Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal initiated the process of making a bio-decomposer solution, created in collaboration with the Pusa Institute, at the Kharkhari Nahar village here on Friday.
Mr. Kejriwal appealed to all States to help their farmers in smelting stubble and bear the entire cost of spraying the bio-decomposer in agricultural land just like the Delhi government.
The number of farmers who had applied for the spraying of the solution on their fields had almost gone up threefold compared to last year with the Delhi government scheduled to spray it on over 4,000 acres of land this time, he said.
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No more burning
“Last year, the government in collaboration with the Pusa Institute developed a unique solution for stubble management. We have prepared a bio-decomposer spray, which is very efficient. Earlier, farmers would burn the stubble left in their fields after harvesting. Now the stubble decomposes within 15-20 days of spraying the solution and turns into fertiliser,” he said.
Stubble was earlier a liability for us when it had to be burnt, but now, once it decomposes, it turns into an asset, Mr. Kejriwal said. WAPCOS, an agency under the Central government, found that among several other nutrients, the carbon and nitrogen content of the soil had significantly increased in the soil.
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“Last time, about 300 farmers adopted the solution and it was sprayed in almost 1,950 acres of land. This time, 844 farmers have come forward to use the solution on 4,200 acres of land. We are thrilled to see their response and how a very positive word of mouth has spread amongst the farmers’ community about the bio-decomposer,” he also said.
Last time, the Chief Minister said, the solution was sprayed on only non-basmati paddy fields, this time it will be sprayed on basmati paddy fields as well and cover almost all the farmlands of Delhi, he added.
“When we used to talk about finding solutions for stubble management, we’d only have the most expensive machinery to buy and get rid of stubble. But now that the bio-decomposer has been developed, I can safely say that we have found a very cost-effective solution for stubble management,” Mr. Kejriwal said.
“The entire cost from the preparation to the spraying of the bio-decomposer is under a thousand Rupees per acre. The Delhi government is bearing the entire cost of the solution throughout Delhi. It is our appeal to other state governments to follow suit and help their farmers like the Delhi Government,” he said further.
If the Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh governments implement the spraying of the solution with the seriousness of an emergency, the Chief Minister said, the problem of stubble burning could easily be taken care of.
Environment Minister Shri Gopal Rai said stubble plays a big role in the increase in pollution in Delhi during winters to counter which the Delhi government would be ready to start the process of spraying the bio-decomposer from October 5.
Pusa Institute’s Bio-Decomposer Management Nodal Officer Indramani Mishra said that ten companies have been given licences to make capsules of the bio-decomposer.