CSIR IIIM conducts planting material distribution prog

Pulwama March, 11: CSIR-IIIM Field Station Pulwama organised an awareness and planting material distribution programme under CSIR Floriculture Mission here today which was attended by progressive farmers, entrepreneurs, florist nursery growers from different parts of Kashmir division.
Farmers across different districts of Kashmir Division converged to participate in the programme wherein they were informed about the various verticals of the Mission and the activities being carried out for enhancing the farm profitabilty and farmer income, gainful livelihood generation and entrepreneurship development through production and multiplication of different cut flower cultivars.
On the occasion 40 farmers were provided the quality planting material of different cultivars of Lilium, Gerbera and Gladiolus. Farmers and florists present at the event thanked and appreciated the initiative and outreach under CSIR Floriculture Mission for development of highly remunerative Floriculture sector in J&K.
Dr Shahid Rasool, Nodal Scientist Floriculture Mission while interacting with the participants informed that the activities under the Mission in J&K envisage for scalable and sustainable production of high in demand cut and loose flowers, leveraging the suitabilty of diverse agro-climatic conditions and edaphic factors.
Handholding to the farmers, florists and entrepreneurs will be provided through availability of the region specific quality germplasm, imparting of trainings and capacity building for production and post harvest handling including value addition technologies, he informed. He also emphasized that a matching scale of intervention is required for the infrastructure development including controlled enviroment polyhouses and cold chain storage and transport facilities for year round production, multiplication of quality planting material, supply of the flowers and others value added products from the UT.
Under the Mission, the area expansion of cut and loose flower cultivars in Chenab Valley of Jammu Division is being done during the current cropping season in collaboration with the Department of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Jammu, he added.
He also thanked Director, CSIR IIIM, Dr D.S Reddy for his patronage and guidance and also acknowledged Dr. Zabeer Ahmed, Head IIIM Srinagar for his support in smooth execution of Mission activities. Speaking to our correspondent, progressive growers, Zakir Qadri from Shangus and Nisar Hussain from Hiller, appreciated the targets accomplished under the Initiative and said that CSIR Floriculture Mission has provided the much needed impetus to the Floriculture sector in the UT considering the huge potential in cut flower and bulb production.
They further added that the incentives proposed under Holistic Agriculture Development Programme of J&K Govt and CSIR Floriculture Mission can be game changer for tapping the huge potential of the Sunrise Industry in the UT of J&K and also stressed upon establishing market linkages and value chain to develop an enabling entrepreneurship ecosystem in the sector.