DW BUREAU / Chandigarh Cotton growers in 17 districts of Haryana, who had diversified from paddy under the state government's flagship 'Mera Pani-Meri Virasat' scheme during kharif 2020, will soon receive their first instalment of incentive at Rs 2,000 per acre, a senior official said here on Tuesday. These farmers will receive the incentive directly into their bank accounts, Sanjeev Kaushal, additional chief secretary in the agriculture and farmers' welfare department, said. He added that the instalment is being disbursed to farmers through the direct benefits transfer mode after completion of the physical verification process by officials of the department. A total of over 50,000 acres of land was verified to have been diversified from paddy to cotton in Sirsa, Fatehabad, Jind, Hisar, Kaithal, Jhajjar, Bhiwani, Charkhi Dadri, Sonipat, Rohtak, Faridabad, Palwal, Rewari, Mewat, Gurugram, Panipat and Karnal districts. He said cotton growers in the Sirsa district will be the biggest beneficiaries under the scheme, with more than Rs 2.26 crore to be distributed among them for opting to sow the cash crop in over 11,000 acres. Farmers in Fatehabad and Jind districts would also get incentives totalling more than Rs 1.98 crore and Rs 1.97 crore, respectively. Kaushal said the Mera Pani-Meri Virasat scheme had been implemented in an effort to conserve the depleting groundwater table in the state. Farmers in water-stressed blocks Ratia (district Fatehabad), Siwan and Guhla (district Kaithal), Pipli, Shahabad, Babain and Ismailabad (district Kurukshetra) and Sirsa (district Sirsa), where the groundwater level is below 40 metres, are being encouraged to cultivate alternative crops, including, maize, bajra, cotton, pulses, and horticultural crops, he added. The state government had promised to pay Rs 7,000 per acre for diversified crop, of which the first instalment of Rs 2,000 per acre would be paid after verification and the remaining Rs 5,000 per acre when the crop is in the maturing stage. He said that to facilitate the farmers, all diversified crops such as maize, bajra, and pulses would be procured by the Haryana government at a minimum support price. The gram panchayats would not permit paddy growing in agricultural lands owned by them, and applicable financial benefits in lieu of diversification from paddy to alternative crops would be provided to the respective panchayats, he said. (editor@dailyworld.in)