Bhubaneswar: The State Level Research and Extension Council (SLREC) Meeting, 2018 of the Orissa University of Agriculture and Technology (OUAT) was inaugurated Thursday at MS Swaminathan Hall of the university with a call for development of suitable pulses varieties for draught, disease and cold tolerance.
Addressing the gathering, chief guest Saurav Garg, Principal Secretary, Department of Agriculture, Farmers’ Empowerment, Government of Odisha, stressed upon strengthening the research-extension linkage involving six line departments. These are: Agriculture, Fisheries and Animal Resource Development, Cooperation, Water Resources, Food Supply and Consumer Welfare, and Panchayati Raj. He urged upon OUAT to take necessary research activity for development of suitable pulses varieties for draught, disease and cold tolerance.
Surendranath Pasupalak, Vice-Chancellor of OUAT, elaborated the reforms that were brought in to strengthen research activities of the university through a multi-tier consultation process. Taking farmers feedback as the basis of technology generation, consideration of technology application and profitability as the major assessment parameter are the focus of reforming the process. The research is on system approach mode and collaboration of agricultural research with other sciences like space research, sensor based technologies etc. carries a lot of importance and would make the agri technologies more specific and need based, he said
He said, OUAT is going to develop Centre of Excellence in market intelligence research, first of its kind in Eastern India. In future, he said, OUAT would focus on strengthening basic science research to be an input for other applied research activities. OUAT will concentrate on redesigning location specific, cost effective and modular poly net houses. The development of seedless cucumber and tomato varieties with high colour content is also on the agenda, he added.
PK Roul, Dean, Extension Education, presented the highlights of extension activities of the university. The 31 Krishi Vigyan Kendras operating under OUAT covering 28 districts have taken several interventions in the areas of technology assessment, refinement & demonstrations; doubling farmers income; skilling agriculture manpower; strengthening RE linkage; providing technological support to potential agripreneurs; pulse seed production through seed hub in 6 KVKs; cluster front line demonstration on oil seed and pulses; seed and plant material production; undertaking flagship programme like Farmer FIRST, NICRA, ARYA, TSP etc., and promoting group-led extension through formation of Farmers Producer Organisation, he said.
During 2017-18, KVK Baragarh has bagged 2nd prize in Swachhata Pakhwada Award of ICAR and KVK Bhadrak has received the prestigious Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Award being the best Krishi Vigyan Kendra in ICAR Zone-V comprising Odisha, West Bengal and Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
