Union Minister for Agriculture & Farmers’ Welfare and Rural Development Shri Shivraj Singh Chouhan undertook a one-day visit to Punjab’s Moga district, where he interacted with farmers, villagers and stakeholders in Ransih Kalan village and praised them for not burning crop stubble for the last six years. Calling Ransih Kalan a “school of knowledge” and an inspiration for the nation, he said the village’s success proves that stubble is not a burden but a boon when managed scientifically.
Ransih Kalan’s zero-stubble model
During his visit, the Minister lauded the village for completely eliminating stubble burning while maintaining crop yields of around 20–22 quintals of wheat per acre, demonstrating that residue management does not compromise productivity. Farmers here use Happy Seeders and similar machinery to cut and mix stubble into the soil and then undertake direct seeding without additional irrigation, which saves diesel, water and input costs.
Soil health, fertiliser and water savings
Shri Chouhan highlighted that mixing stubble back into fields enriches the soil with potash and other nutrients, reduces weed growth and improves moisture retention, thereby increasing soil organic carbon levels. Local farmers shared that, after adopting this practice, their fertiliser requirement has fallen from around one-and-a-half bags of DAP to one bag and from three bags of urea to two bags per acre, while potato and mustard crops are also showing better size, quality and lower dependence on chemical inputs.
Wider village initiatives and social impact
The Minister noted that under Sarpanch Preet Inderpal Singh Mintu’s leadership, Ransih Kalan has implemented underground drainage, rainwater harvesting, plastic management, and created lakes, parks and a library, which have together eliminated dengue and malaria issues in the village. He also praised the village’s anti-drug campaign and incentive schemes for reading, tree plantation and plastic-free living, describing Ransih Kalan as a model of holistic rural development.
Punjab’s success in cutting stubble burning
Citing recent data, Shri Chouhan said stubble-burning incidents in Punjab have fallen by about 83 per cent this year—from nearly 83,000 fires earlier to around 5,000 now—calling it a major achievement that has eased air-pollution concerns across the country. He stressed that Punjab’s experience shows that with community participation, scientific support and local leadership, farm fires can be phased out while improving farm incomes.
Plans for national replication and support
The Union Agriculture Minister announced that Ransih Kalan will be presented as a national model, and that he will convene a brainstorming meeting with selected farmers on December 22–23 to draw up five-year plans for agriculture and similar efforts in rural development. He directed the Indian Council of Agricultural Research to strengthen Custom Hiring Centres as mechanisation hubs so that small farmers can rent machinery collectively instead of buying expensive equipment individually.
Procurement assurance and pulses mission
Reiterating the government’s commitment to price support, Shri Chouhan assured farmers that procurement of wheat and paddy at Minimum Support Price (MSP) will continue and that the Centre will also buy lentil, pigeon pea, black gram and chickpea at MSP to give farmers full value for their labour. He linked these measures to the Self-Reliance in Pulses Mission, under which regions producing pulses will receive subsidies for dal mills, helping boost domestic availability and reduce import dependence.
Conclusion
Concluding his visit, the Minister said Punjab has long been a “centre of knowledge” in agriculture and that the innovations of villages like Ransih Kalan will guide future national policy on sustainable farming and pollution control. He expressed happiness at the warm welcome received and pledged that, under the Prime Minister’s leadership, the Union government will make every possible effort for Punjab’s development while scaling up successful stubble-management practices across India.
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Source: PIB
