Itanagar, Sep 7 (PTI): Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Pema Khandu on Monday said the newly established State Agriculture Information Hub-cum-Farmers’ Hostel would play an important role in skilling farmers and strengthening the agriculture and allied sectors in the state.
The chief minister said the facility, built for farmers for the first time in the history of the state, would provide training and information and help farmers acquire skills through various training modules.
“Today is a very important day for the agriculture and allied sector. For the first time in the history of Arunachal, a training centre, information centre and hostel has been built for farmers,” Khandu said after inaugurating the facility at Naharlagun.
He said the state government, along with the Centre, has been making efforts in recent years to strengthen agriculture and allied activities, while farmers and youth have also shown growing interest in the sector.
The chief minister added that the infrastructure would benefit farmers engaged in different activities, including agriculture, horticulture, fisheries and dairy development.
“We hope that the infrastructure developed here will be used properly in the coming days and farmers across Arunachal Pradesh will be skilled through various training modules so that they can work effectively at the grassroots level,” he said.
The chief minister also highlighted the importance of strengthening the fisheries sector and said the Matsya e-Vaahini and e-Rickshaws launched on the occasion would provide additional support to fish farmers.
He said the e-Vaahini is a refrigerated and eco-friendly vehicle, which would help in the transportation and marketing of fish while also contributing to environmental sustainability.
“The e-Vaahini and e-Rickshaw launched here to strengthen the fisheries sector are refrigerated, eco-friendly vehicles. They are good for the environment and will provide good support to farmers in the fisheries sector,” Khandu said.
He said both the Centre and the state government have several plans to further strengthen the farming community and stressed the need for better value addition and marketing of agricultural and allied products.
“We will also try to increase the income of farmers through proper value addition and proper marketing,” he added.
Khandu also flagged off the Matsya e-Vaahini and e-Rickshaws during the programme.
State Agriculture, Horticulture, Animal Husbandry and Dairy Development Minister Gabriel Denang Wangsu also attended the programme, along with officials of the departments.
