Jammu: Financial Commissioner (Additional Chief Secretary) Agriculture Production Department J&K Atal Dulloo on Friday chaired a meeting to review the preparedness for Kharif 2023 at civil secretariat here.
The meeting was attended by vice chancellor SKUAST-J, SKUAST-K, Secretary APD, Director General planning APD, Special secretary Horticulture/ Agriculture Production department, Director Horticulture Jammu/Kashmir, Director Agriculture Jammu and Kashmir.
While addressing the meeting, Financial Commissioner (Additional Chief Secretary) Atal Dulloo asked the officers to work in a coordinated manner so that the farmers interest could be safeguards at every level. Financial Commissioner highlighted the importance of crop diversification in the overall development of agriculture sector.
Dulloo said that during Kharif season, under crop diversification program, an additional area of 8000 hectares shall be brought under vegetable crops, 2000 hectares under pulses and 500 hectares under millets in Kashmir division while in Jammu Division, 1000 hectares shall be brought under vegetable crops, 5000 hectares under fodder crops, 1200 hectares under millets and 800 hectares pulses. The introduction of Millets is a new initiative during this year in the Kashmir division and shall be very beneficial to the farming community, Dulloo said.
The FC directed the concerned officers for early implementation of different programs for a successful Kharif cropping season. He directed that SKUAST-J will provide 430 qtls of breeder seed to department of agriculture in the current year and shall also double the quantity to 807 qtls for the next year. It was also said that SKUAST-K has already provided sufficient quantity of breeder seed to the Department of Agriculture Kashmir.

KR Desk