Xizang barley farmers take advantage of new technology

"Manual harvesting used to take about half a month, but with machines, it takes just seven to eight days," she said.

Under a village service program, farmers pay a subsidized rate of 30 yuan ($4.45) per 0.66 hectare for a comprehensive service that includes machinery, operators, sowing and harvesting.

Phuntsok Dhondup, an official in the Mondrongang community, outlined the comprehensive support provided to villagers. "We introduce high-yielding seeds directly to the fields and offer government-subsidized fertilizers at below-market prices," he said.

"We also arrange expert-led training sessions so that villagers can learn to operate advanced equipment like drones and balers themselves."

Lhokha's government has deployed multidisciplinary technical service groups to provide over 120 days of field support and conduct more than 310 training sessions.