Vitebsk region should aim to thresh 2 million tons of grain - A. Kosinets

September 17, Vitebsk / Sergey Kotovets - BELTA /. The Vitebsk region should aim to harvest 2 million tons of grain. This task was set for the grain growers by the chairman of the regional executive committee, Alexander Kosinets, at a meeting with the region's delegation members at the republican festival-fair of agricultural workers "Dazhynki-2009", which took place today at the regional executive committee, according to a BELTA correspondent. "This figure is quite ambitious, but extremely necessary, and we will strive for it very seriously," emphasized the head of the region. To achieve this, the northern region will have to do a tremendous amount of work to modernize enterprises and increase the efficiency of the agro-industrial complex economy. Today, the region is carrying out an inventory of lands and is addressing the issue of increasing sown areas to 500 thousand hectares. To improve land fertility, it is necessary to intensify work with mineral fertilizers - about 7 million tons of fertilizers have been delivered to the fields in 9 months, and approximately the same amount is to be delivered by the end of the year. "We must strive for a yield of 40 centners per hectare," Alexander Kosinets outlined another benchmark for grain growers. The key to a good future harvest also lies in the effective organization of sowing winter crops, which should occupy at least 250 thousand hectares in the region. Work on the technical modernization of the region's agro-industrial complex will continue. In particular, it is necessary to modernize grain drying complexes, 60% of which are morally obsolete, and also to purchase about 500 energy-efficient combine harvesters of domestic production. In 2009, farms in the Vitebsk region harvested 1 million 170 thousand tons of grain, exceeding the same indicator of last year. To reach new frontiers in agriculture, Alexander Kosinets considers it necessary to double labor productivity in rural areas. "We must work on the land, and we must work with the land," reminded the head of the region. The delegation of the Vitebsk region to the republican festival-fair of agricultural workers "Dazhynki-2009" includes more than 100 grain growers and machine operators, heads of districts and farms, distinguished agricultural workers, including more than 60 winners of republican competitions for harvesting grain and leguminous crops, for the procurement of forage crops, as well as the republican review-competition "Land use with high farming standards, improvement of machine yards, livestock farms and complexes." -0-