The Integrated Sheep Development Scheme (ISDS) launched in Jammu and Kashmir has made significant strides in supplementing livestock output and boosting entrepreneurship in this area.
The scheme's objective is to promote the establishment of sheep and goat units across the union territory. Through its multiple uses of providing wool, meat, skin, manure, and so on, the sheep industry offers a significant contribution to the financially deprived portions of society.
Recognizing the importance of sheep, several development activities, including schemes for intensive sheep development, have been launched in J&K. Financial assistance from banks, as well as other incentives and subsidies, are available under this scheme.
ISDS is one of the Sheep Husbandry Department's initiatives aiming at not only making a breakthrough in wool and mutton production but also addressing the problems of unemployment across Jammu and Kashmir.
Livestock is provided free of cost under this scheme for the formation of a participatory sheep/goat unit consisting of 25 ewes/does. Beginning in the third year, equivalent livestock is retrieved from female progeny in a phased manner. The scheme is open to any individual or group of individuals, self-help groups, cooperative societies, or farmers' producer associations.
Subsidy for Sheep & Goat Farming:
Similarly, for the establishment of Sheep/Goat units (25 sheep/goat per unit), the scheme provides a total eligible subsidy of 50% of the unit cost with a ceiling of Rs.1.00 lac whichever is less per unit (25 sheep/goat) and a maximum subsidy ceiling of Rs.8.00 lac for 8 Sheep/Goat units (each unit comprising 25 sheep/goats).
The scheme is open to any individual or group of individuals, self-help groups, cooperative societies, or farmers' producer associations.
The scheme also includes a provision for the procurement of shearing machines (comprised of one shearing machine, one Genset, and shearing accessories/spares), with a total eligible subsidy of 50% of the unit cost, with a ceiling of Rs.75000/unit, whichever is less. The scheme is open to everyone who has received MSS training or intends to receive MSS training.
The scheme contributes significantly to Prime Minister Modi's vision of doubling farmers' income since it supplements farmers' income generated by practicing agriculture.
The Department also provides breeders with all kinds of assistance during disease outbreaks to minimize the loss. It is because of the help of the Sheep Husbandry Department that Sheep rearing has become one of the lucrative entrepreneurship choices in J&K.
Despite having vast potential and a favorable environment for sheep and goat farming, Jammu and Kashmir were still facing a significant gap between demand and supply of mutton.
According to the Jammu and Kashmir’s Sheep Husbandry Department data, 594 sheep and goat units have been established under the scheme in the financial year 2021-22, providing employment to hundreds of people in the Union Territory.
According to departmental statistics, 69 units have been established under this scheme in Anantnag, 93 in Baramulla, 65 in Bandipora, 60 in Budgam, 56 in Ganderbal, 58 in Kulgam, 77 in Kupwara, 47 in Pulwama, 43 in Shopian, and 26 in Srinagar.
Similarly, the Animal Husbandry Department provided 329 units to beneficiaries in the Jammu region under the Integrated Sheep Development Scheme in 2021-22. The structural changes and convergence of several programs for farm and non-farm populations in rural regions amount to nothing less than a revolution for rural J&K.
With expanding operations and a solid supply chain system, the UT has also reshaped the agricultural and horticulture business in the country, which had never happened in the last 70 years.
Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha stated at the first-ever "Vishal Pashudhan Vyapar Mela" at Sports Stadium in Hiranagar that the UT Administration will offer a significant boost to the Animal Husbandry sector by providing farmers with an extra source of income. "It is an effort on the part of the government to provide a single platform for the sale/purchase of high-quality livestock breeds that will strengthen J&K's Dairy sector, in addition to utilizing the full potential of J&K in milk, fodder, and mutton production, to reduce imports, bridge the demand and supply gap in the poultry sector, and to generate revenue."
Recently, the Government of Jammu and Kashmir signed a Memorandum of Cooperation (MoC) to transform UT's sheep farming sector.
The collaboration between J&K and New Zealand will increase output and productivity in the UT's livestock sector. The MoC's main goal is to increase farmer remuneration, technological transfer in research and development, as well as marketing and value addition of J&K sheep products. The government is also fostering an environment conducive to the integrated expansion of the livestock sector, which supports around 1.2 million households and contributes 5% of the Union Territory's GDP.
