Srinagar: A delegation from the PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PHDCCI) Kashmir on Friday met Shailendra Kumar, IAS, Principal Secretary to the Government, Agriculture Production Department, Jammu & Kashmir, to discuss key issues affecting the Union Territory’s agriculture, horticulture, and agribusiness sectors.
The delegation was led by PHDCCI Kashmir Chairman A.P. Vicky Shaw, accompanied by Co-Chair Himayu Wani, Agribusiness Co-Convenor Nasir Rather, and Deputy Director Iqbal Fayaz Jan.
During the meeting, the industry body flagged several concerns, including the inclusion of cold room infrastructure in the Holistic Agriculture Development Programme (HADP) to improve post-harvest management, tackling price escalation in the High-Density Plantation Scheme, regulating apple imports to protect local growers, reviewing the HADP and J&K Crop Insurance Policy for better policy implementation, quality control in the import of planting material from other states, and extending Controlled Atmosphere (CA) store-related schemes to new industrial estates in Shopian district.
Mr. Kumar reviewed each point in detail and outlined various government initiatives aimed at supporting farmers and agri-entrepreneurs.
The PHDCCI also shared its proposal to host a world-class Agriculture & Horticulture Expo in Srinagar and Jammu to link farmers with modern agribusiness technologies. It further briefed the Principal Secretary on poultry training workshops currently being conducted in four districts of Kashmir in collaboration with SIDBI and the Animal Husbandry Department.
The meeting ended with Mr. Kumar assuring that the issues and suggestions would be given due consideration. The PHDCCI delegation expressed gratitude for the constructive dialogue and reaffirmed its support for the growth of J&K’s agriculture and allied sectors.
