From Director’s Desk
The scientific agricultural development has resulted in manifold enhancement in productivity to match the increasing food demand. Green revolution technologies in Punjab have led to the emergence of rice-wheat as a major cropping system. Almost every coming year, the state is making new records for the production of these crops.
However, this development has led to serious challenges viz. over use of agrochemicals, depletion of water table, deficiency of vital soil nutrients, emergence of new diseases and pests and loss of biodiversity. Some social factors like fragmentation of farms, migration of rural population to urban areas, drug-addiction in youth has also complicated the situation.
In this scenario, it is an uphill task for the farmers to sustain agricultural productivity and earn livelihood. To revive this dwindling rural economy of the state, a paradigm shift in our agricultural extension is required. There is a need to advise farmers about those agricultural practices that would lead to not only efficient production of safe, high quality agricultural produce but also protects natural resources. In addition to this, the extension workers need to encourage farmers for better post harvest handling, value addition, and marketing. The main objective of extension should be to turn agriculture into agribusiness and farmers into agri-preneurs. Whole extension machinery should empower farmers with right knowledge so as they can take their own decisions.
This would require development of competent human resource. Extension workers need to not only be well versed in technical subject knowledge but should also be skilled with various management tools to cope up with above challenges.
Through appropriate, need based and practical trainings, above objective can be achieved. Right from the training need assessment stage to the impact assessment of such trainings for the extension workers, PAMETI identifies the human resource and institutional capacity building challenges in agricultural extension and support effective learning.
Different training methods and strategies are used for handling different subject areas. Experts from diverge fields having practical experience inculcate these skills to the trainees. Training sessions are designed in a way which support learning by doing rather than by just listening. Extension workers are imparted Information & Communication Technologies (ICTs) skills to connect large number of farmers in a short period.