Srinagar: Horticulture is one of the important sectors of Jammu and Kashmir and contributes immensely to the economy here.
This sector strengthens the financial condition of people associated with it and also helps in poverty alleviation, employment generation and other developmental aspects of the Union Territory.
The variety of horticultural products of J&K has earned world-wide fame because of its good quality and taste.
The fruit crops grown here like apple, almonds, walnuts, pears, cherries and apricots in temperate areas and mango, citrus, litchi, papaya, guava etc in subtropical areas are known all over the globe.
Saffron cultivation in Jammu and Kashmir is unique in the world as worlds finest saffron is produced here.
Jammu and Kashmir’s Horticulture is quietly showing progress as the yearly pay produced by the natural product industry has gotten over Rs 10,000 crore, contributing eight percent to Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP). According to the public authority figures, 7.5 lakh families of around 35 lakh souls are associated with this sector.
This sector has emerged as one of the prime sectors for generating self employment avenues for the youth of Jammu and Kashmir.
Impressed by the rich quality of fruits produced in Jammu and Kashmir and having major demand in outside narkets, an ex-serviceman of Indian Navy from Kathua district Dheeraj Kumar has turned into an agripreneur. Kumar develops three assortments of strawberries – Camarosa, Winter Dawn and Nubila – at his fields estimating 22 kanals (2.75 sections of land) in his local Haripur town in Hiranagar line sub-division. Development of strawberries has arisen as a rewarding business suggestion for the cultivating local area here.