In order to motivate and attract youth in agriculture, ICAR is holding a two day conference in which several prominent rural experts are participating. Speaking on the occasion, Dr MS Swaminathan, the father of green revolution in the country said that youth can prove be a game-changer for rural areas.
Dr MS Swaminathan addressed online and said that youth have potential to revolutionize agriculture in India. Earlier, Swaminathan has hailed the Modi govt for bringing in several pro-farmer reforms.
Dr. Trilochan Mohapatra, Director General of ICAR inaugurated the two-day conference at NASC, New Delhi from 30-31 August, 2018 on Motivating and Attracting Youth in Agriculture (MAYA).
More than 200 participants including farmers from various states, senior research, development and policy related officials and managers from national and regional organizations, NGOs, the private sector, education and training institutions, and other members of civil society participated to discuss ways to motivate and attract youth in agriculture (MAYA).
The regional conference has attracted participants from Afghanistan, Bhutan, India, Nepal and Sri Lanka.
He urged to create a “Mission for Youth in Agriculture” and “Regional Platform for Youth in Agriculture” with neighboring countries as partners and said that we need to attract youth in agriculture by providing them lucrative
Dr RS Paroda, Chairman, TAAS, speaking on the occasion, urged to mainstream youth in agriculture. He emphasized that youth should to be trained as employer rather than employment seeker. The farmers in India need one stop solution for all their problems like a multi-speciality hospital.
Earlier, Dr AK Singh, DDG (Extension), ICAR, in his welcome address said that rural youth is running towards urban areas thereby putting tremendous pressure on the existing urban resources. Therefore, there is a need to create employment opportunities for the youth in rural areas in agriculture.
The two day conference provides an opportunity to all stakeholders to interact and discuss various options and avenues for not only attracting youth to agriculture but even motivating them towards entrepreneurship in agriculture and allied fields.
The conference has been organized by the Trust for Advancement of Agricultural Sciences (TAAS), Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR), MS Swaminathan Research Foundation (MSSRF), Asia-Pacific Association of Agricultural Research Institutions (APAARI), Skill India, Agriculture Skill Council of India (ASCI), Young Professionals for Agricultural Development (YPARD) and National Bank For Agriculture And Rural Development (NABARD).
It bears recall that ICAR had initiated a program on “Attracting and Retaining Youth in Agriculture (ARYA) during 2015-16. Under this scheme, special efforts are being taken up to attract the rural youth under the age of 35 years in agriculture so that the increase in the migration of rural youth towards cities is controlled.