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| AGRICULTURE TRIBUNE | Monday, October 6, 2003, Chandigarh, India |
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CONTRACT FARMING IN PERSPECTIVE Early onset of cold days to favour crops Gram, a viable alternative Check for sulphur before sowing |
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CONTRACT FARMING The Managing Director of the sponsor corporation (PAFC) of this scheme, Kripa Shankar Saroj, exudes confidence that contract farming would grow roots. While conceding there have been gaps and pitfalls, he denies it is another utopian bureaucratic idea. “Lessons have been learnt from experience. Corrective measures are on the anvil. Once awareness increases among farmers, more demonstration plots are sown and success stories get spread, things will change. The important task is to change the mindset,” he says. For Rabi 2003, a farm map has been drawn. Saroj says it is a “path-breaking multi-crop, multi-year contract farming system map”. The scheme is to be implemented in phases. For the first phase the identified crops are spring maize, sunflower, Kharif maize, basmati, castor and guar. This Rabi the proposal is to take up durum wheat and the hybrid rapeseed mustard, hyola, on 40,000 acre each and also raya, gram, and field peas. Camps are being planned to apprise farmers of the concept of contract farming and other details. The corporation has set for itself a target of bringing 3 lakh acre under contract farming in Kharif-Rabi 2003. Saroj says there are tie-ups with seed companies for the supply of high-yielding hybrid seeds, bio-fertilisers, pesticides and other inputs. “Organic” farming is next on his agenda. For agronomic practices, another set of private extension companies have been hired. He says just as buy-back guarantee is part of the contract that farmers sign with the companies concerned, so is providing them with technical services. The corporation has been authorised to act as the nodal agent of Nafed for oilseeds and pulses to be procured at the MSP. The corporation is also making amends in its operations, having faced the onslaught of farmers’ organisations and also having not involved either the Department of Agriculture or the Punjab Agricultural University in implementing the scheme. Now PAU is being sounded for multiplication of seeds. Saroj says that seed production, as planned on PAU, Punseed and farmers’ and companies’ farms, is for durum wheat, barley and hyola. An area of 2.50 lakh acre is proposed to be covered under the seed multiplication for Rabi 2004. There is also a move to reduce the market and rural development fees from 2 per cent to 0.25 per cent.
PAU’s role PAU, has, so far kept itself aloof from this ambitious programme. No one in the university is willing to say “on record” if any study or analysis has been done of contract farming. However, “off the record,” PAU scientists say the basic idea of contract farming was to reduce the risk for the buyers and producers. The buyer is assured raw material and the desired quality of product. On the other hand, for the producer the risk of market demand and price fluctuation is reduced. The real potential of this system, nevertheless, lies in the development of agro-processing industries and related infrastructure. It would be more successful for perishable farm produce. PAU experts also say that the present system lacks an administrative or legal framework. Even credibility between the beneficiaries and sponsors has to be built. The contracts should be legalised and there should be a dispute-settlement mechanism to cover the risks involved. This could be done through crop insurance. The scheme must also address the small and medium farmers, and not just help big farmers. PAU experts feel that the university package of practices for Rabi and Kharif crops regarding inputs, quality, certified seeds and agronomic practices must be incorporated in contract farming. In this backdrop, the Northern Region Chapter of the Confederation of Indian Industry has established an “Agriculture Reforms Panel—CII Punjab State Council,” with Sanjeev Nagpal as its convener. The panel has held two meetings and drawn up an agenda for itself to gain from and benefit farmers under the contract-farming scheme. The panel has prepared four concept papers dealing with contract farming, strengthening industry-PAU linkages, facilitating bank finance and dovetailing biotechnology with farming. On the panel are retired and serving farm scientists and economists as well as leaders of businesses houses. |
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IN PERSPECTIVE AFTER “diversification,” the buzzword is “contract farming”. Farmers, who fear dismantling of the minimum support price structure for wheat and paddy (MSP) by 2005, are being told that contract farming is a corollary of diversification. In fact, the concept is not new. It has been in practice ever since the introduction of MSP in the mid-60s. Farmers took to these principle cereals simply because there existed an assured government support in terms of input-output prices and procurement. Because of this unwritten and time-honoured practice over the decades, the farmers and the government have been in a “contract”. But this system has now acquired a new concept and definition, following the need for diversification. It is going in for cultivation of only economy or market-driven crops with potential for value addition; these crops have to be sown in identified suitable agro-climatic zones. This system is aimed at ensuring “quality along with quantity” to make farming remunerative, particularly for the small and medium farmers. Of the estimated 12 lakh farming families in Punjab, approximately 1.44 lakh are marginal, 3.23 lakh semi-medium, 3.01 lakh medium and 1.92 lakh small. The big farmers number about 78,000. Politicians and bureaucrats would have to ensure that the changes that are made in the agriculture sector do not allow wealthy or powerful segments, like the government industry or private sector, to rig the system solely for profit. Economist Sucha Singh Gill cautions that contract farming would become “opaque” if it continued to depend upon the bureaucracy alone. Soon it would be open to exploitation and manipulation by unscrupulous elements. Let the sponsors involve grassroots organisations, including kisan unions and the Panchayati Raj system, he suggests. The state must also enact a contract legislation, apart from building the necessary infrastructure—cold stores, refrigerated vans, etc. The system should have something for every farmer, irrespective of the farm size. — PPS |
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Early onset
of cold days to favour crops
ALLAYING fears that the delayed withdrawal of monsoon may adversely affect the schedule of Rabi crops, experts at the Punjab
Agricultural University (PAU), Ludhiana, have said the consequent early onset of cold days would be favourable for another good crop of wheat. They say the sowing of Rabi crops, including wheat, toria, fodder and oilseeds, would not face any problem related to the increased moisture in the fields. The crops would be cultivated only after a gap of 15 or 20 days, and by the time the moisture level would have come down to normal. According to Dr Govinder Singh Nanda, Director, Research, PAU, wheat should be sown after October 25. This would lower the pest-attack level and help in getting a good yield. Meteorological experts of the university also forecast favourable weather during winter. They say the rain received in the state this monsoon was not more than 481 mm, which is considered normal in comparison with long-term averages. Dr Paramjit Singh Sehra, a weather expert at the university, says normal cold conditions are expected in the region, while nothing can be said about the number of foggy days. The crop would, however, be affected adversely during the coming days due to the rising pollution owing to the burning of paddy stubble and bursting of crackers during the festive period. Dr Sehra says the cold days would start a little early due to snowfall in the upper Himalayas. But this would favour the Rabi crops. The good monsoon this year has recharged the groundwater and farmers could expect a bumper wheat crop. PAU scientists have certain recommendations for farmers for the Rabi crops to be sown in October/November: Increase the area under the PBW-343 variety of wheat, which has been recommended for early sowing—from October- end to mid-November in irrigated areas of Punjab. Early sowing helps in suppressing gulli danda (phalaris minor), a notorious weed in wheat. This variety is resistant to lodging and yields about 22.5 quintals per acre. They have also advised that all crops should be sown at the recommended time. Delayed sowing results in lower yields and greater attack by pests and diseases. In wheat, irrigation is crucial at crown-root initiation and the tillering and grain-filling stages. In areas where gulli danda could not be controlled by spraying Isoproturon for the past 2-3 years, it is suggested that alternative herbicides like Puma-Super/ Topic/ Leader should be used. Weeds, particularly gulli danda/sitti can be reduced by early sowing (last week of October). Zero tillage With increasing input costs, there is a need to optimise field preparation. The only answer is precision farming. For wheat, experts advise zero tillage, or the no-till-drill sowing. PAU engineers have recommended the zero-tillage method in which wheat can be grown after paddy without any field preparation. To take advantage of both tillage and no tillage, a strip till drill has been developed. It makes possible cost reduction and timely sowing. The machine: Strip till drill is a nine-row tractor-operated rear-mounted machine. An 11-row model is also available. There is a rotary tiller attached in front of the drill, which can be detached. It prepares a 3 inches soil strip for placing seed and fertiliser from the delivery tube in front of each furrow opener. The depth of tillage is also 3 inches. The rotary tiller has nine sets of blades-one set for each row of seed drill. It is operated with the PTO of a tractor at a speed of 300 rpm. If the row-to-row spacing of wheat is 8 inches, then a width of 5 inches between the two rows remains untilled, i.e., the tilled area will be less than 40 per cent. This helps in saving energy and time in the range of 60-70 per cent in comparison to traditional sowing. The machine can be handled with a 35 HP tractor. There are many private manufacturers of this machine. It is available at two prices: Rs 14-15,000 and Rs 31-35,000. According to Dr I.K. Garg of the Farm Power and Machinery Department of the university, the costlier version has more functions. While Haryana is offering a subsidy of Rs 3,000 to farmers buying this machine, the Punjab Government is yet to do so. The drill sows wheat directly after paddy in case of manually harvested paddy, and after clearing the straw in 'combine' harvesting. It provides an ideal soil seed environment for early germination, crop establishment and growth. The method can save a farmer Rs 500-700 per acre. |
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Gram, a viable alternative GRAM
can play a vital role as an alternative Rabi crop. It does well with limited irrigation and also has minimal fertiliser requirement. Being a leguminous plant, its roots harbour nitrogen-fixing bacteria that enrich the soil with nitrogen. New varieties of gram are fairly resistant to diseases, particularly ascochyta blight (chandni). Varieties PBG5, PEG1 and C235 are recommended for humid areas (Amritsar, Hoshiarpur, Gurdaspur, Ropar and Nawanshahr) while GPF2, BG1053 and L550 are for the irrigated central and southwestern areas of Punjab. These varieties yield 6-8 q/acre. The market price of desi gram is about Rs2000 per quintal, while the Kabuli type fetches more than Rs3000. Gram, thus, compares well with wheat. Under irrigated conditions, sow the crop between October 25 and November 10, using 14-16 kg seed for desi gram and 37 kg for the Kabuli variety. Merely 6 kg of nitrogen and 8 kg of phosphorus for desi gram and 6 kg nitrogen and 16 kg phosphorus per acre for Kabuli are sufficient. Inoculation of the seed with rhizobium culture enhances the yield by about 10 per cent. A crop sown after paddy needs no irrigation. A single irrigation in December or January is required. The recommended varieties possess good resistance to major diseases. Cloudy weather with intermittent rains in January and February cause outbreak of ascochyta blight or grey mould. In case weather remains cloudy with thundershowers, the crop should be sprayed 3 or 5 times with Hexacap or Indofil M-45 or Captan or Captaf or Kavach @ 360 g in 100 litres of water at 15 days' interval. Gram pod borer is the major insect of this crop. To control it, 1000 ml Thiodan 35EC (endolsufan) or 100ml Sumicidine/ Fenlik/ Agrofen 20EC (fenvelerate) or 160 ml Decis 2.8 EC (deltamethrin) or 80 ml Cymbush 25 EC (cypermethrin) in 80-100 litres of water should be sprayed per acre at the start of pod formation and repeated after two weeks, if necessary. The crop at pod development stages should be watched because this insect may come up at any time. |
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Check for sulphur before sowing ALTHOUGH most soils contain sufficient sulphur (S), not all soils can meet plants' requirements. It is now considered the fourth most important fertiliser nutrient for crops, after N, P, and K. In oilseeds and pulse crops it is involved in the formation of oil compounds, proteins and fatty acids. Soils coarse in texture and poor in organic matter are more likely to have S deficiency. Acid soils are also more prone to this deficiency than alkaline soils. The mean available S in Punjab soils ranges from 2.5 to 315 mg/kg. A soil is considered S deficient if the available S is less than 10mg/kg soil. A study by the PAU Soils Department shows that 41 per cent of loamy sand soils and 20 per cent of sandy loam soils are deficient. Thus, S deficiency is greater in coarse soils. Groundwater sulphur: S is present in tubewell water in the form of sulphates. Thus underground water partially meets the requirement of crops. Nevertheless, this may not be sufficient for oilseed and pulse crops, particularly in coarse soils where leaching is also expected. Deficiency symptoms: S deficiency symptoms in many ways resemble that of nitrogen: leaves become pale yellow or light green. But unlike nitrogen deficiency, S deficiency symptoms generally appear first on new or younger leaves, which turn yellow. The deficiency is more severe when winter rains continue for a long time in the early growth period. In S-deficient black gram plants, leaf growth and inter-node elongation is reduced. In groundnut, leaves turn pale yellow. Mainly young, but sometimes middle, leaves show chlorosis. Leaves show uniform whitish yellow colouration under severe deficiency. Fertiliser use: For Rabi oilseed crops—toria, raya, gobi sarson, sunflower—50-100 kg gypsum per acre should be applied along with other N and P fertilisers, particularly in S-deficient soils, if urea and DAP are used as a source of N and P. However, if P is to be applied through single superphosphate, use 75 kg of it per acre for raya and gobhi sarson and 50 kg per acre for toria. In rainfed conditions, apply 50 kg single superphosphate per acre to raya at sowing. Similarly, in Kharif oilseeds, like groundnut, 50 kg gypsum should be applied along with 50 kg single superphosphate per acre. For Kharif pulse crops moong, mash, and soybean and Rabi pulse crops, use single superphosphate @ 100, 60, 200 and 100 kg per acre, respectively, as a source of P. In case DAP is used as a source of P, use gypsum to meet S requirements. Gypsum should be broadcast at sowing. At today’s prices, each rupee invested in sulphur produces extra yield worth Rs 8 to Rs 20.
— Meharban Singh, M.P.S. Gill and M.P.S. Khurana |
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AS economists, farmers and the Punjab Agro Foodgrains Corporation (PAFC) evaluate contract farming, introduced in Rabi 2002, it is time to take a look at the plans for Rabi 2003-04.