To address the dearth of staff in the Fisheries Department, Principal Secretary, Animal and Sheep Husbandry Department, Dr Asgar Hassan Samoon today announced that the department will engage professional fisheries graduates and post-graduates under Rehbar-e-MachliPalan.The scheme will be implemented on the pattern of already introduced Rehbar-e-Pushupallan scheme, Samoon said while chairing a meeting convened to review the functioning of fisheries Department here.He said that the Department plans to engage 150 professional fisheries graduates and post graduates as Rehbari-e-MachliPalan on a monthly remuneration, in the first phase.The Principal Secretary said that by launching such scheme in the State hundreds of unemployed trained Fisheries Graduates of the State will be benefited besides helping the department to grow on scientific lines.He said the professionals will be posted in departmental hatcheries, farms and rearing units to increase the production of seed and table size fish. He said the services of young professional persons will be utilized in extension to render guidance to the fish farmers in the technical matters including water management. Further they will also guide the unemployed youth to encourage taking up of entrepreneurship in these sectors as a sustainable means of earning livelihood.
The Principal Secretary said that to meet the increased demand of fish consumption, the fish farming and management of water bodies should be taken on scientific lines with continuous updation to increase the productivity of water resources.He said similar approach should be followed to ensure availability of quality seed and feed for private and departmental fish farming units.Earlier the department of Animal and Sheep Husbandry had introduced Rehbar-e-PashuPalan scheme for unemployed veterinary graduates on fixed contingency and plans to appoint 420 Veterinary Officers under the scheme in the near future. Officials said the Veterinary Officers will act as a catalyst for providing quality veterinary and animal health/husbandry services including breeding coverage to 7000 villages of the state.Taking stock of overall functioning of the Animal/Sheep Husbandry and Fisheries Department, the Principal Secretary asked the officers of the Department to work with utmost dedication and achieve the targets in full. He stressed on the officers to work with extra zeal to make the State self-sufficient in production of mutton, fish, poultry, milk so that huge revenue can be stopped from draining outside the State and the same can be used to generate more employment within the state.The meeting was attended by the Director Fisheries, RN Pandita, Director Animal Husbandry (Kashmir) MY Chaproo, Director Animal Husbandry (Jammu), Victor Koul, Director Sheep Husbandry Kashmir Mohammad Sharief, Director Sheep Husbandry (Jammu) Sanjeev Kumar, Dean Faculty of Veterinary Sciences and Animal Husbandry SKUAST Kashmir, representatives of Planning and finance department, veterinary doctors Association, unemployed degree holders, and other senior officers of allied departments.