Stress laid on Farm Mechanization, Maize Processing, Mushroom Cultivation
Rajouri : District Development Commissioner Rajouri Dr Devansh Yadav Wednesday chaired a review meeting of the Agriculture Department to assess the implementation and progress of various departmental schemes, projects and allied activities in the district.
Reviewed the progress of the schemes, the DDC issued directions to further strengthen agricultural development, improve farmers’ access to modern technologies and ensure the timely utilization of funds.
Emphasizing the need to increase the level of farm mechanization in the district, the DDC directed the Agriculture Department to facilitate the availability of modern agricultural machinery to farmers on a larger scale. He stressed that enhanced mechanization would help improve farm productivity, reduce labour dependency and promote efficient agricultural practices.
The DDC also stressed the need to accelerate expenditure under the Holistic Agriculture Development Programme (HADP) and directed the officers to ensure effective implementation of approved activities and the timely utilization of available funds.
Taking note of the surplus production of maize in Rajouri district, the DDC directed the department to formulate a proposal for establishing a maize-based feed manufacturing unit to facilitate the productive utilization of locally available maize and explore opportunities for value addition. He further directed the department to submit a comprehensive report on the processing of wheat and maize, covering both processing facilities available within the district and the movement of these crops to processing units outside the district.
Highlighting the potential of mushroom cultivation as an income-generating activity, the DDC laid special emphasis on promoting the same among farmers. He directed the department to explore the allocation of additional funds for expanding this activity. He stressed the need to create greater awareness among farmers, identify interested beneficiaries and provide the necessary technical guidance to encourage adoption of this promising agricultural enterprise.
The DDC also reviewed the functioning of Kisan KhidmatGhars (KKGs) and directed the department to identify, recognize and encourage the best-performing KKGs in the district so that their practices could serve as models for improving service delivery to farmers.
Emphasizing the importance of digital transformation in agriculture, the DDC directed the Agriculture Department to intensify farmer mobilization and awareness campaigns for the creation of Farmer IDs under AgriStack. He instructed the officers to ensure coordinated efforts at the district, sub-divisional and field levels so that the process could be completed within the prescribed timeline.
The DDC stressed that all officers must work with a focused and result-oriented approach, ensure regular monitoring of departmental activities and translate government initiatives into tangible benefits for the farming community.
At the conclusion of the meeting, Chief Agriculture Officer Rajesh Verma thanked the Deputy Commissioner and other officers for their valuable guidance. He assured the chair that all directions issued during the meeting would be implemented and that the department would intensify its efforts to achieve the prescribed targets, improve scheme implementation and promote sustainable and remunerative agriculture in the district.
The meeting was attended by the ADDC Malik Zada Sheraz Ul Haq; ADC Ravi Kumar Sihag, CAO Rajesh Verma and all district-level and sub-divisional officers of the department.
