Punjab to boost agro forestry: Minister

The Punjab government will boost agro forestry in the state by providing 1.4 crore free saplings to farmers, so that area under cultivation of traditional crops like wheat and paddy reduces.
Under 'Greening Punjab Mission' and crop diversification plan, the state government would decrease the area under cultivation of paddy and wheat and the Forest Department would have to play a key role in this initiative, Forest and Wild Life Preservation Minister, Chunni Lal Bhagat said.
The department would provide the free saplings of Eucalyptus and Popular to the farmers, he said while presiding over a meeting of the all District Forest Officers.

Bhagat directed the DFOs to urge farmers to adopt agro forestry as these plants grow faster without any extra efforts and expenditure and provide substantial earnings for the farmers, an official spokesman said.
He instructed the DFOs to launch an awareness campaign and organise seminars at village level to educate the farmers about the Green Mission.
They should also be sensitised about saving wild animals as farmers generally tend to kill such animals to save their crops from being spoilt, he said.
The Minister asked the department to provide the mobile numbers of forest guards and other officers to the farmers so that they could immediately inform them about wild animals on their fields.

Punjab has a vast potential in the field of Agro-Forestry as the state has a large semi hilly area like Hoshiarpur and Rupnagar districts, he said.