CHANDIGARH, May 27 — Punjab has launched its direct paddy sowing drive for the 2026-27 kharif season with a ₹40 crore budget, aiming to utilize the water-saving method across 5 lakh acres of farmland. Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Minister S. Gurmeet Singh Khudian confirmed that the digital registration platform is active, allowing growers to secure a state incentive of ₹1,500 per acre.
The current push builds upon the resource-conservation results achieved during the 2025 kharif season. During that period, a total of 2,35,899 acres were sown using direct seeding, drawing participation from 23,410 farmers. In support of those efforts, the state government disbursed ₹35.38 crore in direct financial aid to the bank accounts of eligible agriculturalists.
Unlike conventional cultivation, the direct seeding technique circumvents the labor-intensive practices of nursery transplantation and field puddling. The resulting operational shifts significantly lower farming costs while addressing long-term resource sustainability in the region.
“The DSR technique eliminates puddling and nursery transplantation, cutting irrigation water use by 15-20% and slashing labour costs significantly — a critical intervention in Punjab’s broader strategy to reverse the decline of its water table,” Gurmeet Singh Khudian asserted.
The minister urged regional farmers to embrace the system early in the season to maximize the environmental and financial benefits. The administration seeks to balance the immediate economic needs of the farming community with the broader strategic necessity of stabilizing the regional water table.
“With a ₹40-crore outlay and a target of 5 lakh acres for 2026-27, we are scaling up our commitment to save precious groundwater,” Khudian declared, adding that the previous year’s positive turnout established a clear path forward for state agricultural policy.
