In Chandarhama village of Baramullah, Hilal Ahmad Yatoo, a young farmer, is known for his best sheep germplasm management practices and supplies quality breeders to hundreds of sheep farmer
His passion for quality sheep farming is also reflected in the housing management he has opted for, for his flock. The barn where he keeps his sheep is much different from an average barn in Kashmir. Whether it is about feeding his sheep or keeping the barn clean to avoid his sheep soiling their bodies with their waste, there is arrangement for everything.
Yatoo and his younger brother, Showkat, have made use of internet to download designs of wooden mangers from which the sheep eat. To ensure that their sheep stay clean, they have made proper arrangements in the barn.
What has particularly made Yatoo a name in sheep farming is the way he maintains the quality sheep germplasm (of Kashmir Marino). He, along with his brother, work very hard and take meticulous care of their ewes when they are at the breeding stage.
Yatoo said that he sells around 20 to 30 sheep every year, which include both ewes and rams (for breeding). Hilal Ahmad Malik of the SKUAST, who looks after the sheep farm of the university said that Yatoo is the first farmer which they think of whenever they need ewes and rams for the farm.
“He is the star farmer when it comes to sheep farming. We have met many progressive sheep farmers and seen their flocks, but there is hardly anyone whose quality of sheep is as good as Hilal Yatoo’s,” Malik said and added that Yatoo’s work as a sheep farmer was also acknowledged at the national level early this year when he was given the Innovative Farmer Award by Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR).
Many other farmer are following his footsteps. He is an inspiration for the youth of Kashmir who are looking for making career in the same field.
