Dr K. Tejeswar Rao, the project's principal scientist and co-principal investigator, highlighted the potential of value addition in farming systems
Visakhapatnam: The District Agricultural Advisory and Transfer of Technology Centre (DAATTC), Paderu, on Saturday hosted a training programme to build capacity of extension officers in ASR district. The event, a pilot project on crop diversification, was funded by the Union ministry of agriculture and farmers welfare through the AICRP on Integrated Farming Systems.
Dr B. Sahadeva Reddy, the project's principal investigator, explained that crop diversification is a sustainable strategy involving farming of various crops to improve resilience of land to climatic changes, enhance soil health, mitigate risks, and increase farmers' incomes.
Diversification offers numerous ecological and economic benefits by moving from monoculture practices to a mix of crops and integrated farming systems.
In his inaugural address, Dr A. Appa Swamy, associate director of research for the high altitude and tribal zone at Chinthapalli, emphasised the importance of promoting floriculture, groundnut, chickpea, medicinal crops, Rajmash, and Niger. These crops can serve as alternatives to ganja cultivation which remains a concern in the region. He stressed the role of such initiatives in driving socio-economic transformation in tribal areas.
Dr K. Tejeswar Rao, the project's principal scientist and co-principal investigator, highlighted the potential of value addition in farming systems. He explained how transforming raw agricultural produce into finished or semi-finished products could significantly boost farmers' incomes while creating additional employment opportunities.
