J-K: Udhampur's Horticulture Department organises skill development program for unemployed youth, farmers

With an aim to attract unemployed youth and farmers toward the Horticulture sector, the Udhampur Horticulture Department of Jammu and Kashmir organised a skill development programme at Government Fruits Nursery, Badola on Tuesday.

The programme witnessed huge participation of youth as well as farmers from Jib, Badola and adjoining areas.

This was an Initiative of the Horticulture Department of Udhampur to make the unemployed youth and farmers of the district aware of the Government of India's schemes and their benefits for them.

In the one-day Skill Development Programme, the youth, as well as farmers, learned about grafting of plants, high-density fruit plantation and many other plantation techniques so that unemployed youth can learn and acquire skills and open their own fruits nursery with the help of the Government of India's scheme.

Udhampur Chief Horticulture officer Salil Kumar Gupta made the unemployed youth and farmers aware of the various Government of India's schemes and urged them to take advantage of the schemes and encouraged them to open their own nurseries. He assured them that the administration, as well as the Horticulture Department, will help them in this regard.

Parshotum Sharma, a farmer from Neeli Nallah said, "Earlier we did not have much knowledge about the fruits plantation and now after visiting the one-day skill development programme, we got to learn about grafting of fruit trees, high-density fruit plantation and many other plantation methods. These kinds of programmes will benefit unemployed youth and farmers like us a lot by making them capable of becoming self-employed."

"They taught us new techniques of farming and how to grow new varieties of plants," said Sudesh Kumar, another farmer from Neeli Nallah panchayat.

Udhampur Horticulture Officer Salil Kumar Gupta said, "Today at the one-day skill development programme organised for unemployed youth as well as for farmers at Government Fruits Nursery in Badola Village of Udhampur district to attract the attention of the youth towards Horticulture sector. We gave tips to the youth and farmers on how to produce high-density fruit plants and also on how to convert fruit plants into high-density fruit plants.

"We have various nursery development schemes. We urged the youth looking for jobs to take advantage of the said schemes and open their own fruit nursery and earn a livelihood," he added.

( With inputs from ANI )