Dharwad: Farmers must minimise the use of chemicals in farming and adopt organic methods to decrease the cost of cultivation and get better quality yield, said District In-charge Minister Vinay Kulkarni.
Speaking after inaugurating a “Soil Health Day” programme organised by the Department of Agriculture here on Tuesday, the minister said that decreasing fertility of soil was a matter of concern for all those concerned with farming activities.
The fertility of soil was coming down day-by-day due to indiscriminate use of chemical fertilizers over the years. It was time that farmers reoriented themselves and adopted organic methods, he advised.
Besides, the farmers should concentrate on dairy farming to supplement their income he said adding that organic farming indeed helped dairy farming by providing good quality feed.
The minister also urged farmers to make the maximum use of government schemes to promote organic farming and dig farm pits to combat drought.
Department of Agriculture Joint Director T S Rudreshappa said nearly 36,000 soil samples had been tested in the laboratories and Soil Health Cards distributed in the district.
