Port Blair, Jan 5: ICAR-KVK, CIARI, Port Blair organized training on organic vegetable production on 04.01.2023 at Chouldhari Panchayat. Dr. Y Ramakrishna, Principal Scientist and Head briefed on the negative impacts of indiscriminate use of agro-chemicals in farming systems, which create bad effects on soil diversity, depletion of soil organic matter, physiological disturbance, poor water use efficiency, and contamination of soil, food and water bodies in our fragile ecosystem.

Dr. N.Bommayasamy, SMS (Agro./Agrl. Extn.) emphasised on the significance of organic farming and its long-term fertility of soil by maintaining organic carbon levels, ways of enhancing soil biological activities, achieving nitrogen self-sufficiency through intercropping of legumenous vegetables, biological nitrogen fixation and effectively utilising cow urine and cow dung for the preparation of liquid organic manure and supplementary nutrients through the use of bio-fertilizers.

Dr. B.K. Nanda, SMS (Agrl.Engg.), and Dr. Pooja Kapoor, SMS (Home Science) also spoke on efficient water management methods in post-rainy season vegetables, as well as the value of vegetable consumption in daily life.

As part of the programme, fifteen farmers and farm women from NICRA adopted villages received vegetable seeds, including tomato (Arka samrat, Arka Rakshak), chilli (Arka tejasri, Arka Kyatiri), French bean (Arka Komal, Arka Sharath), bottle gourd (Co-1), long yard bean (Arka Mangala), and cucumber (Arka Veera).