Farming done right: Soil Health Card scheme benefits farmers in Uttar Pradesh

NewsBharati    09-Jul-2018
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Lucknow, July 9: After fulfilling the promise made by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on increasing the MSP for farmers, a large number of farmers in Uttar Pradesh have been benefitted by the Soil Health Card scheme which was launched by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2015.

Lakhs of farmers have associated with the scheme and got their soil tested. Shatrughan Pandey, a resident of Chandpur Village in Pilibheet district told that after getting the soil of his farmland tested, he has been utilizing the Soil Health Card regularly and has achieved success in getting higher growth.

Under the scheme launched in February 2015, soil health cards have been distributed to nearly ten crore farmers so far, against the target of 12 crores, as per official figures. The card, which will be issued every three years, provides information to farmers on the nutrient status of soil along with recommendations on appropriate dosage of soil nutrients to be applied for improving soil health and its fertility.

The overall impact of the scheme has been positive, leading to maximization and sustainable growth at farm level by cost minimization and through efficient utilization of resources. For the benefit of farmers, the soil testing for all individual farm fields should be undertaken in a phased manner and crop-specific recommendation about the use of fertilizer and micronutrients should be provided.

At present, samples are collected on a grid of 2.5 hectares in irrigated areas and 10 hectares in unirrigated areas. Over 2.5 Crore farmers in Uttar Pradesh have got their soil tested and they have been provided with Soil Health Cards. Now, these farmers are not utilizing fertilizers in abundance and the growth of their farmland has increased substantially.