In a significant stride toward sustainable agriculture, Punjab Agricultural University (PAU), Ludhiana, and the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), Gurugram, have joined forces to roll out an innovative “Simultaneous Sowing of Wheat While Harvesting Rice” technology. The collaboration, formalized through a Memorandum of Understanding signed yesterday at PAU’s administrative offices, seeks to eliminate the age-old practice of paddy straw burning by empowering farmers with a single-pass solution that merges harvesting and sowing operations.
Presiding over the signing ceremony, PAU Vice-Chancellor Dr. Satbir Singh Gosal hailed the partnership as a “forward-looking initiative” that marries the university’s academic expertise with CII’s industry reach to bolster an innovation ecosystem benefiting farmers, agripreneurs, and the wider agri‐industry. Representing CII, CEO and Principal Advisor Mr. Sunil Kumar Misra underlined his organization’s resolve to drive large‐scale adoption of the technology through robust awareness, training, and outreach campaigns.
Under the agreement, CII will spearhead community engagement—mobilizing farmer producer organizations, service providers, and rural youth—while PAU will conduct field demonstrations, deliver technical know‐how, and oversee participatory research to refine the system. “Our field trials across multiple districts have already generated considerable farmer interest,” noted Dr. Makhan Singh Bhullar, Director of Extension Education at PAU, citing the attachment’s operational simplicity and tangible agronomic gains.
At the core of this innovation lies a retrofit seeding attachment for existing combine harvesters. As the machine harvests rice, it simultaneously deposits wheat seed and basal fertilizer directly into the soil. The remaining paddy straw is evenly spread as a natural mulch—conserving moisture, suppressing weeds, and enriching organic matter—thus obviating the need for post‐harvest burning.
Dr. Ajmer Singh Dhatt, PAU’s Director of Research, underscored the dual benefits: “Timely wheat sowing in the narrow window following rice harvest not only curbs heat‐stress risks but also lowers production costs, contributing to higher yields.” Echoing this, agronomist Dr. Jasvir Singh Gill, one of the principal architects of the seeding mechanism, highlighted the attachment’s precision in seed placement and its role in creating an optimal germination environment.
Registrar Dr. Rishi Pal Singh (IAS) affirmed PAU’s commitment to farmer hand‐holding through capacity‐building initiatives, while Dr. C.S. Aulakh, Dean of the College of Agriculture, and Dr. Hari Ram, Head of the Department of Agronomy, lent their support by detailing the long‐term soil‐health advantages of conservation agriculture.
On behalf of CII, Mr. Chandrakant Pradhan, Project Lead at the CII Foundation, and Project Leader Mr. Tahir Hussain both expressed optimism that the joint effort would transform residue management practices across Punjab and adjacent regions. They also pointed to CII’s ongoing “Cleaner Air, Better Life” programme—a shared endeavor with PAU—that has already made headway in reducing stubble burning and promoting eco‐friendly farming methods.
Coordinating the initiative at PAU is Dr. Vishal Bector, Associate Director (Institutional Relations), who anticipates that the seamless integration of harvesting and sowing will not only safeguard air quality but also enhance farmers’ livelihoods by cutting labor and fuel costs.
With this pact, PAU and CII reaffirm their long‐standing synergy, promising a greener, more profitable future for Punjab’s farming community.
