STATE TIMES NEWS
JAMMU: Director Agriculture, Jammu, H.K Razdan on Thursday visited traditional vegetable area of Chenani-Kud belt to inspect the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiative of Nalanda Foundation, an organization of Infrastructure Leasing and Financial Services (IL & FS) working to transform rural economy through agriculture technology interventions. The company is also working in synergy and collaboration with Department of Agriculture Jammu.
Razdan along with the team of officers visited Mandlote, Kud Mungloo and other adjoining villages of Tamatar Morh where he interacted with the representatives of the foundation and the beneficiary farmers who have established Poly Green Structures, Plastic Mulches, Micro-Irrigation System, HDPE lined Water Harvesting Tanks and Vegetable Staking Structures for better land and water resource management.
The farmers apprised the visiting team that through these interventions their productivity level of tomato has increased from 150 to 300 quintals per hectare and farmers income has also increased. The foundation has helped nine poor women farmers (widows) to establish vegetable farming as a commercial enterprise and earn their livelihood through off-season cultivation.
The Director Agriculture also inspected the fields of farmers where the department had extended technical and financial support.
The farmers said that a collaborative approach could turn the tables in favour of the farming community and such joint efforts may be further promoted. It was seen that protected cultivation of capsicum and tomato amid bio-control measures by using Pheramone and yellow sticky traps were giving eco-friendly results at a low cost of inputs.
Those who accompanied the Director Agriculture during the visit include Chander Mohan Sharma, Deputy Director of Agriculture (Central, Jammu, Deepak Kuchroo, Divisional Soil Survey Officer (DSSO), Jammu, Naresh Dubey, Chief Agriculture Officer, Udhampur, J.C Raina, Information Officer, Pradeep Sharma, AEO, Arshad Nayak, AEO, Chenani, Ashish, IL and FS, Sunil Gupta, VAEA and Rakesh VAEA.