I-Khet mobile app to play important role in paddy straw management

Ludhiana, September 18, 2019: With an aim to check paddy straw and stubble burning in the state, the Punjab government is taking several steps including providing agri machinery to farmers for paddy straw management. Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh had also launched a mobile app named i-khet last year, and till date thousands of farmers have availed its benefit. While providing information, Deputy Commissioner Pradeep Kumar Agrawal stated that this app has been developed by Punjab Remote Sensing Centre and includes information of all those machines of district Ludhiana that are used for paddy straw management. This mobile application can be downloaded on android based phones from play store and is providing information on district, block and village level in both English and Punjabi languages. Agrawal informed that this mobile app has been developed for facilitating farmers to have access to the agriculture machinery/equipment for in-situ management of crop residue. Noting that such burning causes irreversible damage to the texture of soil, natural environment and human health, the Deputy Commissioner asked all the concerned departments to intensify the campaign to educate farmers about the menace. He further said that the farmers can search information about nearest agri machines including location, owner name and contact number, besides others. He said that on contacting such owners, this machine can be further put to use by the farmers. He informed that in district Ludhiana, details of around 3000 such machines associated with Agriculture Department and Cooperation Department and other machines are also added in this app. The Deputy Commissioner stated that paddy has been sown on around 65 lakh acres in the state, that would produce around 20 million tonnes straw, whereas only 5 million tonnes would be managed properly by the farmers. He said that sadly around 15 million tonnes of paddy straw is burnt in the fields. He informed that burning one tonnes of straw produces 5.5 kg nitrogen, 2.3 kg phosphorous, 25 kh potassium, 1.2 kg sulphur, 400 kg organic manure damages the atmosphere and soil health. He said that farmers who burn paddy straw claim that they do not have proper machinery for paddy straw management. He said that this mobile app would prove very beneficial for such farmers. He has appealed to the farmers that in view of 550th Parkash Purab celebrations of Shri Guru Nanak Dev Ji, they should not burn paddy straw this year.