MAPUSA: Officials from the directorate of agriculture and Mapusa zonal agriculture office recently held a demonstration of a paddy transplanter at Sangolda.

The officials demonstrated its working by transplanting paddy in the fields. The Sangolda sarpanch, Ms Nameshwari Khanolkar, Zonal Agricultural Officer, Mr Anil Noronha, assistant directors Mr Nelson Figuerido, Mr Amancio Fernandes, Agricultural Information Officer, Mr C B Perni and agricultural scientist from Old Goa Ella Farm, Dr U Jaykumaran were present during the demonstration.
Speaking on the occasion, Dr Jaykumaran, who has been training people to form the ‘food security army’, said that it was very essential that Goans took up cultivation in the barren fields, as bringing agricultural produce including foodgrains from other states, was not in best interest of Goa. He said that people have neglected their fields due to high labour cost. However he said that the agricultural scientists are constantly working in devising methods of mechanised farming that could help farmers cultivate their fields profitably.
“It is with this in mind that we are promoting this paddy transplanter as we must remember that if we stop cultivating even 1 acre of land we are depriving 5000 people of their food”
Dr Jaykumaran said that the specialities of this machine include working efficiently on flat land at half acre per hour, requirement of just 400 to 500 ml of diesel, at a time transplanting 8 rows and capacity to transplant 2.5 acres per day. He said that the agricultural department was quite concerned about declining agricultural activity in some parts of the state and urged people to take up to agriculture on a large scale.
“We tend to run after white collar jobs however in states like Kerala thrust is given on agriculture and for our daily meal we have to encourage agriculture and even motivate our youth to take up agricultural activities on a large scale,” Dr Jaykumaran said.
Mr Nelson Figuerido and Mr Amancio Fernandes called upon the people to avail of various agricultural schemes and even prepare their plan to form groups and by taking help from the zonal office to go ahead in using this paddy transplanter in their village. They said that zonal agricultural offices were ever helpful in supporting such initiatives on the part of the farmers. Around 100 farmers from Sangolda witnessed the programme.