India International Kashmir Saffron Trade Center (IIKSTC) will be commissioned soon at Dussu, Pampore, divisional commissioner Kashmir Baseer Ahmad Khan said on Friday.
According to an official statement, divisional commissioner said this during a tour of Pulwama district wherein he reviewed the developmental scenario and youth engagement programme of the district.
Initiative for economic revival of J&K Saffron, National Mission on Saffron was introduced during 2010-11 at an estimated cost of Rs 400 crores and 3715 hectares of saffron was proposed to be rejuvenated under the mission. Under the mission, government has built ‘state-of-the-art’ International Kashmir Saffron Trade Center also known at Dussu, Pampore at a cost of Rs 37 crore.
“Latest machinery has been installed at stigma separation unit, quality evaluation laboratory, besides packing machines and cold storage facilities have been constructed in the centre. For e-marketing, single registration and login for PAN India auction, easier access (via electronic media) for catalogues, My Catalogue and buying tracker. Auto bids and parallel bidding, easier access to market depth anonymity of buyers during the bidding process thereby ensuring fair price discovery, seamless and flexible payment system, 24×7 immediate delivery order are also the part of the center. The centre will create hundreds of new jobs for unemployed youth of the district.
The divisional commissioner directed officers to complete the required formalities immediately so that it will be thrown open for saffron buyers at an earliest besides unemployed youth of the district will also get benefited from the upcoming trade center.
The meeting was further informed that 450 kanals in Pulwama district have been brought under high density fruit plantation and Rs 2.50 crore of subsidies stand distributed to the new generation of orchardists. More than hundred sheep farms were established by unemployed youths under different schemes besides new abattoirs are coming up in different locations of the districts.
Div com asked the concerned officers to make agriculture, horticulture and sheep husbandry a sustainable and remunerative economic activity for unemployed youth which will create new generation of agriculture entrepreneurship persons across the district.