• A low-cost stubble-removal machine developed by the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Ropar, is likely to bring relief to the people of the northern states of the country.
• The machine costing merely Rs 3 lakh needs an ordinary tractor to operate and trolley for the collection of the removed paddy and wheat stubble. It can remove stubble from1 acre within an hour.
• The machine mounted on a tractor can chop the stubble up to a few centimetres from the ground and automatically load it into the trolley without any manpower, saving labour and cutting down expenditure on diesel, which are the two main concerns being raised by the state farmers.
• Farmers want the removal of stubble from their fields quickly, so that they could prepare them for the next crop. Given time constraints, problems with storing, in-field use and off-field disposal of the residue, they burn it to clear the area. With this machine, the farmers would be able to remove the stubble from at least 10 acres of their fields within a day.
• After removing the stubble from the fields, it would be easier to shift it to some other place as it could be used as fuel or for manufacturing acoustic boards, which would further get farmers some income.

App for small farmers

• To make the usage of machine affordable to small farmers, IITians have also come up with an idea of buying these by cooperative societies. They have developed an application for registering the requirement of machine by farmers.
• The routing and scheduling of the machine at cooperative societies can be done automatically through the app. The orders can be given either by phone call or through Android app. Farmers just need to give the details of their field size and location and the app will give the day and time to provide service to them.