To promote natural farming, Haryana CM Manohar Lal Khattar on Sunday announced subsidy of up to Rs 25,000 on purchase of one indigenous cow and to provide four big drums to the farmers to prepare solution of Jeevamrut for natural farming free of cost. “Haryana will be the first state in the country to do so. Basic objective of natural farming is to change the eating habits, for this we have to adopt the concept of food and medicine. Natural farming is the only way out. A target has been set to promote natural farming on 50,000 acres of land in the state and in order to make people aware about it, an exhibition of natural farming will be done in every block”, Khattar said, while speaking a review meeting on natural farming organised at Dr Mangal Sain Auditorium Hall in Karnal on Sunday. He also interacted with agriculture experts and gave tips to increase natural farming. “Farmers having 2 to 5 acres of land registered on the portal and who voluntarily adopt natural farming, will be provided 50 per cent subsidy for purchasing indigenous cows”, Khattar said. “Sikkim is the first state in the country to have moved completely to natural farming. A lot of work is also being done in Himachal Pradesh, Gujarat, Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh, now Haryana government will give subsidy on the purchase of indigenous cows. So far 1,253 farmers of the state have registered themselves voluntarily for adopting natural farming on the portal created by the agriculture department,” he added. “As Finance Minister, when I review budget of various departments, somewhere my thinking changes at the time of budget allocation for the health department that if our food and drinks are right, then the health department will not need much budget for infrastructure and other medicines. If we get sick then we go to get medicine and now natural farming is with us as an alternative to medicine, we have to adopt it as a part of our lives. For adopting natural farming, Haryana government will also give more than what it will get from the Center,” the CM said. Progressive farmers will now be called natural farmers Khattar said that a demonstration plant must be made in every block so that farmers of that block can take advantage of it. “More than 50 progressive farmers should be trained at the block level. Progressive farmers will now be called natural farmers, because natural farming has to be done according to the laws of nature,” he said. Natural method will raise the income of farmers, says Dalal Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare Minister, JP Dalal, said, “By adopting natural method, the income of the farmers will increase. Government has implemented schemes like Mera Pani-Meri Virasat to save water and Bhavantar Bharpayee for farmers to get full price for their produce. Rs 450 crore has been given to the farmers under this.
