MARGAO
Drones hovered over the picturesque lush green Salpem fields in Navelim on Friday, which has been brought under cultivation after a gap of 30 long years.
Days after the fallow fields were brought under cultivation with mechanised transplantation, the paddy man of Goa, Fr George Quadros deployed drones to spray weedicides on the paddy to protect the crop from destruction by the weeds.
Use of drones to spray insecticide also coincided with the culmination of the Drone Yatra, which made a halt at the Salpem lake before heading to Canacona taluka.
Fr Quadros told the media at the Salpem lake that the paddy has responded well to the soil condition at Salpem lake. He, however, has sounded caution that since the weeds have become the tenants of the fields, which were not cultivated for the last three decades, spraying of weedicides was resorted to ensure the farmers get a good yield. “Farmers of Navelim have taken a bold initiative to bring the fields at Salpem lake under cultivation after decades. We can see the fields come alive once again at the lake. Birds have started coming to the lake,” he said.
He added: “With the introduction of the drones and mechanisation, life is going to be totally easy. We will restore the original condition of the Salpem lake with minimum cost, giving the farmers maximum yield. What we need is the goodwill of the farmers and cooperation of the government departments.”
To a question, Fr Quadros said since the farms were left fallow over the years, the weeds have become native to the place. “It’s difficult to get rid of the weeds. We have resorted to weedicides to control the weed so that the farmers get some production in the first year of cultivation,” he said.
Asked to shed light on the condition of the transplanted paddy in the fields brought under cultivation after 30 years, he said “what was transplanted earlier, on fields approximately 40,000 square metres, is performing well. The land is fertile. According to my experience, farmer will reap a good yield. We have to only control the weed.”
