Bihar farm trebles its yield

When members of the Technology Information Forecasting Assessment Council TIFAC asked Deolila Singh 50 to adopt a new method of cultivat...

When members of the Technology Information Forecasting Assessment Council TIFAC asked Deolila Singh 50 to adopt a new method of cultivating paddy, the traditional farmer was apprehensive.

In 2003, Singh was not ready to experiment with his only source of income8212;a modest tract of land in this central Bihar hamlet. A year later, he had mustered the courage to try the new way on a small portion of his 20 acres. The results left him dazed.

8216;8216;I couldn8217;t believe it. The yield was almost double my expectation,8217;8217; he said. This year Singh has adopted the new method on his entire holding.

Farming has been revolutionised in at least 56 villages in and around Paliganj where this scientific method is being implemented.The food grain yield here was low despite the region being well-irrigated by the Sone river. But after the new method was adopted, production has more than doubled, from 2 tonnes per hectare to 5.8 tonnes.

In 1999, TIFAC launched a project to improve productivity of cereals, pulses, oilseeds and even encourage farmers in Bihar to grow fruits and vegetables. Even President A P J Abdul Kalam has visited twice to urge farmers to adopt the new techniques.

Traditionally, farmers would use 25 kg to 30 kg of paddy seeds to obtain saplings for transplanting in a one-acre area. In the new method, saplings from 3 to 5 kg of seeds are enough to cover an acre.

Field assistant Shyam Sundar Sinha explains that farmers are now using a maximum of two paddy plants instead of the previous five to seven plants during transplantation.

nbsp;	How revolution was achieved

		nbsp;	8226; Technology Information Forecasting Assessment Council convinces some Bihar farmers to adopt new paddy cultivation method 8226; 56 villages in and around Paliganj benefit 8226; Lesser amount of seeds covers more acres 8226; Use of fertilisers reduced 8226; Better quality seeds made available	nbsp;

8216;8216;After 10-15 days, one or two saplings tailor out into 30-35 saplings as they receive good air, water and sunlight. As a bonus, farmers save not only on seeds but also on fertilisers. So the use of fertilisers has also been drastically reduced,8217;8217; he says.

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8216;8216;The higher yield is also due to better quality seeds,8217;8217; adds B.P.Sinha, a resource person for the organisation.

For both paddy and wheat, good quality seeds are arranged by the organisation from Indian Agricultural Research Institute at Karnal on a cost-to-cost basis.

A group of farmers from Paliganj has even been trained at Karnal to produce quality seeds. A cooperative has been formed and a seed processing machine installed. The cooperative buys seeds from the local farmers and processes them to get quality seeds. 8216;8216;We want the farmers to be fully independent so that we can move into newer areas,8217;8217; says Sinha.

The experiment does not end here. A more advanced system, which will further multiply production of paddy, has also been put into use from 2004.