The Punjab government on Tuesday constituted a high-level committee under the chairmanship of state Financial Commissioner (Development) Suresh Kumar to coordinate efforts for developing techniques to reduce post-harvest losses of crops and encourage value addition both at farm and industrial level.
Disclosing this here on Tuesday, an official spokesman of the government said the committee would function to consider and review post-harvest techniques and technologies developed by the Central Institute of Post-Harvest Engineering and Technology (CIPHET) for the adoption and commercial application.
Rice and wheat are the major crops of Punjab and both occupy about 2.65 million hectares under cultivation. Due to unscientific post-harvest methods being adopted by farmers, the farm economy was taking a big hit during the past few years. The Punjab Chief Parkash Singh Badal has directed the department of agriculture to make coordinated efforts to reduce post-harvest loses.
The spokesperson also said the committee would also encourage development of agro and food processing clusters with cold-chain infrastructure and ensure integration of production, marketing and processing. The committee will also encourage scientific warehousing of agricultural land and horticulture produce.
The members of the committee include vice-chancellors of Punjab Agriculture University and Guru Angand Dev Veterinary and Animal Sciences University, director of CIPHET, joint director of the central department of agricultural, managing director of the Food Processing Industries Corporation and joint direct of agriculture department of Punjab.
