Display of modern agricultural equipment, fertilizers and pesticides, tractors, horticultural crops and vegetable seeds, and workshops on water management, soil-less agriculture, poultry farming, bee-keeping, drip irrigation, solar technology and food processing would form the highlights of a two-day Agri Expo to be organised at the VIT University campus here on August 22 and 23.
Briefing newspersons about the Agri Expo, G. Viswanathan, VIT Chancellor, said that while about 55% of the India’s population is dependent on agriculture, the contribution of agriculture to the GDP (gross domestic product) of the country has gone down from 25% to 16%.
Agriculture has declined owing to various problems such as failure of monsoon and labour shortage. Under these circumstances, the two-day event is aimed at educating the farmers of Vellore and Tiruvannamalai districts about the modern technology that is available for undertaking various operations like sowing and harvesting, which would go a long way in addressing the problem of labour shortage.
The workshop would explain to them the water management technology which would help them tide over water scarcity.
The Agri Expo is being organised by the Centre for Sustainable Rural Development and Research Education (CSRD & RE) of the VIT University in association with the Tamil Nadu Agricultural University and the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development.
M. Pandiyan, Professor and Head, TNAU Research Station, Virinjipuram, Vellore, said the VIT has arranged for buses to bring the farmers from all the block headquarters in Vellore and Tiruvannamalai districts.
Tamil Maran, Project Director, CSRD & RE said that Manmohan Singh, a Punjab farmer, who has converted 800 acres of fallow land into cultivable land in Ramanathapuram district through modern technology would be making a presentation on Saturday morning.
The Agri Expo would be inaugurated by Rajesh Lakhani, Agriculture Secretary, Tamil Nadu Government. The expo would be held from 10.30 a.m. to 5.30 p.m. on Saturday, and from 9.30 a.m. to 5.30 p.m. on Sunday.
Source : The Hindu
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