SRINAGAR: Minister of State for Agriculture, Nazir Ahmed Gurezi said that Rehbar-e-Zirat working in Agriculture Department are being regularised in a phased manner.
The minister was replying to the Calling Attention Notice moved by Khalid Najeeb Suharwardy in the Legislative Council.
The minister said that in pursuance to Cabinet decision all agriculture graduates who were unemployed as on October, 2006 were engaged under Rehbar-e-Zirat Scheme at a monthly stipend of Rs. 1,500 from 2007 with main objective to ensure availability of trained manpower, strengthening the present extension services, extending the extension activities and striving for reaching out to the farmers in every nook and corner of the State. He said policy for regularization of Rehbar-e-Zirats, agriculture graduates, based on Cabinet Decision has already been issued.
The minister further informed that the creation of 2,642 posts of Village Agriculture Extension Assistants by the Agriculture Production Department in which 881 in the firsts phase, 881 in the second and 880 in the third and final phase are being utilised for the regularisation of the eligible/selected Rehbar-e-Zirat candidates.