MADA advises farmers to use direct seeding method

ALOR STAR: Over 57,000 farmers under the purview of the Muda Agriculture Development Authority (MADA) are advised to use the direct seeding technique for the padi planting season 1/2017 if water levels at the three major dams continue to drop due to the El Nino phenomenon.
MADA chairman, Datuk Othman Aziz said until last Thursday, the three dams, namely Muda, Pedu and Ahing recorded a capacity of 49.16% or 741.54 million cubic metres, compared with 1,405 million cubic metres in the same period last year.
"This situation can cause a drop in padi yield by up to 15%," he said at the MADA headquarters, here, today.
Othman said through the direct seeding technique, water would be supplied as supplementary irrigation and the farmers would also depend on rainwater to irrigate their padi fields.
"As such, MADA will provide the padi planting season 1/2017 schedule which corresponds to the rain forecasts," he added. — Bernama