SRINAGAR: The Director Agriculture Kashmir, Chowdhary Mohammad Iqbal, today inspected various pesticides and fertilizer dealers at Pulwama to monitor the sale of registered products.
During the inspection, various fertilizers were found without registration and on-the-spot directions were given to the concerned fertilizer inspector to seize 150 qtls of PROM and submit the compliance report to the Directorate Office without any delay.
Meanwhile, during his Budgam visit, the Director Agriculture inaugurated the semi-Hi-tech Polyhouse at Chadoora.
Speaking to the farmers, the Director said that the Semi Hi-tech Polyhouses would benefit the farmers of Chadoora sub-division and other areas of the Budgam district.
He said that the department is working robustly not only to fulfill the local demands for fresh vegetables during the winter season but also to cater to the requirements of the Jammu region as well. He said the department is increasing the number of hi-tech poly houses in all the districts of the Kashmir division aiming to provide fresh vegetables during the winter months.
He said that the cropping intensity in the Kashmir division is already 250 and efforts are on to raise it up to 300. He said that the vegetable farmers who under open conditions raise three crops in a year, with the help of hi-tech polyhouses are able to produce five crops in a year.
As a result not only has the cropping intensity, production, and productivity is increased but the income of the farmers also gets significantly increased. He said this also helps to generate employment opportunities as well.
Director Agriculture said that we are committed to providing early seedlings to the farmers so that they could make optimum use of their land. “I am satisfied that this year we have already distributed seedlings to the farmers at some places and this process will continue in the coming days,” he added
Director said that under the holistic document project, the foundation seed of different crop varieties would be multiplied in departmental forms, and in this direction, we have already started the multiplication of the foundation seed of maize (variety, SMC4) at Allowpora farm. “The seed is undergoing processing and in the coming days, these seeds would be provided to the CSPS, PSPS, and seed villages so that it could be propagated in all the areas of the Kashmir division.”
During the visit Director Agriculture was informed that the department was receiving a good response from the farmers for increasing the number of Semi Hi-Tech Polyhouses in the area.
Later, the Director Agriculture visited the departmental Polyhouse at Nikas Hall Pulwama and reviewed the preparations for the distribution of vegetable seedlings of different crops to the farming community of the district.
Director Agriculture was accompanied by Joint Director inputs Farooq Ahmad Bhat, Deputy Director Agriculture Planning Mohammad Younis Chowdhury, And other senior officers of the department.
