my uttarakhand news Bureau
Pantnagar, 7 Mar: A two-day 25th Annual Workshop on “Mechanisation in Animal Husbandry” under the All India Coordinated Research Project (AICRP) of ICAR commenced today at the College of Technology, Govind Ballabh Pant University of Agriculture and Technology, Pantnagar. Scientists and experts from various agricultural universities, research institutes and ICAR centres across the country are participating in the workshop.
The Chief Guest at the programme was Dr SN Jha, Deputy Director General (Agricultural Engineering), Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR), New Delhi, while the programme was presided over by the Vice-Chancellor of the University, Professor Manmohan Singh Chauhan.
Dr KP Singh, Assistant Director General (Farm Engineering), ICAR; Dr Diwakar Himadri, Assistant Director General (Animal Health), ICAR; Dr CR Mehta, Director, ICAR–Central Institute of Agricultural Engineering, Bhopal; and Dr SP Singh, Project Coordinator, ICAR–Central Institute of Agricultural Engineering, Bhopal were Guests of Honour on this occasion.
In his address, Chief Guest Dr SN Jha said that animal husbandry is an important source of income for farmers in India and productivity in this sector can be further enhanced through the adoption of modern technologies and mechanisation. Highlighting the importance of environmental management in animal care, he said that proper management can significantly increase animal productivity. For instance, if the temperature in the shed of dairy animals is reduced by 2–3 degrees Celsius, milk production can increase by 20–30 percent. He also emphasised the need to think about the welfare of stray animals and suggested the development of robotic animals for heavy load transportation. He advised scientists to file patents instead of only registering designs for newly developed technologies and encouraged them to publish a greater number of high-quality research papers. He also suggested that the project coordinator should organise annual orientation programmes for scientists working at different centres and publish a book to commemorate 40 years of the mechanisation project.
In his presidential address, Vice-Chancellor Professor Manmohan Singh Chauhan stated that Govind Ballabh Pant University of Agriculture and Technology has been playing a leading role in agricultural research and technological development. He said that mechanisation in animal husbandry can be highly beneficial for farmers as it will not only increase production but also improve labour efficiency. He urged scientists to develop useful and practical technologies keeping farmers’ needs in mind. He also emphasised the development of low-cost machines suitable for small and marginal farmers. Referring to the extensive use of mules in Badrinath and Kedarnath, he highlighted the need for mechanisation to reduce the load carried by these animals. He added that mechanisation would be essential to realise the vision of “Developed India 2047” and efforts toward mechanisation in animal husbandry are commendable. He also highlighted ethical values in the use of animals and emphasised that mechanisation can help obtain more milk in less time with reduced stress on dairy animals. He stressed the importance of mechanisation in various fields of animal husbandry.
Dr K P Singh said that mechanisation in animal husbandry can increase production capacity and enhance farmers’ income. He emphasised the need to strengthen extension systems to ensure that technologies developed by scientists effectively reach farmers.
Dr CR Mehta, in his address, stated that the need for mechanisation in the animal husbandry sector is increasing day by day. Considering labour shortages and rising costs, the adoption of modern machines and technologies has become essential. He urged scientists to develop technologies that are cost-effective, easy to use and suitable for local conditions. He also emphasised preparing status papers from all nine centres in the country, promoting artificial intelligence in mechanisation and publishing high-quality research papers. He further suggested that the project coordinator should conduct a SWOT analysis of various centres.
On this occasion, Dr SP Singh, Project Coordinator, presented a detailed progress report on the work being carried out at nine centres across the country under the mechanisation in animal husbandry project. He stated that the use of modern machines and technologies in activities such as milk production, fodder management, manure management and animal care can make these operations easier and more efficient. He also informed that several new technologies have been developed at different centres under the project, which are proving beneficial for farmers.
During the programme, the ICAR–Central Institute of Agricultural Engineering, Bhopal, was honoured with the Best Centre Award. A total of six publications prepared by various centres were also released by the dignitaries. Additionally, Pantnagar University signed three MoUs with M/s Ramkishan Agri Innovative Private Limited for the technologies “Battery Operated Dung Collection Machine”, “Animal Drawn Seed-cum-Sub-Surface Manure Applicator” and “Battery Assisted Poultry Litter Raking Machine”.
At the beginning of the programme, Director Research Dr SK Verma welcomed all the guests, scientists and participants. He said that mechanisation in the animal husbandry sector improves work efficiency and saves both labour and time for farmers. He added that such workshops provide an important platform for scientists and experts to share their research experiences. The programme concluded with a vote of thanks proposed by the Principal Investigator of the project, Dr Jayant Singh. Deans of various colleges, directors, faculty members and progressive farmers of the university were also present on the occasion.
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