Minister Joshi participates in Webinar on Promoting Walnuts, Almonds & Pine Nuts

my uttarakhand news Bureau
Dehradun, 6 Mar: Agriculture Minister Ganesh Joshi participated virtually on Friday in a post-budget webinar chaired by PM Narendra Modi, from the Government Horticulture Circuit House in Dehradun. The webinar focused on promoting the production of nut crops such as walnuts, almonds, and pine nuts.
On this occasion, Agriculture Minister Ganesh Joshi expressed gratitude to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Shivraj Singh Chouhan. He said that, under their guidance, simple and effective policies are being implemented to increase farmers’ income and strengthen the horticulture sector. He added that the Central Government’s announcement to promote walnuts, almonds, and pine nuts for the financial year 2026–27 would prove highly beneficial for farmers.
Minister Joshi said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi is equally concerned about farmers as he is about soldiers guarding the nation’s borders. He also thanked the Chief Minister, Pushkar Singh Dhami, stating that under his leadership the state is progressing toward all-round development. Several important schemes are being implemented in Uttarakhand for the development of horticulture, including ultra-high-density apple orcharding, the Uttarakhand Kiwi Policy, dragon fruit farming, post-harvest management of apples, the beekeeping policy, and the advanced apple nursery development scheme.
He added that, currently, walnuts are cultivated on about 5,642 hectares in Uttarakhand, producing approximately 8,995 metric tonnes. He noted that the geographical conditions of the state are highly suitable for the cultivation of walnuts and almonds, and these crops are less affected by wild animals, increasing the likelihood of better returns for farmers.
The Agriculture Minister directed officials to promote walnut cultivation through a cluster-based model and to encourage the production of almonds and other nut crops. He also emphasised promoting high-yielding improved varieties that provide greater production in less time.
He further stated that state nurseries currently have 42,699 walnut plants and 630 almond plants available. Efforts are being made to strengthen government orchards and nurseries to ensure the availability of quality fruit plants to farmers according to demand.
During the meeting, Minister Joshi also instructed departmental officials to resolve discrepancies in the recruitment process of 415 gardeners through outsourcing for strengthening state orchards and nurseries, and to complete the recruitment process at the earliest.
On this occasion, Director, Horticulture, Sunder Lal Semwal, Horticulture Mission Director Mahendra Pal, Ratan Kumar, and a large number of farmers were also present.