Correspondent
KOHIMA, Sep 24 (NPN): The District Agriculture Office (DAO), Kohima on Wednesday commissioned water sprinklers and pumps at Kezoma village to facilitate irrigation for winter crops, along with a demonstration on their use and related farming techniques.
District Agriculture Officer, Kohima, Kekhrieletuo Yhome stressed the need to sustain farming among the younger generation, noting that agriculture in villages was largely being undertaken by older farmers. He said modern farming practices and appropriate technology were needed to make agriculture less labour-intensive while retaining beneficial traditional practices.
Yhome noted that farmers were increasingly facing changing climatic conditions and prolonged dry spells, making irrigation support particularly important for cultivation during the dry season.
He said the sprinkler system was equipped with lightweight pipes that could be carried between farms, with each sprinkler covering an area of about 150 feet.
He added that, when used efficiently, irrigation could be spaced at intervals of up to 10 days, allowing farmers to cover larger areas.
Yhome urged the Kezoma Baptist Church (KBC) to make the equipment available not only for its own farm but also for use by the wider village community.
KBC Deacon Board chairman Mezangol Yongo said around 80 percent of the villagers were farmers and acknowledged the Agriculture Department’s continued support through farm machinery, improved farming practices and training. He said abandoning agriculture would ultimately affect the farming community and welcomed the assistance for dryland cultivation.
The programme was chaired by KBC associate pastor Mhasivizo Thami, who informed that the second cycle of millet cultivation this year was sown in the second week of July and was expected to be harvested by the end of October. He said the first cycle, sown in March, was harvested in the first week of July.
Officials and staff of the Agriculture Department attended the programme.