Punjab to subsidise surface seeders to dissuade stubble burning

In a move to exhort farmers not to burn crop residue and instead use mechanisms to manage paddy stubble, Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann’s Punjab government is subsiding Surface Seeders—an in-situ paddy stubble management device—to farmers in the state.
Punjab Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Minister Gurmeet Singh Khudian on Sunday said that the department has invited applications from farmers for availing subsidy on the Surface Seeders. Appealing the farmers to take maximum advantage of the scheme, Gurmeet Singh Khudian said that all farmers in the state can apply online by logging in at the department’s portal by 5 pm on Sunday, 10 September, to avail the benefit of this scheme.
The Agriculture department is offering a Rs 40,000 subsidy to individual farmers, while Customer Hiring Centres can avail subsidies amounting tp Rs 64,000 on the purchase of a Surface Seeder. In addition to this, the Agriculture Minister said that the Punjab Government is also providing subsidies for purchasing other Crop Residues Management (CRM) machinery to bring the crop residue burning cases to zero in the state to save the environment. The Agriculture Minister said that the farmers can dial a toll-free number provided by the government or visit the Agriculture Office in their respective districts for more information in this regard
Terming this as a cost-effective step that will benefit farmers, Gurmeet Singh Khudian said that all farmers could increase their income by adopting mechanisation and by doing so, save the environment in the process. He also directed the department officials to ensure complete transparency in the whole process.