Punjab Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh on Tuesday asked his officials to include State’s progressive farmers in the proposed delegation to be headed to Israel in September.
The decision came after the Israeli envoy to India Daniel Carmon invited the Chief Minister to visit his country in September to take forward their discussion on cooperation across a wide range of subjects, including defence, agriculture, horticulture and water conservation.
As the two sides explored enhanced cooperation in several areas that are critical for the development and progress of Punjab, Chief Minister suggested that his delegation to Israel could include some progressive farmers.
The Israeli delegation said that they looked forward to the Chief Minister’s visit, which could follow the Prime Minister’s visit to their country, and offered to prepare a tailor-made agenda to ensure a continued meaningful dialogue.
The delegation invited the Chief Minister to coincide his visit with WATEC Israel - an international professional exhibition to be held in Tel Aviv from September 12-14 - which would offer a platform to showcase latest technologies in water and environment.
While defence is on top priority for cooperation between Israel and Punjab, the Chief Minister is also keen to use Israeli expertise to promote horticulture, dairy farming, bee-keeping, irrigation and water conservation in the state.
Expressing concern over the depleting water table, Capt Amarinder sought Israeli support in helping farmers adopt innovative techniques in drip irrigation and hydroponics to tackle the water problem.
Official spokesperson said that besides working on a strategic partnership on water conservation and agriculture, the two sides also decided to set up a joint working group on agriculture, horticulture and dairy farming.
This was the second meeting between Capt Amarinder and the Israeli envoy since the former took over as Punjab Chief Minister.