Sri Sathya Sai Collector urges farmers to shift towards natural farming

District Collector A. Shyam Prasad on Wednesday appealed to farmers in Sri Sathya Sai district to gradually switch to natural farming and adopt Pre-Monsoon Dry Sowing (PMDS) method; as this would help them address potential rainfall deficiencies and achieve crop sustainability.

Lakshma Nayak, regional director of the programme, which inspects natural agricultural lands in Gudipalli village in Somandepalli Mandate under the PMDS method, briefed the Collector about the method. He highlighted the ability of the method to preserve soil moisture, reduce dependence on irrigation and improve crop establishment even under climatic stress, especially during delayed or failed monsoon conditions.

Addressing the anticipated impact of El Niño conditions, the Collector urged farmers not to leave their fields uncultivated but to make the most of the available soil moisture by sowing on time. He emphasized that natural farming, when combined with scientific agricultural practices, can potentially reduce production costs and bring sustainable yields.

During the inspection, Mr. Shyam Prasad rode a tractor and participated in planting seeds as well as interacting with farmers in the field. The district administration will continue to expand technical guidance and institutional support to promote climate-resilient crops, the collector said.

The collector was accompanied by officials from Agriculture and allied departments as well as a large number of farmers.