JAMMU: Principal Secretary, Agriculture Production Department(APD), Shailendra Kumar, today chaired a review meeting here at Directorate of Animal Husbandry, Talab Tillo.

The meeting was attended by Secretary in APD; Mission Director HADP/JKCIP; Directors in APD; Joint Directors; Deputy Directors; Chief Animal Husbandry Officers from all districts of Jammu division besides other senior officers of the department of Agriculture and Animal Husbandry.

The meeting had detailed discussion regarding progress on various schemes and programmes under CAPEX, HADP, CSSs and NABARD of Animal Husbandry sector in Jammu division for the current financial year.

Shailendra Kumar reviewed the physical and financial progress on several key CSS schemes including Rashtriya Gokul Mission, Entrepreneurship Development under National Livestock Mission, National Animal Disease Control Programme and Nationwide Artificial Insemination Programme.

A comprehensive presentation was delivered by Director Animal Husbandry Jammu, Dr. Parvinder Singh, providing an overview of district wise progress achieved under different schemes. The status of ongoing Foot and Mouth disease vaccination for cattle, buffaloes, sheep and goats under NADCP was discussed. Besides, the existing cold -chain and other vital infrastructure status was evaluated to identify any gaps or need for additional equipment or infrastructure. Other topics included the components under Dairy Development, Poultry Development and Development of Fodder Resources of J&K UT under flagship Holistic Agriculture Development Programme (HADP).

Further, the expenditures on key infrastructure projects including upgradation/ strengthening of Veterinary Hospitals at District and Sub-district levels under NABARD funding were also reviewed.

The meeting was informed that the department of Animal Husbandry has completely switched over to digital mode as all the departmental welfare schemes are now available on Kisan Saathi portal thus improving transparency and accessibility for general public.

He said that reliable, easy-to access and timely information available on these portals help farmers, government field functionaries and also policy makers for informed decision making at all levels. He urged the officials to record all established projects under various components of HADP on Kisan Sathi Output Tracking app to prevent misuse of funds and ensure accountability in public spending.

The Principal Secretary underscored the need for promoting the cooperative movement in the Jammu division. He stressed that the cooperative societies are instrumental in promoting financial inclusion by providing credit to farmers and small entrepreneurs who may face difficulties in accessing conventional banking services. ‘These societies play a crucial role in rural development, empower local communities and reduce socio-economic disparities', he added.

He further advised the officials to increase the coverage of organized dairy sector, promote value addition of milk and develop marketing strategies to strengthen the dairy cooperative sector in the region.

The Principal Secretary stressed the need for completion of all sanctioned projects at the earliest besides improving financial progress by achieving above 90% expenditures across all the works undertaken.