Pampore

With an aim to boost saffron cultivation in the valley, the district administration organised a training cum awareness program in Pampore on Sunday.

The event was organized by the advanced research station or saffron and seed spices SKUAST Pampore and sponsored by the National Bank of Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD).

The famous spice has been extracted from the region for decades.

"Kashmir saffron is famous across the world due to its best quality and always getting a tremendous response on the national and international market. So that's why the government is trying hard to improve the quality and quantity of this world's most expensive species," said Professor Dil Mohamad Makhdoomi.

The organisers also distributed saffron seed bulbs along with special trays among growers free of cost.

"This is the first initiative taken by the government in the shape of organizing this wonderful training cum awareness program aimed to produce saffron indoors also," said Irshad Ahmad Dar a Saffron grower.

During this special training cum awareness program a good number of progressive saffron growers were present and they hailed the organisers for the training in indoor saffron cultivation.

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Pampore area, which is famed for its saffron production is an attractive destination for tourists who flock to the place during the bloom period when the fields look picturesque due to the maroon, yellow and purple hues of the saffron flowers.