The University of Agricultural Sciences, Raichur (UAS-R) launched a Diploma in Agricultural Extension Services for Input Dealers (DAESI) course on Wednesday. It is offered at nine colleges that fall under UAS-R across Hyderabad-Karnataka including two on its main campus in Raichur.
Speaking at the inaugural event organised at the auditorium of Krishi Vigyan Kendra, P.M. Salimath, Vice-Chancellor of UAS-R, held that the course would help create skilled manpower to fill the widening gap between agriculture extension and research.
“The area of agriculture extension is suffering because of lack of skilled manpower while agricultural research is doing fairly well. Creation of skilled workforce in the field of extension would facilitate quick transfer of advanced technologies to the farming community,” he said.
Kurma Rao, Zilla Panchayat Chief Executive Officer, who inaugurated the event, opined that the course would provide better knowledge to agricultural input dealers who serve as a crucial link between agricultural research and extension.
“The farming sector has seen a sea change over the last couple of decades. Traditional crops have rapidly been replaced by newer varieties that are resilient to climatic change and resistant to pests and are high yielding. Traditional farming methods are being replaced by modern methods that have incorporated advanced technologies. The process could be even faster provided the knowledge about newer technologies is quickly imparted to the farming community. The DAESI course would help this to happen,” he said.
S.K. Meti, Director of Extension, said that the spread of knowledge about agricultural technologies could be more effective only when dealers of farm inputs join hands with agricultural universities in the task of knowledge dissemination among the farming community.
Kiran Kumar, Joint Director of Agriculture, Pramod Katti, Nodal Officer for Deshi Programme, Amaresh Y.S, Programme Coordinator, home scientist M.R. Kammar and others were present.
