Srinagar:Scented rice locally called Mushkbudjee cultivated over a vast area of agriculture land in Sagam village of Kokernag constituency of Anantnag district under Chief Ministers flagship program has been dumped in ordinary stores of agriculture department under the instructions of the outgoing Director Agriculture Kashmir Showkat Baig and ironically dust of pesticides, fungicides, and rodenticides present in the ordinary stores of agriculture department has accumulated on the scented rice dumped there.
Informed sources while disclosing this to KNS revealed that though the marketing of the scented rice locally called Muskbudjee was to be marketed by the Agro Industries Development Corporation under the Chief Ministers flagship program but the outgoing Director Agriculture Kashmir Showkat Baig ordered the dumping and sale of scented rice from the ordinary stores of the agriculture department where pesticides, fungicides, insecticides and rodenticides are already dumped for sale.
A group of aggrieved farmers told KNS After harvesting season was over, the government decided to procure extra quantity and Agro Industries Development Corporation under government order no:297 Agri of 2016; Dated: 15-12-2016 was asked to frame a committee for effective and suitable marketing of the extra produce.
Though 1350 qtls of paddy were procured by Agro Industries Development Corporation @Rs 8500/- per quintal but payment of even a single penny has not been made to even a single beneficiary. Saying that though scented rice (Mushkbudjee) was put to sale by Agro Industries Development Corporation as mandated by the government under the Chief Ministers flagship program and the wide publicity of the sale of scented rice by Agro Industries Dev Corporation had generate hopes of higher returns, the aggrieved farmers said the outgoing Director Agriculture Kashmir Showkat Baig issued an order and directed all Chief Agriculture Officers (CAOs) to ensure sale of scented rice (Mushkbudjee) from the ordinary stores of the agriculture department failing which the recoveries would be made from the salaries of the concerned employees. With this the outgoing Director Agriculture Kashmir has consigned to flames the cultivation project of scented rice (Mushkbudjee) under Chief Ministers flagship program, the farmers alleged. (KNS)
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