PIONEER EDGE NEWS SERVICE/ Khatima
In a move to inspire farmers to switch to organic farming, the chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami ploughed his own agricultural land at his private residence in Nagla Trai area under Khatima block with a tiller and applied natural manure made from cow dung. His mother Bishna Devi was present when her son ploughed.
Hailing agriculture as the soul of India’s rural life and her culture, he urged the farmers to expand their vision and view agriculture not just as a means of livelihood. “It is much more,” he said. “We need to blend modern farming with traditional and organic farming to boost the prospects of agriculture and the earning of those closely associated with it,” he stated.
Stressing on using cow dung as the principal manure, he said that it not just increases fertility of agricultural land naturally but plays a crucial role in environment conservation. “Time has come when the farmers must decrease their reliance on chemical fertilisers and increasingly resort to organic farming,” he said, adding that the State government has been striving to boost the farmers’ income through enhancing agricultural productivity in both modern and organic farming.
Stating that Uttarakhand’s identity is associated with its agriculture, rural economy and nature, the CM said that their developmental focus remains trained on organic and traditional farming, horticultural production and local products, in particular.
Furthermore, he exhorted the youth of the State to connect themselves with rural development and farming.
