Punjab farmers find a better way to grow paddy

News: Punjab Farmers are using direct seeding of rice (DSR) technique to grow paddy instead of traditional ‘transplanting’ practice due to labour shortage following an exodus of migrant labourers amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

What is the DSR method of rice cultivation?

• Direct Seeding of Rice (DSR): It refers to the process of establishing a rice crop from seeds sown in the field rather than by transplanting seedlings from nursery.
• How is it different from a conventional method? In transplanting, farmers prepare nurseries where paddy seeds are first sown and raised into young plants.These seedlings are then uprooted and replanted 25-35 days later in the main field with standing water.
• Benefits of DSR: a) Water savings b) Low Labour Cost and energy (power) c) Reduced methane emissions d) Early crop maturity and e) could be a solution to the issue of stubble burning.
• Disadvantages: a) Seeds are exposed to rat and bird attacks b) Sowing needs to be done timely so that the plants comes out properly before the monsoon rains arrives and c) Seed requirement is also high.

DSR vs the traditional method

Among the various techniques propagated by scientists to check emissions from paddy, DSR is among the most common.

In DSR, rice seedlings are directly planted into the soil either manually or through machines, doing away with the requirement of first growing the plant in nurseries and then transplanting them into the fields, both of which have to be done in fully watered conditions.

The fully watered A study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences found that intermittently flooded rice farms can emit 45 times more nitrous oxide than continuously flooded farms that predominantly emit methane.

Why DSR hasn’t gained over traditional puddling method of rice cultivation?

Despite being in vogue for some years, DSR hasn’t really picked up in the major rice-growing regions of India.

One complaint of many farmers is that the yields are sometimes lower than the traditional process of transplanting.

Another is that the crop is more prone to pests, weeds, and insects than the traditional method.