HT Correspondent
TEZPUR, July 2: Sonitpur district agriculture department, in collaboration with APART, unveiled several ambitious schemes at a ceremony held on Friday at Kanyaka Multipurpose Agricultural Farm in Chilabandha agricultural development circle. The initiatives aim to revolutionise agriculture in the region and create employment opportunities for the youth.
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Under the Horticulture Mission for North East & Himalayan States, the Sonitpur district agriculture department provided chaff cutters at a 100 percent discount to four self-help groups in the Chilabandha agricultural development circle. The distribution was ceremonially inaugurated by MLA Padma Hazarika of Sootea, in the presence of district agriculture officer Pankaj Kumar Saikia and other officials. The beneficiaries of this scheme included Pragati Self Help Group, Ankur Self Help Group, Arihana Self Help Group, and Kuhipat Self Help Group.
During the program, Durlabh Bora, horticulture coordinator of APART Sonitpur, provided training to the farmers of Choukighat Krishak Producer Company (FPC) on the scientific cultivation of G9 banana through tissue culture. The Choukighat FPC plans to plant 18,000 improved varieties of G9 banana seedlings, sourced from Maharashtra, using tissue culture on a 7-hectare agricultural land. This initiative is part of the Horticulture Scheme of the Assam Agribusiness Rural Transformation Project (APART).
MLA Padma Hazarika commended the efforts of the district agriculture department in generating employment opportunities for unemployed youth through scientific agricultural ventures. District agriculture officer Pankaj Kumar Saikia said that farmers would be encouraged to achieve self-reliance by cultivating the improved variety of G9 banana seedlings using the tissue culture method. The agriculture department will provide various forms of assistance in the future.
In another significant development, district agriculture officer Pankaj Kumar Saikia inaugurated the sowing of Ranjit-1 paddy seeds for the community nursery at Kanyaka Multipurpose Agricultural Farm, under the Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana (RKVY) scheme.
The program was attended by various officials, including Nitumoni Mahanta, Chilabanda agricultural development officer, Mantrishna Rajkhowa, Jamuguri agricultural development officer, Nripen Rajbongshi, agricultural extension assistant, Bitopan Saikia, district media specialist of the Agriculture department, Pankaj Barua, research technician of APART Sonitpur, and Pankaj Hazarika of Kanyaka.
