PIONEER EDGE NEWS SERVICE/ Dehradun
To promote apple production in the State and introduce farmers to modern horticulture techniques, the Agriculture and Farmers Welfare minister Ganesh Joshi on Tuesday flagged off a group of 28 farmers from various rural areas of Dehradun district to Himachal Pradesh for a five-day training at Y S Parmar University of Horticulture and Forestry, Nauni, Solan.
“The farmers will learn during the training about modern and advanced techniques of apple production, such as pruning, planting fruit trees, fertilizer management, organic manure, budding and grafting, fruit packaging and marketing,” he said, adding that upon receiving the training, farmers would not only benefit from these techniques themselves but also educate others about modern horticulture. “This will lead to a qualitative increase in apple production and productivity in the State while boosting farmers’ income,” he further said.
Sharing that the State government is promoting cluster-based farming and high-value crops to stop migration from mountainous areas and strengthen farmers’ economies, he said that an Rs 808.79 crore highly intensive apple horticulture scheme is being implemented here under which the target is to develop apple orchards spread on an area of 5,000 hectares. “Farmers are being provided with up to 60 per cent subsidy under this scheme,” he said.
Referring to the Apple Post-Harvest Management Scheme, the minister said that with a total investment of Rs 144.55 crore, new CA storage and sorting-grading units are being established, backed by a 50 to 70 per cent subsidy. “Additionally, under the state-of-the-art apple nursery scheme, a target has been set to establish nurseries on an area of 400 acres with an investment of Rs 80 crore,” he declared.
Expressing the hope that intensive apple farming would create new employment opportunities in the mountainous regions and help curb migration, he stated that training farmers in modern agricultural and horticultural techniques is essential to make them self-reliant. “To this end, in the future, farmers will be selected periodically through district planning and state sector initiatives and provided training within and outside the State. Farmers will also be trained in areas such as kiwifruit production and beekeeping to further strengthen their income and economy,” he noted.
