In a bid to tackle water scarcity as a result of climate change, Minister for Agriculture Ghulam Nabi Lone Hanjura today directed concerned officials of National Adaptation Fund for Climate Change (NAFCC) programme to speed up work on existing projects so that adverse effects of climate change would be minimized.Chairing a review meeting of (NAFCC) here today, the Agriculture Minister directed the concerned officers of the Agriculture Department and its allied wings to gear up their field functionaries and work in unison for successful implementation of centrally sponsored in Budgam and Bhalwal blocks.The National Adaptation Fund for Climate Change (NAFCC) was established to meet the cost of adaptation to climate change that are particularly vulnerable to the adverse effects of climate change.On the occasion, Minister was informed that work on two such projects in Budgam and Bhalwal blocks are going on expected lines. It was given out that the department has so far spent Rs 20 lakh in Budgam block and Rs 15 lakh in Bhalwal block in Jammu and would be completed at an estimated cost of Rs 12 crore each.
Meeting was informed that the projects would provide water and other irrigational facilities to farm lands in hilly parched areas and will also minimize adverse effects of climate change. It was also informed in the meeting that NAFCC project in block Paddar in Jammu and Surisyar block in Budgam would be started soon as the DPR and other requisite formalities have been completed.Hanjura directed the officers to maintain close co-ordination among the department for effective implementation of the schemes and asked officers to extend the Climate change projects to vulnerable zones so that farmers would get largely benefitted.The Minister said that state is facing many difficulties like floods, landslides, heavy rains and droughts resulting into heavy losses in agriculture production and is the prime duty of the concerned departments and the research experts to address their concerns for sustained economic development, food security and livelihood.Principal Secretary Agriculture Production Department, Sundeep Kumar Nayak, Vice Chancellor SKUASTJ P. K. Sharma, Director Agriculture Kashmir Altaf Ajaz Andrabi, Director Agriculture Jammu, H.K. Razdan and other senior officer of agriculture and its allied departments allied departments attended the meeting.