Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Sunday called on farmers to conduct new experiments in the field of agriculture to supplement their income, as he assured them of his government's support in their efforts.
Mann was presiding over the first ever 'Sarkar-Kisan Milni', a government-farmer interaction at Punjab Agricultural University here, according to an official release.
Speaking at the meet, Mann said the need of the hour is to bail farmers out of the ongoing agrarian crisis.
Due to ever-escalating input costs and diminishing returns, agriculture is no longer a profitable venture, he pointed out. "Due to this, the farmers of the state are at crossroads."
Mann said that the sole motive of holding the interaction is to reduce the gap between decision-makers and stakeholders so that policies are designed as per the needs of the farmers.
Mann called upon the farmers to shun traditional methods of agriculture and adopt ultra-modern techniques to maximise their profit.
He said the state government is already pursuing the matter of Minimum Support Price (MSP) on alternative crops with the government of India.
MSP will help in supplementing the income of farmers, and will also help them wean away from stubble burning, he said.
The state government is also laying a major thrust on the food processing sector, and will soon set up processing plants for sugarcane, litchi, garlic, kinnow and other fruits in the state, he said.
Punjab produces 80 per cent of the total basmati produced in the country, Mann said. He said that its production will be further enhanced in the coming days, which will give a fillip to the basmati industry, supplement the farmers' income, and save the precious natural resource in the form of water.
He urged farmers to adopt basmati rice cultivation across the state as he assured them of his government's support in its cultivation and getting the right price for the crop.
Mann also said that the government is considering the use of canal water for an enhanced cultivation, for which the irrigation network across the state will be spruced up.
Government will make all out efforts to ensure that water reaches every last village, he said.
The CM also called upon the officers, especially the deputy commissioners and additional deputy commissioners, to increase their field visits, especially in villages, and interact with the people.
During the meeting, around 15,000 farmers registered themselves.
-With PTI Input
