Principal Secretary Animal, Sheep Husbandry and Fisheries, Dr. Asgar Hassan Samoon Saturday directed clearance of all the pending cases under Dairy Entrepreneurship Development Scheme (DEDS) on a fast-track basis.The Principal Secretary was addressing a meeting here which he chaired to review the implementation of DEDS scheme in Jammu and Kashmir.During the meeting, Dr. Samoon emphasized the role of DEDS in poverty elevation, employment generation and to achieve self-sufficiency in milk and milk products.He informed that centre has reallocated Rs. 15 crore subsidy to J&K for clearing the DEDS cases pending with Banks.It was said that 970 DEDS units have been established during the current fiscal and there are around 2115 cases pending with banks for disbursement.All Chief Animal Husbandry Officers and Lead Bank Managers were directed to clear all pending cases within a fixed timeline.
Pertinently, as per the decision taken in 110th SLBC meeting, a Sub-Committee under the Chairmanship of Dr. Asgar Hassan Samoon has been constituted to examine the reasons underlying slow rate of sanction of DEDS cases by Banks and suggest measures to improve it for better livelihood options.The Committee will also recommend measures to improve the implementation of DEDS to make dairy sector more remunerative. It will study different models of insurance coverage being provided by various companies in livestock sector especially in Himachal Pradesh and Uttrakhand and their adoption in Jammu and Kashmir.Vivek Sharma, Director Animal Husbandry Jammu, Ms. Purnima Mittal, Director Animal Husbandry Kashmir, Fayaz Ahmed Bhat, Vice President SLBC J&K Bank, Suneet Kumar, Vice President J&K Bank Jammu, Dr. Arif Bashir, Technical Officer ASHF, Representatives of SBI, DGM NABARD, Chief Animal Husbandry Officers and Lead Bank Managers of all districts attended the meeting.