People inquired about fisheries profession, ornamental fish, shrimp farming and saline water fisheries. Value added products of this college were also displayed on their stall for sale.
Minister Khuddian said that dairy farming is a profession which gives us daily earnings. He said the government is running different schemes for the welfare of the farming community. He motivated farmers to develop their own entrepreneurial ventures of livestock for better income.
Vice-chancellor Dr Jatinder Paul Singh Gill said, “We are promoting value addition of livestock products. The mela slogan is also based on this objective Uttpadan ton Uttpad Banaiye, Aao Vadh Munafa Paiye. He said that through value addition of products we can improve the income level of farmers. He said that value addition of products also provides add on profit in comparison to traditional way of livestock farming.
Sanitation amenities fall short for female visitors at Kisan mela
Rishika Kriti
[email protected]
Ludhiana The lack of sanitation facilities at Kisan mela organised by Punjab Agricultural University (PAU) irked the visitors. The mela witnessed an overwhelming turnout on its first day with thousands of farmers, including a significant number of women, attending from various parts of the state. The event featured numerous stalls with women managing many of them, selling items such as books, plants, decorative pieces, and snacks.
However, concerns have been raised over the lack of basic sanitation facilities for female attendees. While five mobile toilets were installed near the entry point for men, no similar arrangements were made for women.
A policewoman deployed for the first time at the mela near the Department of Entomology remarked, “I am not aware of the premises of the university. There are no adequate signboards to guide us properly. Hence, I have to ask people to access washrooms available in the nearby buildings, meant for students and staff.”
Swati, a 26-year-old woman running food stall with her husband echoed similar concerns. “The arrangements for basic hygiene for women are not proper. For now, my major concern is to make the most of this mela for profit, so we are managing,” she stated.
Along with sanitation issues, arrangements for drinking water were also not adequate where some stalls were set up to serve people free of cost, but they also ran out till afternoon after which they were urging people to purchase packaged bottles.
PAU vice-chancellor Satbir Singh Gosal said,” We have installed the mobile toilets near open air theatre for both males and females. But the footfall was large further causing such hassles.”