More than 2,800 farmers, including 1,000 women farmers from UP, Bihar, Jharkhand, Uttarakhand, Madhya and Pradesh, participated in the second day of the regional agriculture fair being held at the Indian Institute of Vegetables (IIVR) in Varanasi. Participated in technical sessions.
Keen to expand their knowledge, farmers attended lectures and stalls to learn about the machinery, technology and products featured at the event. IIVR Director Dr. Tushar Kanti Behera reiterated the institute's unwavering commitment to work in the best interests of farmers.
In the first session on 'Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Microbial Technology', Dr. US Gautam, Deputy Director General, Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) Krishi Prasar, spoke about the ongoing efforts to increase agricultural production in the country. He emphasized his efforts. He emphasized the importance of transferring these techniques directly to farmers and praised regional farmer fairs as an effective means to achieve this goal.
Dr. Gautam also shared insights on the Government of India's AARYA (Attracting Rural Youth in Agriculture) scheme, which aims to attract rural youth into the agriculture sector while staying in rural areas. He referred to the Prime Minister's target of creating 15,000 drone didis and said extensive training was underway to empower women through this initiative.
The first session delved into the importance of using microorganisms in agriculture for sustainable farming practices. Dr. Sudarshan Maurya provided detailed information on mushroom production and women farmer groups from Jaunpur, Ranchi and Dhanbad actively participated in technical training.
The second session “Latest Research and Future Challenges in Horticultural Crops” was chaired by Dr. Anand Kumar Singh, Vice Chancellor of Chandrashekhar Azad Agricultural University, Kanpur, who emphasized agriculture as the basis for rural self-reliance. . Dr. Tushar Kanti Behera, Director, spoke about fostering entrepreneurship through vegetable cultivation, while Dr. Sudhakar Pandey, Deputy Director General, Indian Council of Agricultural Research, spoke about the nutritional potential of vegetables to enhance human health. emphasized. The session, led by agricultural experts and coordinated by IIVR scientist Atmanand Tripathi, also featured discussions on fruit and flower production and its export.
