West Bengal farmers switch to new scientific material to protect crops

SILIGURI - West Bengal’s farmers switched to new scientific material called ‘Poly Mulching’ (made out of plastic) to protect crops.

The North Bengal region has got some highly fertile agricultural land. But weeds, lack of proper sunlight, heavy downpour, soil erosion, seed germination and cold weather conditions often result in harming the crops and ultimately curtailing agricultural production.

However, to protect crops from such problems, farmers have now found a suitable way by using ‘Poly Mulching’.

Farmers believe that the use of ‘Poly Mulching’ has not only reduced their dependence on pesticide and labour expenditure but also the use of strong chemicals during cultivation.

“Our region gets affected by heavy rainfall every year and hence crops are destroyed by it, so we decided to use this new concept and it has yielded great results. If you use this concept, the labour costs are low, then less fertilizer is also required and it is not affected by rains. Importantly, the growth of the crops also gets doubled in comparison to open field cultivation,” said Subal Sarkar, a farmer.

He also said that every farmer should be encouraged to use this trapper as it does not have any ill-effects on the environment.

The new method of cultivation gives enhanced yielding, keeps the crops safe from insects and diseases and other problems caused by the natural environment.

The ‘Poly Mulching’ technique is expected to enable the farmers to grow crops round the year without any hindrance and hence likely boost up the financial conditions of the farmers and the economy of the country in the longer run.

The technology is set to open up new possibilities for farming, as India is still primarily an agriculture based economy. (ANI)