Basmati gives big boost to Crop

diversification

Moga | Sunday, Dec 8 2013 IST

 

Basmati took a big leap forward in crop diversification with

Basmati recording booming success this season, production

expected to touch 25 lakh tonne as compared to 18.5 lakh tonne

last year.

The cultivation area under basmati also increased to 5.60 lakh

hectare against 4.58 lakh last year, said Dr BS Sidhu, Agriculture

Commissioner Punjab at Budh Singh Wala Krishi Vigyan Kendra

(BSWKVK) yesterday while addressing scientists.

He also observed that crop fetched good price of Rs 4700 per

quintal as compared to 2200 to 2500 last year proving a boon for

farmers this year. Dr Sidhu claimed that state government has

taken initiative by exempting of 2 per cent mandi board fee, 2 per

cent rural development fund and 3 per cent waiving of

infrastructure cess helping buyers to benefit 7 per cent. This

move aimed to encourage state's food processing industry and

crop diversification programme.

He also observed that 80 per cent of basmati grown is the 1121

variety. There is a big demand of aromatic varieties of basmati in

overseas markets resulting farmers getting good returns of

basmati crop this year.

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He also stated that Punjab accounts for about 40 per cent of

country's basmati rice production estimated between 4 to 5

million tonnes. 

Patiala, Sep 29, 2013 -

When paddy procurement starts from October 1, the farmers who have sown basmati

varieties in the kharif season will find no minimum support price (MSP) for their crop.

The failure of the union government to declare any MSP for basmati varieties will allow

private traders to exploit the farmers with monopolistic prices that will vary across grain

markets. The trend is that the government agencies don't procure basmati varieties, and

local traders and private agencies are the only buyers.

The state government also failed to ensure MSP, in spite of encouraging farmers to go

with the basmati varieties under the crop diversification plan. For reducing the area

under water-guzzling traditional paddy, more than 6-lakh hectares is under different

varieties of basmati, compared with 4.5-lakh hectares last year.

In the agriculture policy draft, Punjab State Farmers' Commission (PSFC) chairman GS

Kalkat had proposed to the government to motivate farmers to grow basmati varieties,

maize, vegetables, cereals and pulses, but at the same time, also offer them adequate

subsidy on seed, better marketing facilities, and good MSP to implement the

diversification plan.

Compared with the other varieties of paddy, basmati are sown in July generally and

consume less water, which reduces the farmers' input cost. Regular varieties take 160 to

170 days to mature and require more water.

Basmati's previous average price has been ' 2,800 per quintal (depending upon variety)

against ' 1,310 for non-basmati varieties. This season, the yield from PR 115 basmati

variety has started reaching at many grain markets in the district but basmati's main

variety, PUSA 1121, sown over 5-lakh hectares, will reach the markets only in the third

week of October.

'Good for only couple of seasons'

"Farmers can grow basmati for two or three seasons, after which they'll be reluctant, if

they don't get help in marketing and prices," said Bharti Kisan Union (Ekta-Ugrahan)

general secretary Sukhdev Singh Kokri Kalan. "Who will be responsible in case farmers

failed to get adequate price for the crop?" he added.

For almost the same input cost, the per-hectare yield was far less in case of basmati, said

Kokri Kalan. "If the government can't ensure MSP, it should also not drive farmers to

exploitation at the hands of private traders, who fix rates arbitrarily," he further said. In

some respite to farmers, the Punjab government has decided to waive rural development

fund and market fee of 4% on the purchase of basmati by local millers.