Haryana State additional Chief Secretary (Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Department) Dr Sumita Misra on Friday said that under Crop Diversification Scheme, the State Government has decided to promote pulses and oilseeds crops in place of Bajra in seven Bajra growing districts of South Haryana namely Bhiwani, Charkhi Dadri, Mahendragarh, Rewari, Jhajjar, Hisar and Nuh. The scheme has been started under which a target has been set to grow pulses and oilseed crops at minimum 1 lakh acres of land across the state. Misra informed that the Central Government has increased the Minimum Support Price for pulses and oilseeds. She said that under this scheme, pulses include Moong, Arhar and Urad and oilseed crops including castor, groundnut and sesame can be cultivated.
Financial assistance of Rs. 4,000 per acre will also be provided to the farmers under the scheme. For this, farmers will have to first register on the "Meri Fasal Mera Byora" portal and the amount will be transferred to the bank accounts of the farmers after verification. Information about new varieties of crops and modern technology is being provided to the farmers, she added.
It is worth mentioning here that growing pulses will improve the health of the soil and increase the amount of nitrogen in the soil by absorbing nitrogen from the air, thereby increasing the fertility of the soil. In this way, less nitrogen fertilizer is required in the fields. Promotion of oilseed crops will also help in meeting the shortage of edible oil in the country.
