DG, ICAR Advocates Crop Diversification and Sustainable Agriculture Roadmap for Punjab

22 March 2026, Ludhiana

Dr M.L. Jat, Secretary, DARE and Director General, ICAR, highlighted his long-standing association of over 25 years with Punjab Agricultural University and the farming community of Punjab, appreciating their progressive outlook. He lauded the Kisan mela theme, “Adopt Crop Diversification, Protect Environment,” emphasizing that while sustainability is a challenging journey, Punjab farmers have the resilience and capacity to successfully transition towards it.

He underscored the importance of crop diversification, noting that flagship government initiatives such as the National Cotton Mission, Pulses Mission, Oilseeds Mission, and High-Yielding Varieties Mission can serve as strong enablers in this direction. He further highlighted that collaborative efforts between ICAR and PAU have already led to the development of several technologies addressing key challenges related to land degradation, water scarcity, environmental sustainability, and agricultural marketing.

Commending Punjab farmers, Dr Jat acknowledged their significant achievement in reducing paddy straw burning by nearly 90%, calling it a remarkable step towards environmental conservation. He stressed the need to strengthen market research as a critical component for ensuring profitability and sustainability in agriculture.

Dr Jat also emphasized the importance of awareness campaigns on balanced fertilizer use and soil testing, alongside promoting the use of local resources for enhancing self-reliance. He called for focused research on improving phosphorus use efficiency and exploring the application of artificial intelligence in agriculture.

Highlighting future priorities, he advocated for research on value chains and the entire agri-food system, linking agriculture with health outcomes. He further stressed the need for a comprehensive agricultural development roadmap with a long-term perspective, including a clearly defined strategy for Direct Seeded Rice (DSR) and the development of specialized farming zones to optimize productivity and sustainability.

(Source: ICAR-Agricultural Technology Application Research Institute, Zone-1, PAU Campus, Ludhiana)