SABAK BERNAM: Selangor needs at least RM1bil to enhance padi productivity, says state infrastructure and agriculture committee chairman Datuk Izham Hashim.
He said the state government will soon engage with the Federal Government to discuss funding through the Integrated Agricultural Development Area, northwest Selangor, to achieve five planting cycles every two years.
“The funding is crucial to upgrade drainage systems, build water retention ponds and acquire 80.9ha of padi fields from Tanjong Karang to Sabak Bernam.
“We are facing problems to get water to Sabak Bernam. As such, we want to increase water capacity in most areas in northwest Selangor so that there is adequate water supply for five planting cycles every two years,” he told reporters yesterday, pointing to the importance of the upgrades as Selangor has no new land for padi cultivation under current plans.
According to Bernama, he also expressed confidence that all infrastructure improvements could be completed within three years if allocations were approved by the Agriculture and Food Security Ministry.
Izham shared that Selangor is also fine-tuning new methods to enhance collaboration between farmers and stakeholders, including FGV Holdings Bhd, which has demonstrated large-scale padi yield improvements in the state.
“We have proposed RM100 per tonne incentives for farmers achieving seven-tonne yields,” he said, noting that currently only farmers in Sungai Leman and Sekinchan areas are capable of achieving such yields out of the state’s 9,000 padi farmers.
Earlier, Izham attended a farmers’ appreciation event in Sungai Leman and launched Briar & Behn Meyer’s BASE fertiliser technology at Dewan Seri Sekinchan here.
