INDIACSR News Network
BOKARO: Electrosteel Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) department in association with PRADHAN organized a one day workshop on 15 June, 2012 on System of Rice Intensification (SRI) with 40 progressive farmers from 15 villages located in and around factory site in Bokaro.
Electrosteel, an ISO 9001 and ISO 14001 certified manufacturing company, has been in the Iron and Steel industry for over 50 years now with manufacturing facilities in Khardah (West Bengal), Elavur (Tamil Nadu) and Kalahasti (Andhra Pradesh). Electrosteel is currently the largest manufacturer of Ductile Iron Spun Pipes in India. In fact, Electrosteel is also amongst the five largest producers of Ductile Iron Spun Pipes in the World.
The company is now in the process of setting up 2.2 million tons per annum capacity, Integrated Steel Plant in the state of Jharkhand and its own Mines for Coal and Iron Ore.
Mr. Nandlal Mahto, Master trainer from PRADAN conducted training and demonstration on possibility of high yield cultivation from traditional rice seeds.
SRI is a methodology aims at increasing the yield of rice produced through farming. Principles included applying a minimum quantity of water and the individual transplanting of very young seedlings in a square pattern. In simple terms we can say that “more production in less land”.
A set of questionnaire designed by Kaushik Gupta, Head, CSR, Electrosteel, was distributed among the participating farmers to understand present yield and cost of cultivation. Data collected would be useful in comparing the productivity under normal rice cultivation and SRI based cultivation adopted for future reference.
This improved method of paddy cultivation was developed in 1983 in Madagascar and has now adopted in many parts of the world. The same technique could also be followed for production of wheat, vegetable and other crops cultivation.
Master trainer, Mr. Nandlal addressed all the queries of the farmers confidently and made the farmers believe that implementation of SRI technique is feasible in the villages in Bokaro. Entire audience listened the lecture attentively be it a young farmer of age of 30 or a senior seasoned farmer of age of 60.
R.S.Singh, Director in charge was invited as Chief Guest in the workshop.
Shri Singh appreciated the initiative of dissemination of knowledge on SRI through the workshop by CSR Department. He took personal interest in understanding the methodology from the trainer and on realization of its benefit he requested attending farmers as well farmers who fail to turn up to adopt the practice at scale.
Mr. Singh conveyed warm regards to the trainer and participants to make the SRI training successful and also announced that company would extend possible technical support in promotion of SRI cultivation in the villages. All the present farmers pledged to adopt this modern technique of rice cultivation at small or large scale depending on the availability of land to them.
CSR Department of Electrosteel already established linage with Agriculture Department of Government of Jharkhand. Department would provide farmers of Chandankiyari block and Chas block seeds, fertilizers and financial assistance for promotion of SRI farming. A follow up event has been planned in July with the master trainer and agriculture officials from government department to handhold farmers in preparation of Nursery bed and then implementation at the field level.
