Chandigarh, April 20: The Punjab Government aims to bring the stubble burning to zero in the state. It has formulated an action plan worth Rs 500 crore. This plan provides farmers with the latest CRM machinery on subsidy. Additionally, it implements other strategies to manage the paddy straw efficiently.

Punjab Government Aims ; Farmers can avail subsidies on the procurement of CRM

Disclosing this here today, Punjab Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Minister Gurmeet Singh Khudian said that the Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Department has invited online applications from the state farmers. Farmers can avail subsidies on the procurement of Crop Residue Management (CRM) machines. The  applications can be submitted through online portal agrimachinerypb.com from April 22 to May 12, 2025. Encouraging the farmers to take advantage of the scheme, Gurmeet Singh Khudian said that the Chief Minister S. Bhagwant Singh Mann led Punjab Government has been offering a 50% subsidy to individual farmers. It also offers an 80% subsidy to Farmer Groups, Cooperative Societies and Gram Panchayats for the purchase of CRM machines. This initiative aims to make CRM machinery more accessible to farmers. It promotes adoption and ultimately contributes to a cleaner environment, he added. The Agriculture Minister announced that the subsidy would be available on CRM machinery. This includes Super SMS, Happy Seeder, Super Seeder, and Surface Seeder. It also covers Smart Seeder, Zero Till Drill, Baler, and Rake.Additionally, we include the Shrub Master/Rotary Slasher, Paddy Straw Chopper/Shredder/Mulcher, Crop Reaper, and Hydraulic Reversible Mould Board Plough. Dr. Basant Garg, the Administrative Secretary of Agriculture department, said that Punjab witnessed significant progress in crop residue management. The state government distributed 17,600 subsidised CRM machines to individual farmers, cooperative societies, and panchayats during previous season. “Authorities also established 1,331 Custom Hiring Centres (CHCs) to facilitate CRM practices.” These efforts led to a 70% decrease in fire incidents during the previous season. Only 10,909 incidents were recorded compared to 36,663 in 2023.