About 100 participants from 15 States across the country were given an orientation on the opportunities available for starting banana-based business ventures during a capacity development programme organised jointly by the ICAR-National Research Centre for Banana (NRCB), Tiruchi, in association with the National Institute of Agricultural Extension Management (MANAGE), Hyderabad.
The three-day online programme christened, ‘Agripreneurship through banana-based technologies – An avenue for Atmanirbhar Bharat’ was aimed at promoting entrepreneurship and business ventures in banana cultivation, providing technological support, facilitating innovative business solutions in banana cultivation and follow-up linkage between NRCB and trainees as well.
S. Uma, Director, NRCB, in her inaugural address, gave an overview of the various technologies developed by NRCB and the entrepreneurial opportunities available in the sector. She urged trainees to utilise the expertise available with NRCB and MANAGE to start business ventures.
Dr. Uma also highlighted the importance of banana processing and urged banana farmers, entrepreneurs, and stakeholders to start banana-based food processing industries across the country by using the agri business incubation facility available at NRCB.
C. Karpagam, course director and Principal Scientist (Agricultural Extension), NRCB, said horticultural crops, especially bananas, required a different extension approach, covering various aspects such as production, cultivation technologies, and market linkages, exports, training and capacity development.
Sagar Surendra Deshmukh, Training Associate, MANAGE, briefed the trainees about the scope and objective of “agri-preneurship” and the role of MANAGE in facilitating business start-ups.
Interactive lectures by scientists of NRCB and other ICAR institutions and VIT, Vellore, formed part of the training.
Participants were explained about the NRCB technologies, start-up ecosystem, government schemes and support available for agripreneurship. This apart, the licencing procedure for establishing agribusiness ventures was also explained.
