Srinagar, June 1: Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha stated on Thursday that the dairy industry continues to play an important role in agricultural GDP, and that the UT government places the greatest priority on continued increases in dairy sector productivity.
Addressing the World Milk Day celebration and summer meet for animal husbandry and dairy sector, the Lieutenant Governor said the dairy makes an important contribution to society’s prosperity and economic activity of the farming families.
Union Minister for Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying Parshottam Rupala presided over the event, which was organized by Animal Husbandry and Dairying Department and Agriculture Production Department of J&K UT.
Union Minister of State Sanjeev Kumar Balyan, Union MoS, Dr. L. Murugan, Ministers from different states and UTs; Rajeev Rai Bhatnagar, Advisor to Lt Governor, J&K; Alka Upadhyaya, Union Secretary and Dr Arun Kumar Mehta, Chief Secretary, J&K also graced the occasion.
Speaking on the occasion, Union Minister for Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying, Parshottam Rupalaextended his greetings to the farmers and all the stakeholders on the World Milk day.
Enthusiastic participation of Dairy and Sheep farmers in this historic event reflects affection and trust of people of Jammu Kashmir in the policies and visionary leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, he added.
The Union Minister highlighted the initiatives like vaccination services; Mobile Veterinary Units, and other endeavours of the Government and the role of cooperatives in the growth of the dairy sector. He also lauded the Lt Governor led UT Administration for achieving unprecedented growth in Dairy, Agriculture and allied sector.
Lt Governor, Manoj Sinha expressed gratitude to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Minister Parshottam Rupala for their continuous support for the development of agriculture & allied sector in Jammu Kashmir and also for including the UT in the pilot launch of the National Digital Livestock Mission.
“The celebration of World Milk Day in J&K is a significant opportunity to acknowledge the important contribution of dairy farmers, entrepreneurs and all stakeholders in the growth journey of dairy industry,” the LG said.
The Lt Governor said the Jammu Kashmir is strengthening its ties with other countries and states to transform the livestock and dairy sector and to improve farmers’ remuneration. “We are taking reformative measures to unlock the huge untapped potential of Animal Husbandry, Agriculture and allied sector,” he added.
“Fodder production, improving wool quality and addressing issues like inbreeding are other focus areas of the government. We will become self-sufficient in fodder production with 80% fodder being grown locally,” he further added.
Addressing the gathering, the Lt Governor shared the efforts of the UT Government for creating new opportunities and introducing interventions to make Animal Husbandry and Dairy Sector sector more lucrative for all the stakeholders.
“Dairy makes an important contribution to prosperity of the society and to wellbeing, economic activity of the farming families. The UT government attaches the highest importance to sustained increase in productivity and growth of dairy sector,” said the Lt Governor.
The Lt Governor highlighted the contribution of dairy sector in giving impetus to the rural economy and providing livelihood to a large population associated with the sector.
“Dairy sector continues to play a vital role in Agriculture GDP and such deliberations will play a pivotal role in energising research and extension efforts and modifications required for livestock management and productivity enhancements,” the Lt Governor said.
Speaking about the Holistic Agriculture Development Programme (HADP), the Lt Governor stated that the UT government is committed to providing new opportunities to farmers and youth entrepreneurs, adding that the J&K government’s goal is to write a new chapter in the history of animal husbandry, agriculture, and allied sectors in Jammu and Kashmir.
Under the Holistic Agriculture Development Program, the UT government is launching Integrated Dairy Development scheme that will not only provide social safety net to the farmers but also provide employment and entrepreneurship opportunities to the people, added the Lt Governor.
The Lt Governor shared the valuable suggestions on financial inclusion of farmers and easy credit access to farming community of J&K UT. He stressed on the need to make the banking system streamlined for the welfare of farmers.
“We must identify the 25 potential projects of agriculture and allied sector and rope in reputed universities and educational institutions to work out strategies through which these projects can fulfil the needs of the country, the LG said.
The Lt Governor cited the example of SKUAST which was recently directed to explore the possibilities of growing Tulip’s planting material in J&K instead of relying on imports.
The Lt Governor urged the Government of India to make a list of PMUs for guiding the projects of Agriculture sector and also called for considering J&K UT for International funding on the same pattern as received by other Himalayan States and UTs.
Feeding the Future: Five Days of Action for Feed and Fodder campaign and A-HELP training programme were launched on the occasion.
The dignitaries also released a book on sustainable dairy production, besides distributing Fodder seeds to livestock farmers and A-HELP field kits to Pashu Sakhis. Sanction Letters were also handed over to beneficiaries of Jammu Kashmir under different schemes.
