Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal recently directed the agriculture department to draw a broad road map for setting up an Agricultural University in Barak Valley and a Horticultural University in hill areas.
Chairing a review meeting of the department here, Sonowal said an Agricultural University and a Horticultural University would boost agriculture and horticulture in the state besides uplifting socio-economic condition of the farmers of Barak Valley and hill district regions of the state.
The chief minister also asked the agriculture department to draw up a blueprint to enable students from other Northeastern states to study in these universities.
He asked the department to prepare Soil Health Cards to find out the areas afflicted with diseases caused by arsenic and fluoride by taking help of the Assam Agricultural University.
Sonowal also instructed the department to carry out quality tests for seed consignments sent from other states to Assam to assess their yielding capacity so that the beneficiary farmers do not get deprived of their benefits.
Sonowal also asked officials to set up e-marketing centres at every district in the state which will have facilities like cold-storage, mini-banking, etc.