ICAR to train 24 lakh agri-workers by 2022

NEW DELHI: Amid shortage of skilled agri- workers, Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) has decided to train 24 lakh farmers by 2022 in areas like polyhouse construction, biogas and vermi compost. "There are 14 crore farmers in the country, but we hardly have skilled workers who can support them in constructing polyhouses, making beekeeping boxes, establish the structure for

mushroom cultivation and other allied agricultural activities," ICAR Deputy Director General (Extension) A K Singh said at Farm Innovators Meet here. The ICAR has decided to train 24 lakh agri-workers in such activities as per the standards of the Ministry of Skill Development And Entrepreneurship, he said.

ICAR has been training farmers in such activities but not as per the Skill Development Ministry's standard of 200 hours coaching to provide a proper certificate.

Singh said a separate training of 16 hours would be conducted for re-skilling of those farmers who have already been trained from the ICAR.

He said innovative farmers will be engaged as 'farmers professors' in the training programme because they have expertise of field level experience.

As many as 100 farmers across the country presented their innovative farm models at the conference organised by Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI), which is part of ICAR.

IARI Director Ravinder Kaur emphasised the importance of creating agripreneurship among farmers to maximise the income from farming.