Sardar Mir Akbar inaugurates field operation of 7th Digital Agriculture Census in Azad Kashmir

 Wednesday, January 1, 2025

Muzaffarabad (UrduPoint News Today/ Pakistan Point News - NNI. 01 January 2025) Minister for Agriculture and Livestock Sardar Mir Akbar Khan inaugurated the field operation of the Seventh Digital Agriculture Census 2024 in Azad Kashmir in collaboration with the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics. Director Pakistan Bureau of Statistics Muhammad Sohaib, while thanking the special guest of the inaugural ceremony, Minister for Agriculture and Livestock Sardar Mir Akbar Khan and other guests, gave a detailed briefing on the objectives of the Seventh Digital Agriculture Census, the scenario of agricultural commodities in Azad Kashmir, the digital tools used in the field operation of the Seventh Digital Agriculture Census, GIS technology and monitoring dashboard.

Addressing the inaugural ceremony, Minister for Agriculture and Livestock Sardar Mir Akbar Khan said that accurate data is the basis for the development of any sector.

Accurate data on agricultural commodities and livestock help the government in better planning. We are hopeful that the 7th Digital Agricultural Census will provide the latest and accurate information required to strengthen the agriculture sector in Azad Kashmir and will be helpful in making plans for the betterment of the economy.

There is immense potential in agriculture and livestock in Azad Kashmir, and plans are being made to increase local production. To attract the public towards increasing the production of agricultural and livestock commodities, we are considering banning construction on agricultural lands along with appropriate legislation. Minister for Agriculture and Livestock Sardar Mir Akbar Khan said that by the grace of Allah Almighty, the pace of development in Azad Kashmir has been satisfactory and Kashmir has played a very important role in the development of Pakistan, in which our civil servants have also provided full support.

Inaugural Ceremony, Secretary Agriculture and Livestock Chaudhry Imtiaz highlighted the importance of agricultural census for empowering farmers and sustainable agricultural development in Azad Kashmir and said that the data obtained from agricultural census will play an important role in formulating effective policies to strengthen the agricultural sector of Azad Jammu and Kashmir. He said that questions are being raised on the legitimacy of the Azad Kashmir government on the basis of misunderstanding and malice.

Our ancestors, after a long struggle, have given us a system and identity, which it is our responsibility to protect. Commissioner Muzaffarabad Division Masood-ur-Rehman, while addressing the inaugural ceremony, said that just as we successfully completed the semi-population census, we will also successfully complete the 7th agricultural census. We need to increase local production and move towards self-reliance by utilizing our resources.

Technical assistance will be provided in the field operation of the 7th digital agricultural census. In order to make the 7th digital agricultural census successful in Azad Kashmir, 297 enumerators and supervisors have been trained under the auspices of the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics, who will collect the necessary data digitally from January 01 to February 10, 2025. The results of the agricultural census will be compiled by August 2025. The inauguration ceremony was attended by Director Information Raja Amjad Hussain Minhas, Director Parks Malik Muhammad Aamir, Director Agriculture Extension Department Ms. Amna Rafi, Director Agriculture Research Department Zafar Jahangir, officers of Pakistan Institute of Statistics, officers of the Agriculture Department, enumerators, women and others.