Farmers doing natural farming in Himachal Pradesh to get Rs 33,000 to purchase ‘desi’ cow

Farmers practising natural farming in Himachal Pradesh will receive a grant of Rs 33,000 for buying a ‘desi’ cow, along with a subsidy of Rs 8,000 for paving the cowshed floor, said an Agricultural Technology Management Agency (ATMA) official here today.

“Farmers doing natural farming in the state will be given a grant of Rs 33,000 for buying a local cow, besides a subsidy of Rs 8,000 for paving the floor of the cowshed,” said Neha Bhardwaj, Assistant Technical Manager of the ATMA, during an awareness and mass sensitisation camp on natural farming organised at Manjhiar village in Hamirpur district.

Neha said that chemical fertilisers and poisonous pesticides should not be used in natural farming. “Crops produced from natural farming are safer for health and it also reduces the cost of farming. By adopting natural farming, farmers can increase their income and can also contribute to environmental protection,” she added.

She said that the main components of natural farming like ‘Jeevamrit’, ‘Beejamrit’, ‘Dhanjeevamrit’ and indigenous pesticides could be prepared at home from the dung and urine of indigenous cows.

Neha gave information about local breeds of cows like ‘Sahiwal’, Red Sindhi, ‘Rathi’, Thar and Parker. She also talked about the Rajiv Gandhi Start-Up Yojana. Pea seeds were distributed to the farmers in the camp.