SRINAGAR: Positioning itself at the forefront of regional policy innovation and ecological governance, Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology of Kashmir (SKUAST-K) took centre stage on Monday as Chief Minister Omar Abdullah inaugurated the 13th Sustainable Mountain Development Summit (SMDS) alongside the Jammu Kashmir Agriculture Science Congress 2026 at the university’s Shalimar Campus.
The three-day national convention (October 12–14), jointly organized by SKUAST-K in collaboration with the Integrated Mountain Initiative (IMI) and the J&K Science, Technology and Innovation Council (JKSTIC), has drawn top policymakers, domain scientists, and delegates from across 11 Himalayan states. Deliberations are centered around the university’s pioneering draft Sustainable Mountain Development Policy (JK-SMDP 2026)—the country’s first state-specific mountain framework, which experts from northeastern Himalayan states have already expressed keen interest in adapting as a template for their respective regions.
Declaring the summit open, Chief Minister Omar Abdullah commended SKUAST-K for steering this vital policy initiative and called for an actionable, realistic roadmap that strikes an equitable balance between environmental preservation and community livelihoods.
“We cannot stop global warming on our own, but we can certainly take better care of our own environment,” the Chief Minister said, citing erratic snowfall, receding glaciers such as Thajiwas near Sonamarg, and recurring flash floods as warnings of an intensifying climate crisis. Referring to recent disasters in Nepal, he urged the gathering to ensure science moves beyond conference halls into tangible statecraft: “Jammu and Kashmir aspires to become the first Himalayan territory to have its own dedicated mountain policy, and my government is keen to take this forward. However, those recommendations must be grounded in reality—balancing ecological sustainability with everyday economic survival.”
The Chief Minister highlighted that agriculture and horticulture – not tourism alone – form the actual backbone of J&K’s economy, underscoring that environmental resilience is directly linked to food security and rural prosperity. He advocated for a coordinated approach to hill infrastructure: mandating scientific slope-stabilization standards during road construction to prevent recurrent landslides, planned vertical expansion to preserve scarce land, and developing new carrying-capacity-backed tourist destinations equipped with upfront waste and sewage infrastructure rather than abruptly curtailing livelihoods at high-pressure sites like Gulmarg, Pahalgam, and Sonamarg.
Delivering the institutional vision, Vice Chancellor SKUAST-K, Prof. Nazir Ahmad Ganai, outlined the university’s 11-point policy architecture designed to transition mountain governance into an enforceable model. The proposed framework prioritizes carrying-capacity-based visitor management, automated hazard early warning networks, mandatory clean-in-place and zero-waste systems, clean mobility transitions via green gateways, and close inter-departmental convergence anchored by scientific data.
Emphasizing the campus-to-governance synergy, Ms. Mandeep Kaur (IAS), Commissioner Secretary, Housing and Urban Development Department, pushed for deeper institutional collaboration between her department and SKUAST-K to integrate climate risk assessments into hill-town master planning and seismic-resilient urban development. Minister for Agriculture Production, Shri Javid Ahmad Dar, stressed the need for climate-resilient farming models to insulate rural livelihoods against environmental shocks, while Advisor to the Chief Minister, Nasir Aslam Wani, urged immediate checks on unregulated resource exploitation.
The inaugural session also featured strategic perspectives from IMI leadership, including President Dr. S.T.S. Lepcha, former MP and former President P.D. Rai, and Lead Strategist Dr. Rajan Kotru, who emphasized regional pride, inclusive green economies, and cross-Himalayan solidarity.
The opening proceedings witnessed the formal release of several landmark summit publications and the screening of Himalayan Voice, a documentary jointly produced by SKUAST-K and IMI. Earlier, Prof. Khursheed A. Dar, Organising Secretary of the Congress, delivered the formal welcome address, while Prof. A.H. Mughal, Dean, Faculty of Forestry and Organising Secretary of the Summit, presented the concluding vote of thanks.
Over the next two days, parallel technical tracks across twelve thematic verticals will deliberate on climate-smart agriculture, digital farm innovations, the bio-economy, and the draft mountain policy. The summit is set to culminate in the adoption of the historic Shalimar Declaration, consolidating SKUAST-K’s pivotal role as the primary knowledge anchor guiding the Himalayan arc toward a sustainable and resilient future.
