Agricom.id, DEMAK – Agricultural mechanism is the main thing to realize the better, more independent, and modern agriculture. Since being the Minister of Agriculture, Syahrul Yasin Limpo (SYL) does everything to succeed the program, such as, providing agricultural machines and tools of post – harvest to increase the food plantation production.

Demak is as one district that got the program. In the last five years many groups in the district got the tools and machine from Ministry of Agriculture Indonesian Republic, such as, 480 tractors, 94 combine harvesters, 385 water pumps, and 107 rice trans-planters.

Head of Agriculture Agency, District of Demak, Wibowo, Tuesday (22/12) said that the enhancement of tool advantage is supported by developing Unit Pelayanan Jasa Alsintan (UPJA). “We also did socialization and development, such as, UPJA and the better one is UPJA Karya Bersama.

He also thought that UPJA Karya Bersama got the third rank predicate nationally in 2018. The performance and capability of UPJA to manage the tools given by the government make UPJA Karya Bersama as the role model. Since 2015, it is legal and many other regions visited to know how UPJA Karya Bersama manages the business. “We keep encouraging that UPJA could give examples to others to go forward. We certainly thank for the helps from Ministry of Agriculture Indonesian Republic for the full support,” he said, as in the official statement to Agricom.id.

Chairman of UPJA Karya Bersama, Muhson said that one mainstay service in the institution is the rice trans-planter. “For having three rice trans-planters, alhamdulillah, we succeed to solve the issue about difficulty to plant,” Muhson said. 

Without closing their eyes to plant, the members of planting groups (mostly female) were trained to make seeding process in seedling tray. Their salary is not much different from it from the planting group. “This is more efficent. We trained them to plant and it is easier,” he said.

UPJA Karya Bersama is in Village of Megonten, Sub district of Kebonagung, District of Demak. It got 1 combine harvester in 2012 and was optimally used. The income from renting harvester, UPJA Karya Bersama could buy 1 truck to transport tools, tools in the workshp, and build warehouse to keep the tools. It multiplied the tools for more than 25 units that consist of the area cultivation, harvest, and post – harvest tools. The total assests of UPJA Karya Bersama could be about Rp 1,9 billion.

Knowing this, General Director of Food Plantation, Ministry of Agriculture, Suwandi told that the sustainability of the business should make corporate. “This is the good sample of advantaging helps from the government. The tools are about to multiply the income of group. I do hope that UPJA Karya Bersama starts advantaging kredit usaha rakyat to increase the business capacity,” he said. (A2)