'Practice farming as part of the social system'

A Correspondent

Shillong, April 4: The Director of the Indian Council for Agricultural Research (ICAR) Dr S V Ngachan said that in order to progress in agriculture one has to practice farming as part of the social system.

 “Then only we can have progress in agriculture,” Dr Ngachan said. He was iugurating the Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK) held at Umiam, Ri Bhoi recently.  

He also advised the farmers that the need of the hour is not only to produce but also to sell the products at the right price, which they can achieve by developing their entrepreneurship skills.

Dr Ngachan also emphasized that farmers should work on organic farming which will help in keeping the soil fertility for future generations to come.

S Kharrngi, a progressive farmer from Mawtnum village in Ri-Bhoi district thanked the KVK for their constant support to the farming community in the district.

Kharrngi also shared his recent experience at Gandhi gar (Gujarat) and expressed that the farmers of this region are lagging far behind in comparison to the farmers of the other parts of the country.

In this connection, he has appealed to his farmer friends to take help from KVK and ICAR in order to progress in agriculture.

Dr AK Tripathi, in-charge Zol Project Director, Zone III, informed about the new initiatives taken by the central government for the welfare of the farmers.

According to Tripathi, these programmes help the farmers to update their knowledge.

The Zol Project Director also expressed that the mobile phone technology should be used by different farmers in spreading modern and latest knowledge in farming. Meanwhile, Programme Coorditor in-Charge Dr SK Baishya explained to the farmers about the purpose of organising such a programme.

After the iugural programme, a farmer-scientist interaction programme was organized. The farmers keenly participated raising their various problems related to disease, pest-infection, bee keeping vaccition in animal rearing etc.

The farmers also enjoyed an agriculture quiz organized on the occasion. The winners were awarded with prize money.

About 150 farmers from Ri-Bhoi district participated in the fair and displayed their individual products which were later sold.

The motive behind the programme was to motivate the farmers to adopt the different modern technologies of farming.