Vegetables are now being planted, with the President praising the quality of potato tubers during his visit. Asking after their cooking properties, the Director of Ozeritsky-Agro Company, Nina Zheleznova, assured him that the yellow flesh boils very well. Smiling, Mr. Lukashenko asked for ten potatoes, so that he might test them personally.
Tractors are already ploughing furrows at Ozeritsky-Agro, which is a typical mid-level enterprise, setting a fair example. When village revival was first launched, industry leaders were taken as models, sharing their expertise; now, ‘average’ farms and enterprises are used as examples, with the best experience promoted. Everyone is eager to keep up with the latest innovations.
Ms. Zheleznova tells us about the dairy-commodity complex at Ozeritsky, which is a good illustration of modernisation. It boasts spacious, clean cowsheds and sterile milking rooms, using ‘roundabout’ technologies; each operator can care for 800 cows, observing from behind glass. The salary is rather lucrative. From a collar number, an operator can locate the cow’s file, seeing their date of birth and calving, as well as the cow’s milking schedule and yield. Even the cow’s diet is recorded, reflecting a balance between hay and silage.
One problem does exist, as the Chairman of the Minsk Regional Executive Committee, Semen Shapiro, tells us. Not all grass seeds for fodder are suitable for local conditions, necessitating trials on marshy and sandy soil.
The President has approved the plan, which hopes to raise efficiency; if successful, it will be replicated widely, as with all good ideas.
Ozeritsky is also encouraging agro-eco-tourism. Mr. Lukashenko toured the Sosnovaya recreation centre, which is surrounded by picturesque birch groves. Like the President’s recent chat with students from the Belarusian State University of Physical Culture, here, young employees quizzed Mr. Lukashenko on the development of our tourist branch. The President answered unequivocally that he believes in the future of recreation and agro-eco-tourism. He praises Belarus’ clean air and unspoilt countryside, which surpasses that of neighbouring countries to the East and West. Hundreds of thousands of people have already visited the Minsk Region, showing that prospects are good.
The President’s trip to the Smolevichi District showed clearly that Ozeritsky-Agro is working well, following laws of reasonable management and using new technologies. It is a typical example from its branch, although there is room for improvement; it’s always good to ‘aim high’.
The President believes that the objective of creating agro-towns has been fulfilled, with centres of agricultural manufacturing now existing countrywide, offering both employment and comfortable living conditions. He hopes to see the same comforts brought to village life, with duties falling to heads of agricultural enterprises, village councils and district executive committees. No one needs to be ‘forcibly’ persuaded to move to an agro-town since their advantages naturally draw citizens in their own time. In particular, affordable housing loans enable people to relocate to their place of choice, with freedom to make their home as they see fit.
By Vladimir Khromov
