19,000 enterprises, Rs 5013 cr 5-year outlay; this is what new 29 projects seek to achieve

Srinagar, Dec 24: Creation of 19,000 enterprises with a Rs 5013 cr 5-year financial outlay through 29 new projects recommended by the Dr Mangala Rai headed committee is the new ambition of J&K administration for the agriculture sector. 

These proejcts were this week approved by J&K government’s highest decision making body – Administrative Council.

Agriculture and allied sectors contribute over eighteen percent of the J&Ks gross domestic product (GDP), representing Rs. 37600 crores per year and providing livelihood to more than 13 lakh families. Over past decades, the agriculture and allied sectors in J&K have been the mainstay of the rural economy however, the UT has been following a mere subsistence type of agriculture which has increasingly been facing the challenges of low productivity, shrinking farmer margins, unsustainability, climate change and lack of competitiveness when compared to produce from within and outside the country.

To mitigate these challenges and to build a technology driven, sustainable and remunerative agro-economy, an apex committee of experts headed by Dr Mangala Rai, former Director General ICAR, was constituted by the UT Administration to identify the priority areas for interventions through improved policy and capital support. The strategies identified by the committee for moving towards a strong and commercially viable agriculture include strengthening seed systems, harvesting the competitive advantage of J&Ks geo-climatic diversity, boosting production & productivity, monetizing produce & promoting secondary agriculture by creation of agri-business ecosystems with inbuilt functional value chains and securing livelihoods through enhanced jobs and income creation. The committee submitted comprehensive proposals encompassing the full spectrum of activities in all the major domains of Agriculture viz Horticulture, Crop and Livestock Husbandry in the form of twenty-nine projects to strengthen the backbone of J&Ks rural economy. The Administrative Council under the chairmanship of Hon’ble Lt Governor today sanctioned the implementation of the twenty-nine projects submitted by the Apex committee with an outlay of Rs 5013 crores over the next five years.

These twenty-nine projects based on the principles of economy, equity & ecology shall transform the agricultural economy of J&K putting it on a new trajectory of growth, almost doubling the output of the sectors, boosting exports and making the sectors sustainable & commercially viable. These gains shall be equitable, reaching the last person in the pyramid and ecologically sustainable through efficient use bio-resources for food, feed & industry. This will herald a new phase of farmer prosperity and rural livelihood security in J&K. The agricultural output which stands at Rs 37600 crores shall increase by over Rs 28142 crores to reach more than Rs 65700 crores per year, with a resultant increment in sectoral growth rate to 11%. The interventions shall create employment opportunities for over 2.8 lakh youth and establish around 19,000 enterprises. More than 2.5 lakh persons shall be skilled in various agri-enterprises ranging from seed production, precision farming of vegetables, bee-rearing, cocoon production, mushroom farming, integrated & organic agriculture, high-density fruit farming to processing, dairying, sheep & poultry farming as well as fodder production. In the next five years the UT shall have a motivated workforce with agri-entrepreneurial skills in a commercially viable and ecologically sustainable agri-ecosystem.

The list of sector wise approved projects is as follows:

The major outputs and likely outcomes of the twenty-nine approved projects include:

1. Achievement of recommended Seed Replacement Rate by cultivation of 2.596 lakh QTLS of quality seed. The measure will result in production increase between 15%-45% depending on the crop.
2. The production of Niche crops (like saffron, kalazeera, rajmash, basmati etc) shall be boosted by bringing additional 11000 Ha under their cultivation through diversification. Quality plantation material of these crops by establishment of new nurseries and seed villages will be made available along with GI Tagging and compact value chains.
3. Self-reliance in vegetables and boosting production of exotic varieties for export. The vegetable production will increase from 19.90 lakh to 25.87 lakh MT. New 1100 hi-tech green houses and 3548 polyhouses will be established with an upscaling of cropping intensity to 250%.
4. Creation of an intensive network of post-harvest and marketing value chains from Rural Business & service hubs, reefer vans to mandis, from grading lines to branding centers with integrated 67,000 MT of CA Storage Space. A dedicated backend market intelligence cell shall be made functional to extend marketing decision support to farmers in real-time.
5. A new dawn in Medicinal & Aromatic plant sector by cultivation of MAPs on more than 250 ha of land with a potential sectoral output of 750 crores (15 years).
6. Tripling of Honey Production from 2200 MT to 6610 MT beside generation of Rs. 475 crores per year from value added by-products. Spinoff effect on crops that rely on cross pollination by increase in bee numbers.
7. Doubling of silkworm seed and cocoon production and regaining of J&K’s glory as a producer of high-quality bivoltine silk. Planting of 10 lakh mulberry trees and creation of a state-of-the-art automatic reeling facility.
8. Focus on climate resilient millet crop and nutri-cereals cultivation on 14,000 ha area in Kandi/Rainfed belts. Doubling of per hectare productivity of millets and establishment of 60 millet processing units.
9. Increase in farm power from present 1.74 Kw/ha to 2.5 Kw/ha. Establishment of 283 Custom Hiring Centre & 142 AI & precision farming centers.
10. Diversification in farm income through boost in cultivation of mushrooms. Quadrupling mushroom production from 2100 MT to 7800 MT. Value addition through establishment of 4 Mushroom Canning & pickling Unit.
11. Doubling in production of Oil seeds & increasing area under cultivation from 1.4 lakh Ha to 2.1 lakh Ha. One hundred new Oil seed extraction units will be established for value addition. Increase in per hectare productivity from 800 to 1200 kg.
12. Creation of 300 FPOs encompassing 3000 farmer interest groups (FIGs) by mobilization of 60 thousand farmers in each block of J&K. Net returns to farmers as a result of collectivization will increase by 10-12%.
13. Integrated farming systems, integrated organic farming systems & integrated livelihood system will be established by involving 85,000 farmer families in drought prone & rainfed areas. Enhanced farmer income (1:2.01 CB Ratio), and increased income per hectare by 100%.
14. Harvesting J&K’s agro-climatic diversity in cultivation of temperate and other cut flowers through strengthening of existing 150 units and creation of new 54 nurseries & 330 production units.
15. 50% increase in Fruit Economy from 10,000 cr/year to 15,000 cr/year. 7500 ha additional area will be brought under high density fruit cultivation, 11 million new plant material will be produced along with 200% increase in productivity in existing orchards.
16. Seven product clusters in 17 districts handling 20 Lakh MT produce shall be mobilized. Five Mega Clusters will be established with grant of Rs 50 crore each. (Milk, Walnut, Meat & poultry, Vegetables and Basmati), along with One Midi-Cluster (Cherry) with grant of Rs 25 cr & One Mini Cluster (Trout) with grant of Rs 12.5 cr. Net revenue generation of over 1450 cr/yr.
17. Milk output will increase by 75% and milk entering processing chain will be tripled. Breeding cover improved from 30% to 70% & conception rate by 10%. Creation of facilities for production of sexed semen within J&K with an aim to replace 50% normal semen with sexed semen. Establishment of 500 village level milk collection units & 50 bulk milk chillers. Village level value addition of 110 lakh liters of milk into traditional products. Per animal milk productivity increased from 2400L PA to 4300L PA.
18. Self-reliance in mutton will be achieved with sustainable wool & pelt value chains. Importation of 2700 heads of superior muttonous breeds of sheep shall be undertaken to effect genetic improvement in the sector. Implementation of ETT & AI programs to intensify genetic improvement and horizontal growth. Overall 300% increase in returns from wool & pelt to further secure livelihood of the traditional sheep & goat farmers.
19. Self-sufficiency in poultry meat and egg production will be achieved. 300 feed production units, 125 integrated hatcheries & 200 big layer farms will be incentivized in private sector. 60 crore eggs and 6500 MT for free-range meat will become available annually from backyard sector. Prevent a capital flight of 1273 cr/yr.
20. The production of Trout & Carp will be doubled by introducing fresh germplasm imported from Europe along with modernization & establishment of new hatcheries. Implementation of modern technologies in water management and rearing by establishment of raceways, RAS & bio-floc. Establishment of thirteen fish feed mills four cold storage cum ice production units and four quality-cum-disease control labs.
21. The huge Fodder Deficit of J&K will be reduced by 80% through establishment of farmer demo plots (on 4100 ha/year), hay-silage units (300), fodder depots (25) and of hydroponic units (500 units with 15,000 MT green fodder output). In addition, generation of 20 lakh MT of fodder shall be undertaken from orchards, forest closures & alpine/sub-alpine grasslands.
22. To boost extension and lab to land services 2000 Kissan Khidmat Centres (KKCs) for participatory planning and decentralized decision making will be established to promote remunerative agriculture at panchayat levels. The KKCs will ensure strong linkage with KVKs, line Departments, and universities for technical support leading to holistic area specific agricultural plan and models, service delivery at farmer doorsteps and impact analysis of schemes.
23. Apart from addressing the major challenges facing the agriculture and allied sectors the projects also undertake prospective planning in the form of establishing standards & facilities for organic plantations, developing region specific farm machinery, demonstration of sensor based smart farming models, developing a GIS and soil testing based online repository for efficient soil and land use, minimizing pesticide use through development of bio-pesticides and advanced spraying technologies as well as support for next generation of agri-technocrats through a program of technological backstopping.