Nimbudera, July 26: Skill development training on Nursery Management and Propagation of Horticultural Crops was organized from 22 to 26 July, 2024 by ICAR-KVK Nimbudera, North & Middle Andaman under 100-days Action Plan with an objective to provide hands-on training of various propagation techniques in horticultural crops for rural youths. The program was inaugurated by Shri Shankar Mondal, Zila Parishad member, along with the Pradhan/Up-Pradhan, Shri Manojit Halder of Hari Nagar, Shri Debabrata Das of Swadesh Nagar and Shri Bibhuti Ranjan Biswas of Basantipur Gram Panchayat respectively.
At the outset Dr. V. Damodaran, Senior Scientist & Head of ICAR-KVK Nimbudera welcomed the guests and trainees and highlighted the objective of the training and reiterated about scope and importance of setting up nursery units which can be a transformative step towards self-employment opportunities for rural youth. Further he emphasized that, by establishing nursery units youth entrepreneurs can create a successful business model which not only ensures their financial independence apart from meeting the increasing demand for quality planting materials but also contributes to the agricultural development of the region.
Shri Shankar Mondal in his inaugural address emphasized the role of post-harvest processing and value addition in enhancing income avenues for rural youth. He also motivated self-help groups (SHGs) to actively take a lead role in a number of activities such as food processing, packaging and marketing of value-added products not only for income generation but also open a way for employment generation and overall economic development of the region. He also asked the youths to take the benefits of such skill training organized from time to time for setting up new enterprise.
The Pradhans of three Gram Panchayats collectively emphasized the critical need of farmers/farm women and rural youths to collaborate closely with Agricultural institutions such as CIARI, KVKs, ATMA and the line departments of Agriculture, AHVS and Fisheries etc. to get latest know how. Further, they stressed such coordination is essential to achieve sustainable development through adoption of latest agricultural practices and ensure long-term prosperity among the farming community. This collaboration will provide farmers a platform to access latest research, resources, and technical support etc.
Later in the technical sessions, resource persons namely Shri. Daniel Thomas and Shri. Duryodhan Rao from the Agriculture Department highlighted the importance of quality planting materials in horticultural development focusing on their role in enhancing productivity and sustainability. Further, Shri Tonmoy Kumar Halder SBI official, Billiground discussed about the Kisan Credit Card (KCC), as well as government schemes like Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY), Pradhan Mantri Jeevan Jyoti Bima Yojana (PMJJY) and Pradhan Mantri Suraksha Bima Yojana (PMSBY). Shri Yatharth Sharma, SMS (Home Science) dealt with various types of potting media and also demonstrated the preparation of potting media for nurseries. Shri Subam Debroy, SMS (Aquaculture) briefed about the essential tools and equipment required for nursery management. Shri Rakesh Dawar, SMS (Agronomy) provided valuable insights into the critical aspects of site selection and establishment of nursery and the utilization of organic wastes in nursery management.
During the hands-on training different propagation techniques such as air layering, grafting, budding, and cutting were imparted and the trainees were well acquainted with the skills by learning by doing. The programme was organized under the overall guidance of Dr. Eaknath. B. Chakurkar, Director, ICAR- CIARI, Port Blair. About 39 rural youths including members of the Self-Help Groups namely Akriti, Khushi, Meet, and Astha participated and benefited from the training.