Kathua : In a first, Department of Agriculture Production and Farmers’ Welfare Department Kathua installed first ever Hydroponics fodder growing structure at the farm of progressive Woman entrepreneur Sonika Sharma of Krishna Colony, Kathua.
The newly established unit was inaugurated by President, Municipal Council, Kathua Rekha Kumari where Chief Agriculture Officer, Kathua SanjeevRai Gupta was also present.
The Agriculture Department Kathua in its handholding efforts is facilitating the interested farmers by installing such structures based on Soil Less fodder culture technique at 50 percent departmental subsidy besides guiding them with proper know-how about green fodder cultivation with hydroponic techniques.
The Team Urban Farming and Hydroponics from Department of Agriculture Production and Farmers’ Welfare Kathua installed the first ever Hydroponics Fodder Growing Structure at the farm of progressive woman AgripreneurSonika Sharma of Krishna Colony, Kathua.
Speaking on the occasion, Chief Agriculture Officer Kathua Sanjeev Rai Gupta said rapid urbanization has caused shrinkage of land availability for grazing & land holdings causing farmers not to set aside land for cultivation of green fodder. He said scarcity of water for irrigation, especially in the summer months, makes farmers prefer available land for the cultivation of cash and food crops. “Most farms lack fencing and free grazing cattle and wild animals enter the fields and feed on the succulent fodder” he added.
The CAO said, the contemporary methods of green fodder cultivation is quite laborious and in some areas the climate is not conducive for fodder cultivation but the Hydroponics Fodder cultivation works well with minimum human efforts that too without soil and with minimal water.
The CAO further informed that It has been observed that the feed cost constitutes about 70 to 75% of the total milk cost where in green fodder constitutes 13 to 35% of the total input feed. He said Good dairy practices recommend that milch cattle be fed green fodder ad-lib. The National Dairy Development Board recommends that a cow yielding 8 to 10 litres of milk per day be fed 25 to 30 kg of green fodder, 4 to 5 kg of dry fodder and 4.0 to 4.5 kg of concentrate per day during lactation, he added.
Talking about the economics of Hydroponic fodder, CAO Kathua said, a farmer can produce 100 kg of Green fodder per day, on rotational basis from 80 trays installed in the unit. A small shed can be used for cultivation under controlled conditions. This also involves zero fencing, minimal water use, no fertilization thereby reducing the input cost and saving money in the farmer’s pocket.
District Agriculture Officer (Extension) KathuaRajuMahajan, Sub Divisional Agriculture Officer Kathua, Sanjiv Mehta, A.E.O (H.Q) Ravi Singh Chouhan, J.A.E.O. Amit Gupta, and members of Team Urban Farming and Hydroponics, Kathua were also present.
