Minister for Youth Affairs P.K. Jayalakshmi has called upon agriculture experts to introduce farmers to low-cost farming techniques such as the System of Rice Intensification (SRI) method to rejuvenate paddy cultivation in the State.
Speaking after inaugurating ‘Natty-2014’, a project of the Kalpetta block panchayat to promote the SRI method among the farming community, at Kokkuzhi here on Sunday, Ms. Jayalakshmi said that many farmers had shifted from paddy cultivation to more profitable crops owing to the increasing cost of production and low returns. This had led to a sharp decline in acreage under paddy in the State and it had adversely affected the water storing capacity of soil. Paddy cultivation should be promoted in order to ensure food security and conserve water, the Minister added.
In his presidential address, P.K. Anilkumar, president, Kalpetta block panchayat, said the SRI method of cultivation was suitable for the district as production cost and water consumption for cultivation were low under this method,.
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The project is being implemented as part of the Integrated Watershed Management programme of the block panchayat. The project has been implemented on 1.6 hectares of land under the Kokuzhi Padassekhara Samiti .As many as 16 farmers are the beneficiaries of the project and all production costs would be borne by the panchayat.