On Friday, the Tirunelveli district will organize a 'Paddy Fest' at Centenary Hall in Palayamkottai to introduce farmers to current growing techniques used throughout the world to achieve good yields in the often water-intensive crop while using less water, manure, and chemical fertilizer.
Paddy accounts for 80% of the crop grown by farmers in this district, with Tamirabharani serving as the center of farming activity. The river nourishes farming operations in the surrounding Thoothukudi district while also soothing the thirst of several lakhs of people in four southern districts, including Virudhunagar.
Even though farmers in Tirunelveli and Thoothukudi districts grow paddy on over lakh acres, each year, the output is not very outstanding because most farmers still avoid it.
Collector V. Vishnu stated that he has organized a festival where specialists from rice research institutes, teachers from Tamil Nadu Agriculture University and Agricultural Colleges, and successful farmers will interact to discuss the strategies available today to significantly boost crop production.
He further explained that he has decided to show off the farm implements that will drastically minimize costs. In addition to this, he said that there is also a plan to encourage as many farmers as possible toward organic agricultural practices in order to avoid the negative impacts of artificial fertilizers and pesticides.
The district administration is attempting to educate farmers on the practices to be used, from seed selection to scientific storage of harvested paddy.
The farmers will be taught about soil testing, certified seed selection, quality seed production, mat nursery, mechanized transplantation, direct sowing, irrigation, water management, pest management, weeding, harvesting, and paddy storage using movies. At every level of paddy production, the farmers will be informed about new practices.
Since paddy is grown in two seasons each year – 'kar' (between June and September during the southwest monsoon) and 'pisanam' (between October and January during the northeast monsoon), the SRI (System of Rice Intensification) is appropriate for the 'kar' paddy season.
