Excelsior Correspondent
Srinagar, Sept 6: Saffron growers in Pampore area said they are not ready to grow saffron under the Government’s scheme as the district agriculture officials are “dissuading” to grow the crop in their fields.
“The saffron growers are not prepared to cultivate the crop as Agriculture Department officials are creating confusion among us that the Government will usurp our land after we register with them under the procedure of the scheme,” said Mir Tariq Pampori, Publicity Secretary, Jammu and Kashmir Saffron Growers Development, Marketing Cooperative Association.
National Saffron Mission (NSM) was launched by Central Government in the State in 2010 to revive and boost saffron cultivation in over 3,700 hectares of land by planting quality and healthy saffron corms of appropriate size with the objective to enhance the productivity from 2.5 Kg per hectare to 5 to 6 Kg per hectare.
Saffron growers are also paid an amount of an amount of Rs 25,300 per kanal to cultivate the cash fetching crop.
Pampori said the Government has not paid the growers the amount of Rs 4 crore due to them since September 2012, especially in village Lethpora.
He alleged that bore-wells dug by the Government as per the scheme are also “flawed” as the crop is rain-fed and the bore-wells are dug only to “fill” coffers of the officials.
Pampori also said the Government envisaged to build a Spice park and a quality control laboratory under the Mission for which 86 kanals of State land was demarcated at Galender in Pulwama district.
District Agriculture Officer, Ghulam Hassan Guroo, refuted these allegations terming them “baseless”.
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