-The Hindustan Times Kapurthala (Punjab): Direct seeding of rice (DSR) and paddy straw management were the major issues at the Kisan Mela held in the city on Thursday. The mela, organised by the agriculture department in association with the Agriculture Technology Management Agency (ATMA), began with a message of 'save environment, say no to burn paddy straw'. Four farmers, including a woman, were honoured for using DSR technology in paddy farming. The technology...

-The New Indian Express HYDERABAD: If the unimpressive spell of southwest monsoon across the state continues, the government, which seems proactively making a sustainable crop choice for cultivation by having declared a soil survey, might well want to work towards revival of droughtresistant crop sorghum, which once used to be one of the largest cultivated dryland crops in the region, feel scientists at the Directorate of Sorghum Research. DSR, a central...

-The Hindustan Times Sangrur: In spite of claims by farmers in the state to go in for direct seeding of rice (DSR) in the ongoing sowing season, those in the region are reluctant to adopt the new method. The government has been encouraging the DSR method, a technique that saves water and time. But, farmers feel that it would be ‘risky', especially for those with smaller land. Sangrur chief agriculture officer (CAO) Rajinder...

-The Hindustan Times   Faridkot: When it comes to paddy transplantation, the migrant labour from Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and some other states, contributes a lot to meet the acute labour crisis in the region. It is another possible reason that, perhaps, distracts the farmers from the direct sowing of rice (DSR), otherwise, if the migrant labour is not available for paddy transplantation, farmers may be forced to shift towards the technique. "A large...

-The Tribune Punjab: No doubt there is a pressing need to restore the fast deteriorating underground water balance in Punjab and parts of Haryana because of excessive withdrawals of water to meet the irrigation requirements of water-guzzling crops, particularly the rice crop. In Punjab available canal water hardly meets one-fourth of the water requirements of the agriculture sector and three-fourth water requirements are met through the pumping of underground water. In...