PAU Kisan Mela Concludes Amidst Overwhelming Response From Farmers
Author(s): City Air NewsPrizes To Winners Of Various Farm Competitions Ludhiana, September 26, 2015: The two-day Kisan Mela concluded at the Punjab Agricultural University (PAU) amidst overwhelming response from the farmers of Punjab and...
cityairnews
Sep 26, 2015 12:30
0
Prizes To Winners Of Various Farm Competitions
Ludhiana, September 26, 2015: The two-day Kisan Mela concluded at the Punjab Agricultural University (PAU) amidst overwhelming response from the farmers of Punjab and neighboring states. Dr N.K.Krishna Kumar, Deputy Director General (Horticulture), Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) was the chief guest while Dr Baldev Singh Dhillon, Vice-Chancellor, PAU presided over the prize-distribution function. On the occasion, Dr Janki Ram, Assistant Director General (Horticulture), ICAR; Dr B.D. Pandey, Principal Scientist and Mrs Karamajit Kaur Dhanewalia, Member, PAU Board of Management were also present.
Dr Kumar lauded PAU VC for his commitment and providing numerous crop varieties and farm technologies under one roof. Calling for “Sustainable Green Revolution,” he said productivity coupled with environmental sustainability and marketing linkage can contribute towards this goal. He disclosed, “During the last year, fruit and vegetable production touched 280 million tonnes, thereby, surpassing the rice and wheat production of 260 million tonnes.” In the coming days, the demand for healthy and nutritious foods is going to increase in view of 20 per cent Indians suffering from diabetes, he observed. Comparing the agricultural models in four states of Punjab, Gujarat, Kerala and Maharashtra Dr Kumar further said, Maharashtra has emerged as a numero- uno state in co-operative horticulture, Gujarat is known for marketing network whereas Kerala has got highest standards of living. Such a model need to be followed in Punjab which is known for maximum contribution towards nations’ food security. He urged the farmers to equip their wards with best agriculture education in order to meet the future requirements of good farm scientists at the upcoming institutes like Postgraduate Horticulture Institute, being set-up in Amritsar. Later, he gave away the prizes to winners of various competitions.
Dr Dhillon said, “Farmers’ participation motivates us and we learn a lot from them.” Expressing concern over vagaries of weather and rising cost of farm inputs, he stressed on the farmers to refrain from making excessive use of water, pesticides and fertilizers. He also urged them to adopt diversification within the selection of crop varieties, and go for mushroom growing, beekeeping, dairy and poultry farming, piggery and fishery. Dr Dhillon said the University is focusing on skill development for which various training courses on seed production, tissue culture, repair of farm machinery, etc. are being organized. Besides, he highlighted various national collaborations for strengthening research on cotton and maize crops.
Dr Balwinder Singh, Director of Research, said, “PAU has developed/recommended 772 crop varieties and hybrids till date, out of which, 155 have been released at the national level.” He appealed to the farmers to conserve water and maintain soil health. Besides, he also highlighted salient features of newly released crop varieties and their production-protection technologies.
Earlier, Dr R.S. Sidhu, Director of Extension Education, welcomed the dignitaries, farmers and the farm women. He said, "This mela is incomplete without the participation of the farmers and the farm women." "The huge footfall of farmers and their families in the Kisan Mela speaks volumes of their faith in PAU,” he stated.
PAU GIVES AWAY PRIZES TO WINNERS OF VARIOUS FARM COMPETITIONS
The winning farmers and farm women of various competitions were awarded prizes at the Kisan Mela of the Punjab Agricultural University (PAU).
In the crop produce competition, Ramanpreet Singh (Patiala), Robanjit Singh (Kapurthala), Tirath Singh (Sangrur), Harmail Singh (Bathinda), Karnail Singh (Fazilka), Jagjit Singh (Patiala), Balraj Singh (Sangrur), Jagpal Singh (Bathinda) and Balkar Singh (Kapurthala) won first prize in the category of okra, bitter gourd, chilli, ram tori, brinjal, radish, onion, lemon and papaya, respectively. Besides, Jinder Singh (Rupnagar) bagged first prize in the category of maize and amla while Amarjit Singh (Faridkot) got first prize in the category of guava and ghiya kaddu. Paramjit Singh (Fatehgarh Sahib) won first prize in the category of garlic and grapes.
Among PAU exhibitions, Department of Plant Pathology, School of Agricultural Biotechnology and Kirshi Vigyan Kendra, Bathinda were adjudged as first, second and third, respectively. In field demonstrations, PAU Departments of Plant Breeding and Genetics, Agronomy and Entomology stood first, second and third, respectively. The Punjab Naujawan Kisan Sanstha of Gurdaspur, Patiala and Tarn Taran bagged first, second and third prize, respectively.
In the competitions conducted by the PAU College of Home Science, Jaswinder Kaur (Ludhiana), G.K. Grewal (Ludhiana) and Amarjit Kaur (Ludhiana) got first prize in knitted articles, preparation of nutritious recipes from peanuts and diyas decoration, respectively. Arshdeep Singh (Sangrur) clinched first prize in essay writing competition for children. Among Women Entrepreneur stalls, Manjit Kaur (Samrala) won the first prize.
Besides, M/s Mahindra and Mahindra (Mumbai) and M/s BCS India Pvt. Ltd.(Ludhiana) bagged first prize in the category of ‘tractors and combines,’ and ‘reapers, threshers and self-propelled equipments,’ respectively. M/s Tirath Agro-Technology Pvt. Ltd. (Gujarat), and M/s Harnoor Engineering Works (Moga) got first prize for tractor driven implements, and 'electric motors, engines and pumping sets,’ respectively. M/s Falcon Garden Tools Pvt. Ltd. and M/s Jain Irrigation (Chandigarh) got first prize for tools and sprayers, and water saving tools and machines, respectively. In addition, IFFCO (Ludhiana), M/s Crystal Crop Protection (New Delhi) and Verka (Ludhiana) won first prize for fertilizers, pesticides, and agro-processed products and machinery, respectively.
Date:
Saturday, September 26, 2015
