Sukhpal Singh Jawandha and his brother Tarsem Singh Jawandha. (Photo by sepcial arrangement)For farmer brothers Sukhpal Singh Jawandha and Tarsem Singh Jawandha of Kothe Surjitpura village in Punjab’s Barnala district, stubble management has gone hand in hand with crop diversification and better farm returns.The brothers cultivate around 105 acres and grow potatoes on nearly 80-85 acres, supplying their produce to Haldiram and other food-processing firms. For the past six years, they have also avoided burning paddy stubble, instead incorporating it into the soil.After harvesting paddy, Sukhpal Singh Jawandha, 43, son of Mewa Singh Jawandha, and his brother Tarsem Singh Jawandha, 46, plant potatoes on about 80-85 acres and wheat on about 20 acres. After digging out the potatoes, we sow maize on about 40 acres. In addition, we also cultivate moong and watermelon.”The brothers follow a crop cycle that allows them to take three crops in a year, thereby promoting crop diversification.Sukhpal said they had been managing paddy stubble for around six years. “We have been managing stubble for about six years. We harvest paddy with a Super SMS(Straw Management System)-equipped combine. After that, we mix the stubble into the soil (mulching). Following this, we plough the field and run a rotavator before sowing potatoes,” he said.The practice has also evolved over the years. “Before 2024, we used to make bales of stubble, but now we do mulching. The potato yield was around 250 to 300 bags (each bag containing 50 kg), which has now increased to 350 bags per acre,” he said.The farmers were provided with a subsidised Super Seeder by the government, while they purchased an MB plough and rotavator themselves in 2024. They use the Super Seeder for sowing wheat.‘Farmers need more subsidised machinery’Story continues below this adSukhpal said they had not faced any difficulty after adopting stubble-management practices and claimed that both crop yield and profits had increased. He also said farmers needed access to more machinery on subsidy to make residue management easier and reduce financial burden.The brothers own around 21 acres, while the remaining land is on lease. “Even after meeting the expenses, we save around Rs 40,000 per acre annually,” they said. This works out to an annual income of Rs 42 lakh after covering all expenses.Also Read | 1 in 3 Punjab farmers burn stubble despite using special machines. New study answers whyThe farmers said marketing their potato crop had never been a problem. “We supply potatoes to Haldiram and other such firms for food processing. We have never faced any problem in marketing the potatoes and get good prices,” Sukhpal said.Sukhpal said there was good demand for stubble this year and that a large number of balers were available in the district. Appealing to farmers not to burn paddy residue, he said, “Burning stubble kills beneficial insects in the soil and also adversely affects human health, animals, and the environment.”Story continues below this adBarnala Deputy Commissioner Harpreet Singh lauded the Jawandha brothers for managing stubble while simultaneously promoting crop diversification.“Under the stubble management campaign, the Barnala district administration is not only creating awareness among farmers but is also mapping machinery, including balers and pellet units, village-wise so that farmers do not face any difficulty. I urge farmers to take full advantage of government schemes,” he said.The deputy commissioner appealed to farmers across the district to adopt eco-friendly techniques for managing paddy residue.