Punjab has again banned the Busa -44 rice variety. In addition, paddy has been banned for the upcoming Carif season. Seed sellers are advised not to sell Busa -44 varieties. Last year, the Busa -44 state was three percent of the total area under paddy cultivation. CM Bhagavant Man said that by banning Busa -44, electricity has been saved at Rs 477 crore. It is used to run tubes to remove groundwater.
Crops ripen in 143 days
The Punjab government believes that Busa -44 is a variety of rich water consumption of paddy. It is forbidden to stop ground water exploitation in the state. Due to paddy cultivation, Punjab is believed to be on the verge of becoming a desert in the coming two decades. According to The Tribune newspaper report, Busa -44 is a long -term paddy type, which is 143 days to cook. For this, the fields have to plow for an additional 50 days.
Is hard to sell due to humidity
When it is harvested, it is more than 17 percent humidity at the time. In such a situation, farmers are difficult to sell it in the MSP. In addition, it has a high percentage of broken rash and straw. Its hybrid seeds are also banned by the state’s rice grinding industry. He says that 50 percent of grains break during the skin. The percentage of broken grains in the remaining types is very low, ie about 25 percent. About 5-6 kg of seeds per acre.
What do farmers say?
However, this ban does not affect the Punjab farmers. There are many farmers who have already purchased seeds from the primary seed vendors from Rs.100-150 per kg. Such farmers are mostly from Kurnal in Haryana, which is the center of paddy cultivation in the state. Even last year, many farmers in Punjab bought Busa -44 seeds before the paddy was banned.
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According to experts, it is clear that the government did not take the reasons for the ban on farmers at this time. A farmer from Patiala district said, ‘They have extended the date of sowing paddy and it is not necessary. If the government is serious about protecting ground water, this should not be done.
How much did you sow last year?
Ranjit Singh Josan, the vice president of the Rice Miller’s Association, has written a newspaper that the government has banned these types is happy. ‘We hope that the government will also ensure that farmers will not sow hybrid varieties or Busa -44.’
Last year, Busa -44 and hybrid varieties were sown in a total of 32 lakh hectares in 5 lakh hectares. By 2023, Busa -44 was sown in 2022 at 3.86 lakh hectares and 5.67 lakh hectares. Last year, hybrid rice seeds attracted the attention of the farmers. By 2024, it is estimated that 2 lakh hectares were cultivated. Most farmers say they grow PR -126 and PR -131 varieties.