Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Wednesday launched high-tech sugarcane harvesters at Mastamardi village of Belagavi taluk on Wednesday. Twelve such units were handed over to the Krishi Yantradhare Kendra.
The Chief Minister said that these harvesters were an answer to the shortage of labourers. The government had decided to make them available at the kendras in hobli centres from where growers could take them on rent.
Mr. Siddaramaiah stressed the need for improvement in farm productivity to boost financial stability of farmers. “Agriculture could become a profit-making venture by improving productivity; taking advantage of scientific and technological innovations; and adopting government schemes. The growers need to come forward to install drip irrigation systems to save water and also boost yield. The government is providing 90 per cent subsidy for installing the systems,” he said.
Earlier, Agriculture Minister Krishna Byre Gowda said the government was providing 40 per cent subsidy for each sugarcane harvester costing Rs. 1.38 crore. The cost of manual harvesting of the crop was around Rs. 350 to Rs. 375 per tonne while the government wanted to bring it down to Rs. 300 through mechanised harvesters.
“Also, growers normally take a day to harvest sugarcane on a one-acre field. It could be done in just four hours by mechanised harvesters. Another advantage is that the machines cut the cane into billets and directly dump them into the trolley of a tractor or a lorry, which means enhanced sugar recovery percentage. Sugar mills can take mechanically harvested sugarcane to the crushers without making growers to wait in long queues. The cane leaves could utilised for preparing organic manure which will boost crop yield from 4 tonnes to 5 tonnes per acre,” the Minister added.
Government Chief Whip Ashok Pattan, Minister for Small-Scale Industries Ramesh L. Jarkiholi, and senior officials were present.
