Latest news with #HADP
Hans India
3 days ago
- Business
- Hans India
HADP boosts horticulture in J&K's Poonch, doubling farmers' income
Poonch: In a significant step towards promoting horticulture and doubling farmers' income, Jammu and Kashmir's Horticulture Department has established a high-tech poly greenhouse nursery at its district headquarters in Poonch under the Holistic Agriculture Development Programme (HADP). The initiative supports Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision of uplifting the agricultural sector. The new facility allows for year-round cultivation of fruit plants, regardless of seasonal changes. District Horticulture Officer Sanjeev Kumar said that the department previously relied on seeds to grow plants, which typically took seven years to bear fruit. However, with the introduction of grafting techniques in the poly greenhouse, fruit plants will begin producing in just three years. Speaking to IANS, Sanjeev Kumar highlighted the broader goals of HADP, which has been active in J&K for the past two years. "There are 29 projects under HADP, inaugurated by PM Modi. Our focus is horticulture, specifically under projects 9, 15, and 21. We want people to grow their own plants, reduce dependence on external sources, and become self-reliant," he stated. "We also plan to provide similar high-tech poly greenhouse nurseries to farmers on a subsidy basis, helping them boost productivity and income," Sanjeev Kumar said. He added that Poonch is uniquely suited for Pecan nut cultivation, a crop grown exclusively in this region of the Union Territory. "We also cultivate apples. This poly house will support and expand our horticulture practices significantly," Sanjeev Kumar told IANS. HADP, spearheaded by the Agriculture Production Department of J&K, comprises 29 comprehensive projects across agriculture, including horticulture, crop production, and livestock. Through 75 integrated schemes, the programme aims to ensure sustainability, self-sufficiency, and commercial viability in the region's agrarian economy. Horticulture is the science and art of the development, sustainable production, marketing and use of high-value, intensively cultivated food and ornamental plants. Horticultural plants are grown for a particular purpose, including for food, medicine, as ornamentals, for aromatic properties, or in the wine industry. As a result, this leads to various fields within horticulture, such as floriculture, viticulture, olericulture, arboriculture, pomology, and oenology, which are the study, cultivation, and marketing of flowers, grapes, vegetables, trees, fruits, and wine, respectively. Each area of science involves the landscaping of crop fields, which adds to the aesthetics, but more importantly, the required growth guidelines are followed in order to maximise the production of the respective plants for their specified use in these industries.
Hans India
4 days ago
- Business
- Hans India
J&K: Over 50 women imparted training in mushroom production under HADP scheme
Jammu: In a bid to cultivate Jammu and Kashmir's Doda as a key centre of mushroom cultivation, the Agricultural Department is imparting training to more than 50 women under the Holistic Agriculture Development Program (HADP). The Holistic Agriculture Development Program (HADP) is a flagship initiative of the Government of Jammu & Kashmir, designed to revolutionise the agricultural sector through innovation and inclusivity. All these women undergoing training are associated with the Jammu Kashmir Rural Livelihood Mission. Its purpose is to enable and equip women with mushroom production skills and also make them self-reliant in the business. A couple of beneficiaries spoke to IANS, sharing their experience about the initiative. Priyanka Chib, a local resident of Doda, said, 'For the first time, training is being given by the Agriculture Department of Doda. Through this channel, we are getting a lot of information that will benefit us in the business. Particularly, the women who are getting the training will start a mushroom enterprise on their own and will start earning income from it.' Susheel Razdan, an official associated with the training program, said that under the HDDP scheme, we are training all these women, and the department is also providing a subsidy to those who want to open their mushroom setup in Doda. Many big mushroom units are being run by people, and now women are also taking up the initiative. Chief Agriculture Officer Doda Amjad Hussain Malik said, 'There are many schemes in the Agriculture Department which are benefiting people. Today we have given training to unemployed women here so that in the future they can also start their own business and earn money from these schemes.' The HADP scheme spans 29 projects covering agriculture, horticulture, livestock, and research & development, aiming to enhance productivity, empower farmers, and boost the region's economy. The program aims to transform the agricultural economy of Jammu and Kashmir by promoting sustainability and commercial viability through 75 schemes.
