Ensure Polambadi kits to farmers, Andhr Pradesh government urged

Anantapur: Praja Science Vedika, in a press statement, has accused agriculture officials of failing to make available Polambadi kits to beneficiaries at the village level. Many are not availing the kits due to lack of awareness on the government's schemes for farmers.

There are several schemes framed by the government for the welfare of small and marginal farmers. The officers at district and mandal level failed to ensure the schemes are reaching the targeted sections. The main objective of Polambadi is to reduce the cost of cultivation and increase the productivity duly empowering the farmers to take economical decisions by adopting practices of integrated crop management. Integrated crop management is an approach to farming which aims to balance production with economic and environmental considerations by means of a combination of measures including crop rotation, cultivation of appropriate crop varieties and judicious use of inputs. However, Polambadi kits are not reaching all farmers, the release maintained.

The objective of Polambadi is to grow a healthy crop, conserve natural enemies, conduct regular field observations, farmers understand ecology on their own fields. The programme is being done from seed to seed, so that the farmers can observe and analyse the dynamics of crop ecology across the season. In this kharif season, field observations are not done. Polambadi is carried out in the crop field and study is being done in the field of one of the trainee participant farmers in about two acres. The trainees will conduct experiments and validation trails such as comparison between integrated approach and farmers practice. Due to corona pandemic, the trainees are not organising the meetings, the release added.

PSV president Dr Suresh says that farmers are buying DAP, Gypsum from private dealers at higher price. Minimum stocks are not maintained at Rythu Bharosa Kendram. Farmer must register and pay the amount online at RBK later after 3 days he can receive the necessary fertilizers. He urged the officials to create massive awareness on government's schemes in this regard.