Chandigarh, Aug 14 (IANS) Punjab’s crop diversification efforts have received a boost with the area under the kharif maize crop witnessing a 16.27 per cent increase this season, state Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Minister Gurmeet Singh Khudian said on Thursday.

The area under kharif maize rose to one lakh hectares, up from 86,000 hectares in 2024, he said.

Chairing a high-level meeting here, Khudian reviewed the status of the kharif maize crop and issued directions to ensure its smooth procurement.

The Agriculture Minister said the Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann-led government launched an ambitious pilot project to promote agricultural diversification and groundwater conservation by shifting 12,000 hectares of area from paddy to kharif maize cultivation in six districts — Bathinda, Sangrur, Kapurthala, Jalandhar, Gurdaspur, and Pathankot.

To encourage farmers, the government had also announced an incentive of Rs 17,500 per hectare under the pilot project. Additionally, 185 kisan mitras have been appointed to guide and support farmers in this transition.

Khudian has directed the formation of district-level committees comprising officials from Agriculture, Punjab Mandi Board, and Markfed to ensure smooth procurement of the kharif maize.

He also urged the maize cultivators to bring a dry crop to markets so that they won’t have to face any hassle to sell their crop.

Administrative Secretary (Agriculture) Basant Garg emphasised the importance of maintaining optimal moisture levels in maize crops, specifying that the moisture content should not exceed 14 per cent. To facilitate smooth sales, he directed Chief Agriculture Officers and field staff to sensitise farmers on bringing dry maize crops to mandis, thereby ensuring hassle-free procurement and supporting farmers in getting better prices for their produce.

Secretary of the Punjab Mandi Board Ramvir, Managing Director of Markfed Kumar Amit, Director, Agriculture, Jaswant Singh and other senior officials of the respective departments were also present at the meeting.

–IANS

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