Direct Sowing of Rice (DSR) Technique

Syllabus: General Studies Paper 3

The Punjab government has announced a Rs 1,500 per acre incentive to farmers for adopting the DSR method.

DSR Technique

Dry and wet-seeding, in which seeds are sown directly in the main field instead of transplanting rice seedlings, are commonly referred to as direct seeding.

• Dry DSR: In Dry-DSR, rice is established using several different methods, including 
• Broadcasting of dry seeds on unpuddled soil after either zero tillage or conversion tillage
• Dibbled method in a well-prepared field and 
• Drilling of seeds in rows after Conservation tillage, minimum tillage using a power tiller-operated seeder.
• Wet DSR: Wet-DSR involves sowing of pregerminated seeds on or into puddled soil. When pregerminated seeds are sown on the surface of puddled soil, the seed environment is mostly aerobic and this is known as aerobic Wet-DSR.

Advantages of Direct Seeding

• To save irrigation water, labour and energy (power).
• It would be instrumental in saving about 30 per cent of water besides cutting the cost of paddy cultivation by nearly Rs 6,000 per acre.
• It has a wider adaptability as it is suitable for medium to heavy textured soils including sandy loam, loam, clay loam and silt loam, which account for 87% area of the State.
• Direct seeding of pre-germinated rice has resulted in to the reduced methane emissions due to a shorter flooding period.

Challenges to Direct Seeding of Rice

• In traditional system, the sapling is taller than the weeds right from the time of transplanting and there is no problem at the time of harvest.
• But in DSR both the weeds and the plant grow simultaneously and it is bound to cause major problem at the time of harvest.
• The farmers have not been trained and guided properly in the DSR. 
• Promoting DSR could corporatise agriculture which will harm the farmer and the country.
• The marginal and small farmers are not in a position to purchase seeding machines and pushing them towards these machines will add to their burden of debt.
• The DSR needs to be first well-established and it needs to be ensured that farmers will get the required seeds and herbicides from the government agencies and not the multinational corporations.