Team News Riveting
Balconagar, December 22
Bharat Aluminium Company Limited (BALCO), India’s iconic aluminium producer and a subsidiary of Vedanta Aluminium, conducted a felicitation programme for farmers in the vicinity of its operations, in commemoration of Kisan Diwas or National Farmer’s Day.
The event was organized as part of BALCO’s ‘Mor Jal, Mor Maati’ agriculture project at Vedanta Agriculture Resource Centre, with the objective of encouraging the farmers to adopt advanced agriculture practices to enhance their yield and income.
BALCO’s flagship initiative, ‘Mor Jal Mor Maati’, is aimed at benefitting farmers by edifying them regarding modern agricultural techniques and substantiating it with resource and knowledge support to enhance crop yields. The major components of the initiative include sustainable agriculture, water management, animal husbandry, fish farming, promotion of non-timber forest produce and lac cultivation.
The top five farmers following the best agricultural practices in ‘cultivation of rice through SRI’, ‘Organic Farming’, ‘Animal Husbandry’, ‘Vegetable Cultivation’ and ‘Best Village Development Committee’ were awarded during the programme. The felicitation ceremony witnessed participation by over 100 farmers from Bela, Dondro, Sangam Nagar, Chuiya, Sonpuri, Bhatgaon, Murdhawa, and other villages.
Talking about BALCO’s developmental interventions supporting the farming community, Abhijit Pati, CEO & Director, BALCO, said, “The farming community is the backbone of economic development in the region and for the nation at large. It is because of their persistent efforts that we are all able to contribute to the expeditious development of the nation in our respective domains. To further augment their knowledge and skills, we are working with the local farming communities to introduce advanced farming techniques to our farmers. This is not only helping increase their household income but also improving food security in the region.”
Currently, the Mor Jal, Mor Maati project reaches out to over 2,000 farmers, and covers more than 1,500 acres of land. More than 500 farmers have adopted modern agriculture techniques, which has to led to an increase in their average annual income along with an increase in production by almost two times. The technical interventions have led to a reduction in input costs by 35 per cent. Today, almost 60 per cent of farmers in BALCO’s vicinity are using modern farming techniques.
The project has also encouraged youngsters to pursue agriculture as a mainstream profession and around 25 per cent of the beneficiaries of ‘Mor Jal Mor Maati’ initiative are young farmers. Apart from this the project also entails convergence with various government departments in order to ensure that farmers avail the benefits of government schemes and policies.
