Thursday, Jun 03, 2010
‘Research and extension linkages should be strengthened'

Coimbatore: Agricultural scientists should not borrow technologies from developed countries as these may not be suited for Indian conditions.

They should focus on developing indigenous technologies that will help in lifting the Indian farmers out of poverty, P. Thangaraju, Vice-Chancellor, Tamil Nadu Veterinary Animal Sciences University, said here on Tuesday. Speaking at the 40 {+t} {+h} Foundation Day of the Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, he said the research and extension linkages should be strengthened and market-oriented technologies should be worked upon not only for facing challenges in the globalised era, but also for giving farmers a better livelihood. “India is an agrarian country with farmers forming the backbone. Radical developments in science and technology, and agriculture, have had a significant impact on the social milieu. Export potential for horticultural produce and agricultural commodities have increased manifold,” the Vice-Chancellor said. Even though India had a 47-million strong workforce, only two per cent had formal vocational training and eight per cent had non-formal vocational training.

Out of these, most of them were moving towards the West. “Work mobility and people mobility from East to the West is a strong capital for us”.

He lamented that wards of agriculturists were not inclined towards the profession. “Even if they come for agriculture education they do so without hands-on experience in farming. After the education they choose to do related work in the city rather than actual farming in the villages,” Mr. Thangaraju said.

P. Murugesa Boopathi, Vice-Chancellor of TNAU, said, the university was a source of livelihood for a large number of scientists, non-teaching staff, labourers, students, and last but not the least the farming community.

“It is our responsibility to show deep dedication towards the continuous and strong growth of the university by developing and delivering farmer-oriented technologies and enabling farmers to adapt to the new era of globalisation,” he said.

Recalling the meritorious contributions of the former Vice-Chancellors and other retired staff towards the rise of the university over the last 40 years, he urged agricultural scientists to work towards augmenting the economic stability of the farming community of the State. To mark the occasion, 467 staff who had completed 25 years of unblemished service were honoured. They consisted of 214 teaching staff, 164 administrative staff, and 19 labourers. In addition, 18 awards were given away for the best researcher, teacher, extension worker, team researcher, college, research station, and Krishi Vigyan Kendra. V. Rajagopalan, S. Sankaran, A. Abdul Kareem, and C. Ramasamy, all former Vice-Chancellors, K.P. Ramalingam, and P.S. Anbu, Board Members of TNAU, and M.N. Kandasamy, Member of Legislative Assembly, offered felicitations.