The Principal Secretary, Animal, Sheep Husbandry and Fisheries Departments, Dr Asgar Hassan Samoon today said that the Governors Administration was keen on transforming Jammu and Kashmir from poultry consumption state into poultry production state.He said this while chairing a meeting to discuss and deliberate upon measures required for the development of private poultry sector in J&K.The meeting was attended by Director Animal Husbandry Kashmir, Director Industries and Commerce Kashmir, Director Planning Animal, Sheep Husbandry, Joint Director Poultry Kashmir, Core Group Member (Poultry) and representatives of Poultry Farmers Association, Jammu Poultry Association and Kashmir Chamber of Commerce and Industries.Dr Samoon asked 3500 poultry farmers in the State to develop and upgrade their farms to produce day old chicks, eggs, poultry feed and layers in sufficient quantity. He said that sector can open job avenues for thousands of unemployed youth.He said, "As many as one crore day-old chicks and 80 crore eggs per year are being imported from outside states and nobody knows their quality", and added, "if our farmers and other industrialist invest in this sector it can have a huge impact on our revenue generation and mitigating unemployment".The Principal Secretary said that there is no separate poultry policy and there is only general mention of it in industrial policy 2016.
He added, "the same needs to be revisited and if need arises we can take up the issue with Advisor and Governor to take policy decisions so that if we can't give jobs to unemployed directly at least we can help them indirectly by promoting poultry egg industry, day-old chick industry and poultry feed industry".Stressing for establishing of feed units to minimize production costs, he said that purchasing feed for poultry birds add to the production costs for poultry farmers and directed them to integrate their farms with feed manufacturing plants to get down the production cost.He said there are fewer feed plants in Kashmir. "We can make cooperatives of these poultry farmers so that they can benefit from it."Dr Samoon directed the officials to put up a proposal to finance department regarding enhancing of toll tax on import of live birds from rupees 9 per kg to rupees 14 per kg to promote local poultry industry.He said there is need of setting up slaughterhouses, dressing plants, hygienic production of larger capacities and added that the government was keen on working on these fronts as well.The Principal Secretary directed the poultry department to help in post-production, diseases control in live birds and said that he has also okayed 400 posts to overcome the shortage of both medic and paramedic staff.He also said that there are complaints of sale of licenses to non-state subjects required for importing birds to create hegemony on fixing of rates in J&K state and warned that serious action will be taken against the culprits.Dr Samoon directed the officials to establish poultry mandi in North and South Kashmir on the pilot basis to provide a platform to poultry farmers where they can sell their stock without any trouble.