Director Agriculture Jammu S. Arvinder Singh Reen today inaugurated a three-day Training Programme on Geo-Spatial Techniques in Soil Survey & Mapping, under the Capacity Building Component of the Holistic Agriculture Development Programme (HADP), Project No. 19 (JKSLRI). The programme has been organised by the Divisional Soil Survey Scheme, Directorate of Agriculture Jammu, in collaboration with the Soil & Land Use Survey of India (SLUSI), New Delhi here at Baba Jitto Kisan Kendra, Talab Tillo.
The programme aims to equip 20 officers from the Soil Survey and Soil Testing wings of the Agriculture Department with advanced technical expertise in modern soil mapping methodologies. In his address, the Director highlighted the diverse agro-climatic conditions and soil types of the Jammu division.
He expressed confidence that the training would significantly enhance the technical capabilities of field officers, enabling them to adopt state-of-the-art tools and methodologies for effective soil resource assessment and management. The programme features sessions by distinguished professionals from SLUSI, New Delhi, including Dr. A.K. Yadav (SSO, SLUSI), Dr. Suman Saha (SLUSI), N.S. Gahalod (ASSO, SLUSI), and Mahendra Singh (ASSO, SLUSI, Noida).
The training will combine theoretical knowledge with practical demonstrations, covering varied aspects of geo-spatial applications in soil survey and mapping for sustainable agricultural planning. Earlier, Welcoming the experts and participants, Sh. Suresh Khajuria, DSSO Jammu, outlined the objectives of the training, emphasizing the critical role of geo-spatial techniques in achieving precision in soil survey and land-use planning.
The event witnessed the presence of key officials, including Satish Sharma, Joint Director (Extension/SLUB) Jammu (Nodal Officer, Project No. 19, HADP), Aman Jyoti, Agriculture Chemist Jammu, Alok Pandotra, Deputy Director Agriculture (Trainings) Jammu and Dharmesh Vaid, SMS-RL. The inaugural session was conducted by Rajeev Katoch, Programme Officer, JDAE.