For achieving higher farm productivity in Tamil Nadu, sale of agricultural lands for commercial purpose especially to real estate dealers should be banned in the state, said K. N. Nehru, State Minister for Transport.
Speaking after inaugurating the seminar cum exhibition on ‘Agriculture Technology Management Agency' (ATMA) organised by the Agriculture Department at TNAU-Anbil Dharmalingam Agriculture College and Research Institute at Navalur Kuttapattu village near here on Thursday, Mr. Nehru expressed serious concern over the serious decline in the total extent of fertile and cultivable lands, causing a setback in agricultural productivity.
He referred to the ban in vogue in the adjoining Kerala state. The ban there, he said, prevented commercial exploitation of available land. “We are confident that a similar ban will see the day of light in Tamil Nadu too,” he said.
Mr. Nehru made a simultaneous appeal to the farmers not to sell their lands in the wake of appreciation of the value of their property. “Real estate dealers may lure you with attractive price; but farmers should understand that their property is worth more than the offer,” he said.
Mr. Nehru appealed to the farmers to take maximum advantage of the schemes such as ATMA, precision farming and sprinkler irrigation techniques which could help in water conservation and management methods.
P. Murugesa Boopathy, Vice-Chancellor of Tamil Nadu Agriculture University, in his address, said that TNAU had designed and developed 149 farm implements such as ‘power-weeder', ‘tree climber'etc . With a view to ensuring commercial production of these implements, the TNAU had entered into a Memorandum of Understanding with a few manufacturing companies.
The subsidy-based equipment would facilitate the farmers to tide over problems such as labour scarcity and escalating cultivation expenses.
The University, he said, was presently focussing on extension services. The TNAU was bent on introducing ‘Sustainable Sugarcane Initiative' (SSI) which would help increase sugarcane production by around 250 tonnes per hectare. Emphasising the need for seed replacement for ensuring higher productivity, Dr. Murugesa Boopathy said that although paddy growers were quite responsive to the technique, those cultivating pulses and oil-seeds were not aware of the significance of seed replacement. The University, he said, had planned to sensitise the oil-seed growers and pulses cultivators this year to resort to seed replacement strategy. The services being rendered by the University's Domestic and Export Market Intelligence and Guidance Cell (DEMIC) has helped the farmers in getting attractive returns for their produce.
V. Dakshinamurthy, District Collector (in-charge) said that the district administration had planned to start ‘Farmers' Market' (Uzhavar Sandhai) at three places – Srirangam, Lalgudi and Musiri. It has been planned to bring in at least 35,000 hectares of land under the System of Rice Intensification (SRI) technique this year, against the 26,942 hectares last season.
The district administration has also planned to double the area from the present 2,000 hectares to 4,000 hectares in red gram; and from 29,000 hectares to 39,000 hectares for all other pulses.
Earlier, Mr. Nehru released a booklet on ATMA and the first copy was received by N. Selvaraj, State Forests Minister. He also honoured the ATMA farmers with National Savings Certificate.
