Farmers in various areas of the Jammu region have expressed concern over the failure of the Irrigation Department to get the Ranbir Canal properly cleaned and desilted. They alleged that filthy water from the canal was damaging their standing vegetable crops and the quality of soil.

Jammu: People today thronged Tata Motor

Nabard has sanctioned a Rs 342.43-crore loan to the state government in the current financial year for the construction of rural roads, bridges, drinking water schemes, flood protection and irrigation projects.

Nabard chief general manager AK Mathur said Rs 410.64 crores was released during 2008-09 to the government for the development of rural infrastructure.

The Capital Development Authority (CDA) has prepared the structural designs of Kashmir Highway and Khayaban-e-Margalla and Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani will inaugurate these two projects next month.

The sources said Kashmir Highway

A week-long plantation drive was launched at Kashmir University today. The plantation drive is being organised by the NSS and Landscape Development wings of the varsity.

A one-day training programme on soil and nutrient management in fruit orchards under rain-fed conditions was organised for farmers at dry land research sub-station of Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology, Rakh Dhiansar, here today.

MIS fails to achieve targets

The Market Intervention Scheme (MIS), being implemented by the director of Horticulture Planning and Marketing for the procurement of apple and sandy pear, has failed to achieve the desired results, as the achievement was just 45 per cent on financial front and 43 per cent on physical side.