Srinagar, Oct 18: National Conference (NC) Vice President Omar Abdullah on Tuesday presided over a meeting of party functionaries on addressing the challenges faced by the horticulture sector in Kashmir.

Sharing their ground assessment of the crisis-like situation with Vice President, the functionaries as per a statement said that the Horticulture sector is in desperate need of help as a result of the transportation crisis, low pricing, other allied issues that have endangered the livelihood of lakhs of people who are directly and indirectly part of this industry.

Issues like fetching of poor prices, sale of sub-standard pesticides and fertilizers, high GST rates on pesticides and packaging, cold storages, fruit imports, undue road blockages were discussed during the breadth of the meeting.

The functionaries also expressed concern over the absence of adequate measures by the incumbent government to ensure hassle free movement of fruit laden trucks on national highways.

Later, Omar Abdullah presided over the block working committee meeting of the Sopore Constituency at the party headquarters Nawa-e-Subha, Srinagar.

The meeting was marked by the threadbare discussions on organisational issues, and prevailing political situation in the constituency. The block committee members also raised a plethora of other issues concerning the people in the constituency.

Issues like unemployment, farm distress, plight of horticulture sector, development deficit and administrative inertia were also marked up in the meeting by the individual block committee members.

Exhorting the functionaries to reach out to people, Omar said, “Our cadre has an added responsibility to give every single person in the constituency an understanding of the underway machinations of the BJP and it’s local A and B teams. The powers that are pitted against NC are so insecure about the support from genuine voters that they have to import temporary voters to win seats. Even the last man residing in the upper reaches of Sopore and elsewhere has to be told how BJP and its cronies are trying to bring in demographic and cultural changes in J&K by bringing imported voters. Our workers have to guide people about the process of voter registration as well. It is for people to stop them, no one else can. If people come out and register as voters and subsequently vote in huge numbers, there is nothing that can touch our unique identity. But if all of us chose to stay in our homes, there is nothing that can save us,” he said.