From a Correspondent
JORHAT, Dec 23: Commemorating the birth anniversary of former Prime Ministers Atal Bihari Vajpayee and Choudhury Charan Singh, the ICAR (Indian Council of Agricultural Research) is organizing ‘Jai Kishan Jai Vigyan’ Week keeping in view both the Prime Ministers’ immense contribution for promoting the use of science for the welfare of farmers.
The Assam Agricultural University (AAU), Jorhat, through its Krishi Vigyan Kendra has organized a week-long agricultural awareness programme at Balijaan Shyam Village in Titabor in Jorhat district which is a model village under the Sansad Adarsh Gram Yoja (SAGY) launched by Prime Minister rendra Modi on October, 2014. Notably, the model village has been adopted by the Member Parliament (MP) of Jorhat Constituency, Kamakhya Prashad Tasa.
Accordingly, the Vice Chancellor of AAU formally iugurated the awareness programme aimed at demonstrating new technologies for enhancing agriculture productivity and profitability. Progressive farmers who have successfully adopted latest technologies and have made contribution in their wide-scale adoption are also likely to be honoured during the programme.
Speaking on the occasion, AAU VC Dr KM Bujarbaruah said, “Just stepping in this model village and after seeing the surrounding agricultural atmosphere prevalent here, I strongly feel that the project ‘Jai Kishan Jai Vigyan’ will be a great success here. At the very onset I would like to thank MP Kamakhya Prashad Tasa for selecting Balijaan Shyam Village as a model village. Now coming to the point, I would like to reiterate that a model village does not only mean being agriculturally rich but must also include health aspect, sanitary, education and agriculture. The use of new technology and internet connectivity which play a pivotal role in the development of such villages will together make the real model village. We at AAU are particularly concerned about agriculture and how to connect with people in defining to the common people how agriculture too can be a role model of economic sustaibility and self reliance.”
“Agriculture’s existence is before mankind and then came science and since science has a greater role in improving agriculture leading to productivity and profitability, the main reason why we human beings are still a part of this planet. Without food, civilizations would have been wiped out. After Independence in 1947, India’s condition regarding food was at a negligible state and had to rely on food supplied by America and sent through ships. People in UK used to comment about what India could achieve after Independence as it was a beggar’s country. We could produce only 5 million tonnes of food grain for a population of 35 million in between 1947 to 1951-52. Today India’s population is more than a 112 million and we produce about 28 million tonnes of food grains. Whereas the land has remained same but the use of science extensively in agriculture has led to an increase in production. Had we been following the same conventiol methods of farming, we would have starved to death keep aside the growth of new generations,” he added.
Vice-Chancellor Bujarbaruah further said, “Today we feel the need to induct more and more of science into agriculture because India’s agricultural lands are not increasing (14 million hectares, 1950 – 2015) rather decreasing with the establishment of different industries and to accommodate the rising population. Today emphasis is on soil-less agriculture, vertical extension cultivation, multiple cropping and green house productions, thus utilizing small patch for more production. And hence science and the farming community need to come together to not only maintain food production but do business worldwide. And that is why such villages have been adopted as model villages and as such we have a dedicated team of scientists and it is up to the people how they utilize this resource. We will link this village with AAU’s information kiosk and also set up a centre here. I will persolly ask MP Kamakhya Prashad Tasa to further provide funds for setting such an information-based centre which will then make this village as the sole role model village.”