Director Horticulture convenes special meeting with Sericulture Wing, Silk belt and Central Silk Board Officials
Chandigarh, August 7:
In line with the directives of Punjab Horticulture Minister S. Chetan Singh Jouramajra to promote sericulture in Punjab, a special Project Monitoring Committee (PMC) meeting was convened by the Director Horticulture Mrs. Shailender Kaur, IFS. The meeting was attended by officials from the department’s Sericulture Wing, Silk belt and Central Silk Board.
During the meeting, various topics were discussed to fulfill the Horticulture Minister’s vision of revitalizing silk production in the state’s Kandi region, launching the Punjab Silk brand and engaging more farmers in sericulture. Notably, sericulture occupation in the state is primarily practiced by small farmers, especially women, in the Kandi area.
Mrs. Shailender Kaur reviewed the facilities provided to silk farmers under various schemes and called for their proper implementation in the state, urging for new initiatives to further encourage the development of sericulture in Punjab.
The meeting was attended by Central Silk Board officials, including Dr. Santosh, Scientist-D, RSRS Jammu; Mr. Anil Kumar Manna, Assistant Secretary, Central Silk Board, New Delhi and Mr. Alok Singh, Scientist-B, RSRS Jammu.
Praising the high-quality silk produced in the state, the Central Silk Board officials assured that under central schemes, the Punjab Sericulture Department would receive technical and financial assistance for various activities such as mulberry plantation, rearing house construction, provision of rearing equipment and training exposure visits for silk producers. This support, in collaboration with the Punjab government and the Horticulture Department, will help elevate the socio-economic status of sericulturists in the state, they added.
Prominent amongst others who were present in the meeting included Mr. Dalbir Singh, Deputy Director Horticulture-cum-State Nodal Officer (Sericulture); Mr. Harpreet Singh, Deputy Director Horticulture; Mr. Hardeep Singh, DDH-cum-Divisional Sericulture Officer, Sujanpur (Pathankot); Mr. Balvinder Singh, ADH-cum-Sericulture Officer, Hoshiarpur; Manager Mr. Avtar Singh; SPO-cum-Assistant Miss Meenu; SPOs Mrs. Ramandeep Kaur and Arshdeep Singh Dhaliwal.
