Optimise benefits of above normal monsoon: Prof Swaminathan

Eminent agriculture scientist Prof M S Swaminathan today said immediate steps should be taken to optimise the benefits of the above normal monsoon predicted by the Met Department, by mobilising necessary good quality seed resources and soil nutrients.
Citing the prediction of the Meteorological Department that the coming monsoon was likely to be above normal, he urged immediate action to prepare what he called a "Good Weather Code", which involves mobilisation of good quality seed resources and soil nutrients.
"We should initiate immediate action to prepare a Good Weather Code which will help us optimise the benefits of good rainfall," he said in a statement here.

He said that maximising the benefits of good monsoon and minimising the adverse impact of unfavourable weather should be "our twin strategy" for sustainable agriculture.
Pulses and millets which are nutritious and require less water can be crops of choice both from the point of view of nutritional needs and climate resilience, he noted.
The good weather code can be prepared at panchayat level and completed this month, besides popularising it through trained climate risk managers, he added.