Diginibal, Ganderbal, Oct 9: The All India Coordinated Research Project (AICRP) on Poultry, Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology of Kashmir (SKUAST-K), organised a training-cum-distribution programme under the Development Action Plan for Scheduled Tribes (DAPST), also known as the Tribal Sub Plan, at Diginibal, Ganderbal.

The programme was attended by 40 tribal farmers, mostly women. Each beneficiary received 10 improved-variety chicks along with poultry feed to support backyard poultry farming and promote livelihood generation, women's empowerment and improved household nutrition.
Addressing the gathering, Prof. Hilal Musadik Khan, Head, Division of Livestock Production and Management, Faculty of Veterinary Sciences and Animal Husbandry, SKUAST-K, highlighted the importance of backyard poultry as a practical, low-input enterprise for tribal and rural households.
Prof. Azmat Alam Khan, Principal Investigator, AICRP on Poultry, was appreciated for planning and coordinating the programme and for conducting Tribal Sub Plan outreach activities across different districts of Kashmir.
Prof. Islam-ud-Din Sheikh, Co-Principal Investigator, AICRP on Poultry, explained the economic potential of backyard poultry, particularly its scope for rural women to generate supplementary income through the sale of eggs and surplus birds.
Dr. Zulfqarul Haq, Co-Principal Investigator, AICRP on Poultry, highlighted the significance of the improved chick variety introduced under the programme, which was distributed to tribal beneficiaries for the first time.