Farming initiatives suffer for want of KAU regional centre :

Kozhikode is home to a large of number of farmers’ collectives and organic farming enthusiasts. The Kerala Agricultural University (KAU), however, has only a lowly information-cum-sales centre in the district despite long-pending demand by various farming communities to set up at least a regional research centre here.

This is in stark contrast to other districts such as Thrissur, which has as many as 60 institutions, including major research centres, and Thiruvananthapuram that flaunts a dozen of them in different parts of the district. The only centre in Kozhikode functions at a small rented facility at Vellimadukunnu here. It neither has sufficient storage space for diverse products developed and disbursed by the university nor even a proper nursery to display saplings and other planting materials.

This is when there is an ever increasing demand from farmers for products, including high-yielding seeds and organic pest controls and fertilizers. The centre puts up for sale seeds, saplings and pest control devices brought from various KAU research centres.

“We are sold out in just a few days of bringing them and we are unable to stock up enough for want of space,” says a staff member of the centre. “We are unable to meet even half of our demand,” he says.

Kozhikode should have had an agriculture research and training centre under the university at least 25 years ago, says P. Rajendran, Associate Director of Research at the KAU Regional Agriculture Research Station (RARS) at Ambalavayal in Wayanad. “I would only blame the people of Kozhikode for this, because they should have pressed for it through their political leadership,” said Dr. Rajendran.

According to him, at least a facilitation centre with enough storage space and a training centre should have come up in the district by now. The production of a number of items, including value- added products from vegetables are in excess at the Anakkayam and Ambalavayal regional centres. “At least a better sales centre in Kozhikode would have scripted a different story for KAU,” says Dr. Rajendran.

According to Corporation councillor P. Kishanchand, who had brought the issue to the council’s notice earlier, a meeting attended by the Agriculture Minister and the university Vice Chancellor had earlier decided to hand over five acres of land under the Agriculture Department at Vengeri in Kozhikode for the centre. “But nothing happened after that,” said the councillor.

Source : The Hindu