Pampore: Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology-Kashmir (SKUAST-K) is proposing to replicate its saffron and spice research centre’s model of farming in the surrounding fields with saffron farmers of Pampore in this south Kashmir’s Pulwama district.
Talking to Kashmir Reader, Vice Chancellor SKUAST-K, Prof Dr Nazir Ahmad Ganie said that the university has saffron research and spice centre in Dusso Pampore. He said the productivity of the saffron grown by farmers outside our research centre is almost two to three times less than the productivity of saffron grown at the station.
“The productivity of saffron at the research station is 5 kg/hectare. We developed the first variety of saffron at this research centre and also developed indoor cultivation technology at the station,” he said, adding that they also developed intercropping of Saffron with Kala Zeera.
Prof Nazir said that if a farmer was earning Rs 50,000 per kanal by growing saffron alone, he will get an additional income of one lakh rupees by inter-cropping it with Kala Zeera. One kanal of land produces around 18 kilograms of Kala Zeera.
“If the two crops are grown with almonds, it will provide shade and add to the income,” he said, adding that they want farmers in the surroundings of the research centre to replicate this model.
The SKUAST-K VC further said that some of the farmers will be trained in corm production. “If we want to revive saffron cultivation, we need quality corms,” he said. There are some issues like post-harvest management, irrigation, rodent management and weed management, he acknowledged.
“We have the technology for these which will be provided to farmers,” the Vice Chancellor said, adding that the government has developed a centre of excellence for marketing saffron where it is GI-tagged which differentiates it from saffron from other places. In the next stage, the farmers surrounding the adopters will get impressed to adopt this model.
The SKUAST-K -K may also explore irrigation facilities for the farmers like deep bore-well, which they will share among themselves, the VC said.

BILAL HABIB