Farmer prosperity, Rural livelihood security set to be a reality under HDAS scheme

Rs 5013 crs to be spent in next five years across J&K under the scheme

SRINAGAR, DEC 28: With an outlay of Rs. 5013 crores over the next five years under the newly approved Holistic Development of Agriculture and Allied Sectors (HDAS) scheme, a new phase of farmer prosperity and rural livelihood security across Jammu and Kashmir will become a reality.

The scheme will transform the agriculture economy of J&K putting it on a new trajectory of growth, doubling the output of the sectors, boosting exports and making the sectors sustainable & commercially viable.

The unique thing about 29 projects under the scheme is not only that they have been prepared by some of the finest brains in the country but also the fact that their formulation was undertaken in a consultative mode – ensuring that the opinion of all stakeholders including our farmers is taken onboard.

Notably, in July this year the UT administration constituted an Apex Committee for holistic development of Agriculture and Allied Sectors for which leading luminaries like Dr Mangala Rai, Former DG ICAR, as its Chairman and Dr Ashok Dalwai, CEO NRAA apart from other well known figures in the field of Agriculture, Planning, Statistics & Administration.

The committee working in a mission mode came with a comprehensive plan in the form of 29 projects covering all the sectors within the ambit of APD in a record time of 5 months, an official said. These twenty-nine projects will almost double the output of the sectors, boosting exports and making the sectors sustainable & commercially viable, an official said and added that these gains shall be equitable, reaching the last person in the pyramid and ecologically sustainable through efficient use of bio-resources for food, feed & industry.

As per the officials, the agricultural output which stands at Rs 37600 crores shall increase by over Rs 28142 crores to reach more than Rs 65700 crores per year, with a resultant increment in sectoral growth rate to 11%. The interventions shall create employment opportunities for over 2.8 lakh youth and establish around 19,000 enterprises. Apart from this, more than 2.5 lakh persons shall be skilled in various agri-enterprises ranging from seed production, precision farming of vegetables, bee-rearing, cocoon production, mushroom farming, integrated & organic agriculture, high-density fruit farming to processing, dairying, sheep & poultry farming as well as fodder production.

In the next five years the UT shall have a motivated workforce with agri-entrepreneurial skills in a commercially viable and ecologically sustainable agri-ecosystem. The projects approved in the agriculture sector are Development of Seed and Seed Multiplication chain in PPP mode, Promotion of Niche crops in UT of J&K, Promotion of Vegetables/exotic vegetables under open & hi-tech protected cultivation, Strengthening Agri-Marketing System in UT of J&K, Promotion of medicinal/aromatic plants on commercial basis.

Moreover, the Promotion of Apiculture, Technological interventions to strengthen Sericulture in J&K, Promotion of Nutri cereals (Millets), Farm mechanization and automation, Promotion of mushroom cultivation, Promotion of Oilseeds, Formulation of 300 FPOs, Adoption & promotion of integrated farming system (IFS)/Integrated Livelihood systems (ILS) in UT of J&K, Promotion of commercial floriculture in UT of J&K and Development of rain fed areas of J&K

The projects under agriculture sector also include alternate Agriculture System for sustainability, Sensor based smart Agriculture, Minimizing pesticide use in Agriculture, J&K soil & land resource information system and Innovative approaches in agriculture extension.