JAMMU, Sep 10: J&K Pradesh Congress Committee (JKPCC) Kissan Congress Chairman Bharat Priye, accompanied by former MLC and Congress Headquarters Incharge Jammu Ved Mahajan, met farmers at Bandwal in Akhnoor and discussed their long-pending demands and problems.
Bharat Priye said farmers remain the backbone of Jammu’s rural economy but continue to face inadequate irrigation, rising input costs, crop losses due to erratic weather, weak procurement and poor market infrastructure. He called for a comprehensive farmer-centric policy focusing particularly on the Kandi and rain-fed areas.
He demanded expansion and modernisation of irrigation canals, restoration of traditional water bodies, farm ponds, rainwater harvesting and micro-irrigation facilities. He also sought faster and transparent assessment and compensation for crop losses caused by floods, hailstorms, drought-like conditions and excessive rainfall.
Priye stressed the need for effective crop insurance, remunerative prices, stronger procurement and better marketing facilities for paddy, wheat, maize, vegetables and horticultural produce. He called for modern cold storage, warehouses, pack houses, grading facilities and refrigerated transport to reduce losses faced by vegetable growers.
He also advocated affordable farm mechanisation through Custom Hiring Centres, improved access to institutional credit and Kisan Credit Cards, and greater promotion of horticulture, dairy, poultry, beekeeping and other allied activities.
Calling climate-resilient agriculture a necessity, Priye urged authorities to strengthen rural infrastructure, soil-health services and agricultural extension programmes. He said Jammu’s agricultural potential can be fully realised only when farmers receive water, technology, market access, infrastructure and fair returns for their produce.