More than 4,000 students and pupils will be sent to work in agriculture in the Vitebsk region

August 26, Vitebsk / Diana Kurilo - BELTA /. More than 4,000 students will be sent to agricultural work in the Vitebsk region, the deputy chairman of the Vitebsk Regional Executive Committee's Agriculture and Food Committee, Nikolai Olenich, told a BELTA correspondent today. The decision was made by the regional executive committee. Students from state universities, secondary vocational schools and vocational-technical educational institutions will go to harvest crops starting September 3 for a period not exceeding one month. The students will have to help farms harvest flax on an area of 23,000 hectares, potatoes on 5,400 hectares, vegetables on 1,700 hectares, and root crops on more than 2,000 hectares. Students will work in almost all districts of the region, with the exception of Dokshitsky, Lioznensky, Miorsky, Rossonksy, and Tolochinsky districts. As Nikolai Olenich noted, farms have been tasked with providing students with free accommodation, full board, and timely payment of wages on the day of departure. Compliance with safety regulations and safe living conditions for students will be under special control. In 2008, more than 4,500 students were involved in agricultural work. They harvested and prepared about 10,000 tons of potatoes, 3,600 tons of root crops, harvested flax from an area of 1,700 hectares, and harvested and delivered 1,500 tons of flax straw to flax mills.