India cultivates agriculture education

Arkadev Ghoshal

THE CHASM in the field of agricultural education is set to get a much-needed fillip, thanks to the United States Agency for International Development (USAIN)-funded project Agriculture Innovation Partnership (AIP), which is currently working on developing curricula with six Indian universities for courses pertaining to agriculture and farming to be offered across the country.

AIP’s current focus is on the Indo-Gangetic plain, where it is in the process of researching processes and developing projects to increase the yield of food grains. And while US land-grant institutions such as the Cornell University and University of Illinois collaborate with the likes of Banaras Hindu University and the Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel University of Agriculture and Technology, efforts are also afoot on part of government bodies like the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) to provide infrastructure and support for the initiative.

Speaking on Monday, University of Illinois professor Prasanta Kalita said, “Our main focus is how the students learn better. We want the students to be ready, at the end of their degree, diploma or other courses, to go to the field and start solving practical problems.”

So what exactly will the curricula consist of? Apparently, it won’t have just agricultural lessons in it, but societal ones as well! “In India, quite a large share of the farming work is done by women. Our attempt will be to bring into focus pertinent women’s issues, and ask questions like: Are the current agriculture tools, like tractors, for example, suited for women?” explained Suresh D, General Manager of the Sathguru Management Consultants Pvt Ltd, one of the partners of AIP.

Another problem whose solution will make its way to the curricula will be post-harvest loss. “Farmers lose as much as a third of their crop while transporting it from the fields to the buyers,” informed Robert Hauser, Dean of the College of Agriculture, University of Illinois.

“Our aim will be to see what can be done with the help of education and technology to generate more food produce to feed the most populous country of the future,” he added.

ICAR is also looking to ramp up spending on building better libraries at the state agricultural universities (SAUs).

“As of now, the government is spending Rs 200 crore annually to help SAUs stock their libraries. As per the 12th Five-Year Plan, this spending is expected to more than double,” said C Ramasamy, AIP’s National Project Coordinator.

Original Article here