In an agriculture experiment, a young farmer from the Pampore area of Pulwama district has launched Kashmir's first independent initiative for tulip bulb production. The move could significantly reduce the Valley's dependence on imported bulbs and open new avenues for rural employment and agri-tourism.
Irshad Ahmad Dar, a farmer from Patal Bagh, Pampore, has planted 1500 tulip bulbs on his saffron land along the Srinagar-Jammu National Highway. He has undertaken this initiative at his own expense without any support from the government. Speaking to the news agency—Kashmir News Observer (KNO), Irshad said he started with 1,500 bulbs on his own land. The seed material has been imported from Holland, and bulb multiplication will begin in May, he said.
"I brought everything myself, without any government support, purely based on my own idea and belief that tulips can be successfully grown and multiplied here," Dar added.
According to Irshad, the initiative holds strong economic potential, especially given the huge annual demand for tulips in Kashmir. "Every year, the government purchases tulip bulbs worth lakhs of rupees for the tulip garden in Srinagar. If we can grow and multiply these bulbs locally, why should we depend on imports?" he asked.
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