Jammu, Aug 21 (JKNS): Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha on Friday called upon the youth of Jammu & Kashmir to turn local agricultural challenges into opportunities for innovation and entrepreneurship, asserting that the region’s path towards self-reliance lies in creating a new generation of job creators, innovators and technology-driven entrepreneurs.
LG Sinha as per news agency JKNS, inaugurated a series of new infrastructure facilities at the Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology (SKUAST), Jammu. He also addressed the launch of the Startup Outreach Programme under JKCIP.
The event brought together the researchers, innovators, young entrepreneurs and farmers from across the Jammu division.
The newly inaugurated facilities include the Unnati Girls Hostel, Centre for AI and ML in Agriculture, the Centre for Mushroom Research and Innovation, the Advanced Sericulture Laboratory, and the Centre for Digital Media and Publication.
Speaking on the occasion, the Lieutenant Governor described the additions as more than physical infrastructure, calling them a commitment to the region’s innovators, entrepreneurs, researchers and farming families.
The Lieutenant Governor drew attention to global examples of technology-driven agriculture, from a dairy innovation hub in the Netherlands that brings together scientists, companies and farmers on AI-based nutrition and animal health solutions, to Israel’s integration of data and smart management across agriculture and dairy, New Zealand’s digital push in animal husbandry, and a Brazilian irrigation startup that turned a farmer’s everyday problem into a scalable solution. The message from these examples, the Lieutenant Governor said, is that agriculture and allied sectors represent the next major frontier for innovation worldwide.
At the same time, the Lieutenant Governor cautioned the youth of Jammu Kashmir against simply replicating foreign models, urging them instead to study their own fields, farmers, climate and local challenges, and to build solutions suited to the region’s specific needs.
“Today, there are startups worldwide continuously exploring new possibilities in agriculture and allied sectors. The biggest message from these startups and new innovations is that agriculture and allied sectors themselves are the next big frontier for innovation.
You must understand your own fields, farmers, climate, and local problems to prepare your next solution, and customize those models in your own way wherever appropriate. I believe that different countries have innovated for their own problems, and now it is time for Jammu Kashmir to innovate for its own questions and challenges,” the Lieutenant Governor said.
The Lieutenant Governor also highlighted India’s changing employment aspirations and observed that today’s youth in Jammu Kashmir are increasingly looking to create jobs rather than wait in line for them. He said such shift in aspiration is central to the vision of a Self-Reliant Jammu Kashmir.
“I want to tell all students that your degree is not your destination; rather, it is like a runway for your flight of success. SKUAST-Jammu will give you knowledge, but your curiosity will give you new thoughts and ideas. Your courage will turn that idea into a startup, and if you continue to advance that startup with patience, honesty, and consistent hard work, one day that same startup will provide employment and dignity to someone who today is sitting exactly where you are. That is why I often say that the truest …
