Call to use technology in farming for more yields

Guntur: National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) chairman GR Chintala urged farmers to cultivate crops according to the demand in the market to get a better price for agriculture yield and stressed on the need to use technology to get more yield with less investment.

He participated in the progressive farmers' meet held under the aegis of Chaitanya Godavari Grameena Bank. He spoke on 'Agriculture in Retrospect & Prospect in Future' at the meeting held at Bandlamudi Gardens in Guntur city on Monday. Speaking on this occasion, GR Chintala stressed on the need to introduce new methods in agriculture and explained about nature farming to the farmers. He said excess use of chemical fertilisers will spoil land fertility and suggested the farmers to use cow dung as fertiliser in agriculture. He recalled that earlier all the family members used to work in agriculture fields, which resulted in low cost of production. 'Now, we are depending on agriculture labour for cultivation, which led to increase of production,' he added.

The chairman stressed on the need to make agriculture viable. He urged the farmers to take up integrated farming to increase income and added that it was proved in Karnataka, Gujarat, UP and other States. If small and marginal farmers will form farmers producers' organisations, they will get better price for their agriculture yield, he pointed out.

NABARD chief general manager MR Gopal, Chaitanya Godavari Grameena Bank chairman T Kameswara Rao, bank general manager DR BV Ramana Rao, regional manager Veera Reddy and others attended the meeting.