Farmer cultivates paddy as semi-arid crop successfully, set to get bumper harvest

Scientists have been working on this practice of paddy cultivation in India to restrict carbon emissions coming out of stagnated waters in paddy fields.

Siddipet: A 60-year-old farmer, who studied up to Class 7, has turned his five-acre agriculture field into a lab to prove that paddy can be grown as a semi-arid crop like maize and other rainfed crops.

Scientists have been working on this practice of paddy cultivation in India to restrict carbon emissions coming out of stagnated waters in paddy fields. Meet Pulagurla Yella Reddy, who has found a new method of paddy cultivation. Interestingly, he has sown red gram as intercrop in the paddy field at Bandarupally in Thoguta mandal.

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Since his two sons settled down, he had decided to rent out these five acres of land. However, no one came forward to take it. As the government announced that they would give Rythu Bharosa to only fields that had crops, the farmer sowed a fine variety of paddy directly.

After irrigating the crop twice initially, the area witnessed abundant rains for two consecutive months. Later Yella Reddy ensured water six more times and got a bumper harvest. Reddy, who was preparing to harvest the crop a week later, said he was expecting 22 quintals of harvest per acre, which is equal to the average harvest.

Speaking to Telangana Today, the farmer said he had saved a lot of investment with the new cultivation practice. He had sown just 10 kg of paddy while the farmers would normally use 30 kg in the transplantation method. Due to excessive rains in July and August, the farmer said the intercrop survived on only a one-acre upland area and the rest perished.

AEO T Nagarjuna said the practice was worth following under the supervision of agriculture officials because it would save the investment on the crop which would eventually enhance the profits.