25-Jul-2022: Shri Parshottam Rupala launches NDDB's subsidiary for manure management

Shri Parshottam Rupala, Union Minister of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying here on Monday launched NDDB MRIDA Limited, a wholly-owned subsidiary company of National Dairy Development Board to take forward manure management initiatives across the country in presence of Dr Sanjeev Kumar Balyan, MoS, FAHD and Dr L Murugan, MoS, FAHD. Shri Atul Chaturvedi, Secretary, DAHD, Govt. of India, Shri Meenesh Shah, Chairman, NDDB, Ms. Varsha Joshi, Additional Secretary (CDD), DAHD, and Shri Sandeep Bharti, newly appointed Managing Director of NDDB MRIDA Limited.

NDDB has established NDDB MRIDA Limited, an Unlisted Public Limited Company under the Companies Act, 2013 on July 1, 2022 as with the paid-up capital of Rs. 9.50 crore.

On the occasion, Shri Rupala said NDDB Mrida Ltd will open avenues of additional income to dairy farmers from sale of slurry/ dung. He added that it will help in savings to the farmers by virtue of replacement of cooking fuel with biogas. He further said that efforts are being made for better utilisation of bovine dung but most are individual initiatives and this new company will provide structured impetus to manure management efforts.

Promoting usage of dung-based manure will gradually lead to replacement of chemical fertilisers with organic manure thereby reducing dependency on India’s dependency on imports, said the Union minister.

On this occasion, Dr Balyan launched a brochure on NDDB MRIDA Limited and Dr Murugan handed over NDDB’s SUDHAN trademark to Chairman and MD, NDDB MRIDA Limited.

Dr Balyan said this is a first-of-its-kind company focusing on efficient utilisation of dung by creating a manure management value chain which will immensely contribute to enhancing the livelihoods of dairy farmers and at the same time contribute towards Swachh Bharat Mission and promotion of green energy.

Dr Murugan said the manure management initiatives have potential to generate biogas equivalent to 50 per cent of India’s present LPG consumption & also produce bio slurry equivalent to 44 per cent of India’s NPK requirement. He added that efficient manure management promotes general wellbeing & cleanliness, contributes to increasing the productive economic life cycle of the milch animals beyond milking thereby helping tackle the problem of stray cattle & lowering of GHG emissions.

Shri Chaturvedi said that NDDB has also taken up projects for utilisation of cattle dung to meet the energy needs of dairy plants. He added that foundation stone for first such project was laid by Hon’ble Prime Minister of India in Varanasi on December 23, 2021. NDDB has also registered a trademark named “SuDhan” to provide common identity to dung based organic fertilisers.

Shri Shah said NDDB Mrida Ltd will take up setting up of manure value chain, biogas based CNG generation, biogas-based energy generation for dairy plants. He added that the new company will explore opportunities to efficiently use cattle dung as ingredient for various applications in different industries and as a replacement to traditional wood, clay, paint, etc.

Chairman, NDDB and NDDB Mrida Ltd said the company will undertake research and development on cost effective technologies for efficient dung management and a major area of focus will be establishing revenue generation models at the village-level through sale of cattle dung-based products. He added that the company will provide marketing and sale support to agencies manufacturing gobar-gas slurry-based fertilisers and establish mechanisms to accrue carbon revenue from the projects to generate additional revenue stream for dairy farmers.

31-Mar-2022: National Dairy Development Board in collaboration with the National Bee Board organized National Conclave on 'Production of Bees Wax'

A National Conclave on “Production of Bees Wax” was organized by National Dairy Development Board (NDDB), Gujarat in collaboration with the National Bee Board (NBB), Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare on 30th March, 2022. The conclave was supported by the National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India Ltd. (NAFED) & Tribal Co-Operative Marketing Development Federation of India Limited (TRIFED). The objective of this National Conclave is to create awareness about the production of other high-value beekeeping products viz. Bees Wax, Bee pollen, Royal Jelly, Propolis, bee venom, etc.

Addressing the National conclave on “Production of Bees Wax”, Dr. Abhilaksh Likhi, Additional Secretary, Department of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare, said that beekeeping, besides pollination support, also provides extra income and creates employment opportunities for rural/ landless farmers and beekeepers. Through the implementation of the National Beekeeping and Honey Mission (NBHM), Government of India has taken so many initiatives to strengthen the beekeeping industry in the country. He highlighted that under NBHM, thrust is being given to setting up infrastructural facilities for collection, processing, trading, testing and branding of honey and other beehive products. He also informed NDDB, NAFED & TRIFED have been identified as implementing agencies under NBHM for implementing beekeeping activities through a cluster-based approach by making Farmers Producer Organizations (FPOs) on beekeeping.

Shri Abhijit Bhattacharjee, General Manager, NDDB informed that NDDB is always committed to bringing policies/ schemes beneficial to farmer/ milk producers with the aim to uplift the economy of rural farmer/ milk producers. NDDB has a wide approach that the economy of Indian farmers/ milk producers will only increase if farmers/ milk producers will utilize the resources present in their local area and do not import resources from outside. NDDB is actively involved in the promotion of beekeeping through their network of cooperative institutions. Today’s’ conclave regarding an important by-product of beekeeping i.e. bees wax is the step in this direction, he added.

Shri Meenesh Shah, Chairman, NDDB, Anand suggested that engaging beekeepers in multiple streams of income through diversified activities is important for building economic resilience. Scientific beekeeping is one such activity that can provide additional income not only from honey production but through the production of other beehive products. He informed that NDDB is promoting beekeeping by using dairy cooperative channels present in the country and creating FPOs by organizing beekeepers with the support of NBB. To create awareness about beekeeping, with the support of NBB, NDDB has organized 40 trainings on beekeeping across the country by involving local Krishi Vigyan Kendra and State Agriculture Universities, Progressive beekeepers & Member societies of NBB which benefitted about 1100 beekeepers.

Dr. Prabhat Kumar, Horticulture Commissioner, DA&FW informed that honey is an integral part of our Integrated Medicinal System (IMS). Through NBHM, NBB is intended to create awareness through seminars/training and providing financial support for all available aspects of beekeeping including infrastructural facilities and R&D. He advised beekeepers to work in the field of value-added products in beekeeping to get more financial benefits and uplift their economy.

Dr. N. K. Patle, Executive Director, National Bee Board (NBB) has briefed about the central sector scheme entitled National Beekeeping and Honey Mission (NBHM) and practices aspects relating to beekeeping. He invited beekeepers to avail the facilities available under NBHM and adopt beekeeping in a scientific manner to get additional income through honey & other beehive products. He assured full support to beekeepers across the country under the NBHM scheme.

Speaking on the production of bees wax and its current status in the country, Dr. Balraj Singh, Project Coordinator, Honeybee and Pollinators (HB&P), IACR said that in India, beekeeping is mainly practiced for the production of honey only and therefore there is need to create awareness about diversification of beekeeping for production of various other beehive products. He also informed that deserted combs of Apisdorsata are the major source of bees wax production in the country.

Shri Dipenkumar C Patel, Progressive Beekeeper & Director, One Bee Organic LLP, Gujarat introduces the participants to different types of honey, various bee products, its collection methods and types of equipment/machinery used.

Shri Jaswant Singh, Tiwana Bee Farm, Ludhiana, Punjab inform that their firm is involved in the production of all kinds of bee products and equipment/machinery. His firm is involved in the production of Comb Foundation Sheets (CHS) from bees wax. The use of CFS is highly recommended in beekeeping as it reduces the time and effort of honeybees in the construction of their comb thus ultimately beekeepers will get more honey per hive.

Shri Jai Prakash, Senior Manager, Indian Bank has informed that to address the issue of adulteration in honey & other beehive products, National Bee Board has launched online registration and developing a Blockchain /traceability system of the source of honey and other bee products. He showcased the procedure of online registration on Madhukranti Portal and requested all beekeepers/ other stakeholders to come forward and register themselves on this portal.

7-Oct-2021: National Digital Livestock Mission Blueprint at NDDB

Dr Sanjeev Balyan, Union Minister of State Fisheries, Animal Husbandry & Dairying unveiled the National Digital Livestock Mission Blueprint at NDDB, today at Anand. Shri Meenesh Shah, Chairman, NDDB, Ms. Varsha Joshi, Additional Secretary (C&DD), DAHD, Govt of India, Shri Upamanyu Basu, Joint Secretary (LH), DAHD, Govt of India, Dr Sindura Ganapathi, Visiting PSA Fellow, Office of the Principal Scientific Adviser, Govt of India, Dr RS Sodhi, MD, GCMMF, Managing Directors of various milk unions from Gujarat, senior officials of NDDB and its subsidiaries, senior officials of TCS and Ernest & Young were present. A few senior officials also joined the event virtually.

Dr Balyan said that the livestock sector has a unique combination of being the backbone of rural livelihood. The growth would have been a lot better if there were concerted efforts to harmonise programmes across the country in order to create an ecosystem that is conducive for growth of the sector. This has been the main idea behind the deployment of NDLM, keeping the welfare of the farmer at the core.

The livestock sector is poised for a major leap after implementation of NDLM, a digital platform being developed jointly by DAHD and NDDB on the foundation of the existing Information Network for Animal Productivity and Health (INAPH). The aim is to create a farmer-centric, technology-enabled ecosystem where the farmers are able to realize better income through livestock activities with the right information.

Dr Balyan said that NDDB is motivating and involving dairy farmers in multiple streams of income through diverse alternative activities targeted at their livelihood diversification and economic welfare.

Ms. Varsha Joshi explained the importance and benefits of the software developed and urged all stakeholders to work for the successful implementation of the software.

Chairman, NDDB said that the bedrock of NDLM will be the unique identification of all livestock, which will be the foundation for all the state and national level programmes including domestic and international trade. The farmers will be able to effortlessly access the markets, irrespective of their location or holdings through this digital platform as a wide-range of stake-holders will be connected in this ecosystem. This system will also include robust animal breeding systems, nutrition, disease surveillance, disease control programmes and a traceability mechanism for animals and animal products.

Dr Balyan also visited NDDB’s manure management initiative at Anand’s Zakariyapura village. While interacting with the farmers of Zakariyapura village he appreciated them for accepting the new technology of biogas plants. The bio slurry produced is primarily used by the farmers in their own field and surplus bio slurry gets sold to other farmers or converted in to organic fertilisers. He observed the slurry processing facility at Vasna, Borsad. NDDB’s Sudhan trademark also helps them in creating a brand identity ensuring quality of products. Moreover, all the women biogas users have reported reduction in drudgery in bringing and burning fuel wood, and related health hazards.

Genetic improvement and raising productivity of the Indian bovine population remained the key focus when the Hon’ble Union Minister visited NDDB’s modern Ovum Pick Up & In Vitro Embryo Production (OPU-IVEP) facility.

19-May-2020: Mother Dairy contributing in stabilizing dairy supply chain in Vidarbha and Marathwada Region amid Lockdown

With the country fighting Covid-19 pandemic and under lockdown, availability of essentials like food and health services to the masses is crucial. While for the consumers it is important that their supplies are maintained; for farmers too, it is imperative that the value chain starting with them is up and running to market their produce even under restrictions. Taking the initiative further in this context , Mother Dairy, a wholly owned subsidiary of National Dairy Development Board (NDDB), contributed in stabilizing the dairy supply chain in Vidarbha and Marathwada Region amid Lockdown. Located in Civil Lines area of Nagpur city, Mother Dairy is extending all possible support to farmers and procuring an average milk volume of 2.55 lakh litres per day in Vidarbha and Marathwada region.

Mother Dairy is committed to strengthen the connect with the farmers and consumers. Testament to the fact is, since the outbreak of Covid – 19 in the region, the Dairy has not ceased its procurement operations for even a single day; instead it has increased its milk inflow by 16% despite these testing times and lean season.

Mother Dairy has connected with new farmers strengthening their farmers base to around 24,000 farmers. Total villages now covered under the milk procurement system stands at around 2,500 in 10 districts of Vidarbha and Marathwada. Mother Dairy has ensured that all associated farmers duly receive timely payments once in 10 days in their bank accounts for their produce with complete transparency in testing and weighing mechanism. In the last 2 months benefits to the tune of around Rs. 65 crore have been accrued and paid to the farmers. The dairy has also made requisite arrangements of balanced cattle feed and feed supplements to the milk producers of the region.

Since the Corona outbreak, Mother Dairy has made all efforts to create awareness to ensure safety in the entire value chain. The farmers have been advised to use masks and not to assemble at the pooling point and follow social distancing through floor indicators. Similarly, staff involved in procurement and logistics have been advised to practice hygiene.

Mother Dairy with its network of over 90 booths in Nagpur and nearby towns has ensured consistent supplies to consumers with requisite safety precautions. Mother Dairy teams were also instrumental in setting up temporary kiosk at the site of Governments Quarantine zone set up by the Nagpur Municipal Commission at MLA Hostel in Civil Lines for the frontline Covid-19 warriors.

13-Sep-2018: Centre provides ₹ 440 crores to NDDB

Agriculture Minister Radha Mohan Singh handed over a ₹ 440 crore cheque to the NDDB from the Dairy Processing and Infrastructure Development Fund (DIDF), marking the formal launch of the fund set up to provide soft loans to modernise and raise capacity of dairy cooperatives. NABARD has set up the DIDF with a corpus of ₹ 8,004 crore to bring more dairy farmers into organised milk marketing through cooperatives.

The fund is implemented through National Dairy Development Board (NDDB) and National Cooperative Development Corporation(NCDC).

 Radha Mohan Singh formally launched the fund by handing over a cheque of ₹440 crore as the first instalment to NDDB Chairman Dilip Rath. The funding support is given to dairy cooperatives at an interest rate of 6.5 per cent per annum and will have to be reimbursed over a period of 10 years.

Speaking about the fund, the minister said NABARD has so far sanctioned ₹ 843.81 crore under the DIDF for 15 projects with an outlay of ₹ 1,148.61 crore for dairy cooperatives in Karnataka, Punjab and Haryana. Out of this, a cheque of ₹440 crore was handed over to NDDB for six milk unions.

The DIDF is aimed at creating additional milk processing capacity of 126 lakh litre per day, milk drying capacity of 210 million tonne (MT) per day and milk chilling capacity of 140 lakh litre per day. This fund will benefit 95 lakh farmers in about 50,000 villages. Many skilled, semi-skilled and unskilled workers will get employment, directly and indirectly.

Expressing concern over poor infrastructure in cooperative dairies, the NDDB chairman said the fund will benefit them to modernise and expand the processing capacity in a big way. He, however, cautioned milk unions availing loans from the DIDF to complete the projects on time and asked them to adopt modern technology to run at low cost and focus on marketing and diversification to get better returns.

R S Sodhi, MD of Gujarat Cooperative Milk Marketing Federation Ltd (GCMMFL), said his cooperative will also send proposals seeking loans from the DIDF as it has plans to increase from existing 3.6 crore litre per day capacity to 8 crore litre per day in the next 10 years.

At present, the country has a dairy processing capacity (both cooperative and private sectors) of 9 crore litre per day. Out of which, GCMMFL alone has 3.6 crore litre per day capacity.

The way consumption is rising in double digit, the capacity will have to be increased to 30 crore litres per day in the next 10 years. To set up a dairy processing capacity of 20 crore litre per day, minimum Rs 80,000-90,000 crore is required, then only we will be able to meet the requirement of milk products.

India is the largest milk producer in the world with an estimated production of 176.35 MT. The vision 2022 document has pegged the country’s milk production at 254.5 MT.

21-Apr-2017: “Quality Mark” Award Scheme for Dairy Cooperatives initiated by NDDB

As part of the innovative initiatives under the “White Revolution” umbrella Schemes, the Department of Animal Husbandry, Dairying and Fisheries has supported the National Dairy Development Board(NDDB) developed initiative of “Quality Mark” Award Scheme for dairy Cooperatives to promote and encourage enhancement of safety, quality and hygiene of milk and milk products manufactured by dairy cooperatives. It is aimed at bringing about process improvement in the entire value chain from producer to the consumer to ensure availability of safe and quality of milk and products both for the domestic and foreign market. The Quality Mark” Award Scheme for dairy Cooperatives in the country has been initiated to instill confidence in the consumers for the quality of milk being marketed by them by ensuring availability of safe and good quality milk and milk products. The quality mark scheme was rolled out on 6th January-2016 after deliberating on the process and award mechanism for over a year. The initiative does not propose any new/ additional system for Food Safety and Quality Management but lays down minimum standards against each link of the processes required for ensuring quality and safety.

The NDDB is in the process of registering the quality mark logo under Trademarks Act, 1998. The Dairy units which meet the criteria for award of quality mark will be allowed to use the logo on the package containing milk and milk products and the award of the quality mark shall be specific for location of the dairy unit as well as for the process for a particular product. The mark may be applied to the packaging or printed on a label affixed to the package. The logo/symbol of quality mark on milk and milk product packages indicates that the dairy unit has adopted and implemented all the processes required as per the food safety and quality management system for manufacture of milk and milk products as per the set quality parameters.

The assessment is a two-step process involving pre-assessment and a final assessment. The pre-assessment largely covers the village level procurement and processing infrastructure availability, training manpower and the retail sales. Only those dairy units that score over 70% in the preliminary assessment are considered for final assessment which is done by a team of three experts of which one is an external expert. The final assessment is made for the evaluation of 45 critical and 97 major parameters that influence the quality of the processed milk and milk products. The award of Quality Mark shall be valid for three years subject to maintenance of quality, food safety standards and compliance with terms and conditions of the agreement.

After the finalization of quality mark documents, it was circulated to the State Milk Federations & District Milk Unions. The interested State Milk Federations /Cooperative Dairies /Educational Institutions / Govt. Dairy Units are required to apply for the award of Quality Mark Management (QM) document. The document has been finalized after a series of deliberations which began in November, 2014 and was rolled out in January 2016.

An eleven member Management Committee has been envisaged to oversee the activities of the Quality Mark. The Management Committee has members including the representatives of DADF, FSSAI and Managing Directors of four State Milk Federations representing the regions and two Experts in Dairying. The first meeting of the Management Committee of the Quality Mark was held at Anand on March 15, 2017. Representative of the Food Safety and Standards Authority & DADF also attended the meeting. In the meeting the formal nationwide launch of the Quality Mark was discussed and it was recommended to have a formal launch of the Quality Mark after the current Parliament Session by the Hon’ble Minister of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare.

Since roll out of quality mark initiative by NDDB, on 6th January, 2016, NDDB has so far received 53 applications (comprising Karnataka-13, Mother Dairy-8, Punjab-4, Tamil Nadu-5, Haryana-4, Bihar-11, Maharashtra-4, MP-4) for award of the Quality Mark. Out of 53, 30 applications have been assessed and 13 Dairy Units have been found eligible for award of Quality Mark logo by NDDB.

22-Jul-2022: Krishi Vigyan Kendras

There are 731 Krishi Vigyan Kendras (KVKs) in the country.  There are 38 KVKs under the control of State Governments, 66 under ICAR Institutes, 103 under NGOs, 506 under Agricultural Universities, 3 under Central Universities, 3 under Public Sector Undertakings, 7 under Deemed to be Universities and 5 under Other Educational Institutions.

The technologies developed out of research conducted by ICAR are taken to farmers’ fields for its assessment by KVKs to ascertain their location specificity under various farming systems. KVKs also conduct large number of technology demonstrations at farmers’ fields for their adoption by the farmers. The KVKs conducted 1.84 lakh assessment trials of technologies in farmers’ fields and 12.12 lakh demonstrations on different technologies related to crops, livestock, fisheries, farm machineries and other enterprises during the last five years.

State/UT wise number of KVKs is given in Table below.

Name of State/ UT	Total
Andaman & Nicobar Islands	3
Andhra Pradesh	24
Arunachal Pradesh	17
Assam	26
Bihar	44
Chhattisgarh	28
Delhi	1
Goa	2
Gujarat	30
Haryana	18
Himachal Pradesh	13
Jammu & Kashmir	20
Jharkhand	24
Karnataka	33
Kerala	14
Ladakh	4
Lakshadweep	1
Madhya Pradesh	54
Maharashtra	50
Manipur	9
Meghalaya	7
Mizoram	8
Nagaland	11
Odisha	33
Puducherry	3
Punjab	22
Rajasthan	47
Sikkim	4
Tamil Nadu	32
Telangana	16
Tripura	8
Uttar Pradesh	89
Uttarakhand	13
West Bengal	23
Total	731

10-Jun-2022: Union Agriculture Minister Shri Narendra Singh Tomar inaugurated the administrative building of Krishi Vigyan Kendra

The Administrative Building of Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK), Kandukur in Prakasam district of Andhra Pradesh, affiliated with the Central Tobacco Research Institute of the Indian Council of Agricultural Research, was inaugurated by the Union Minister for Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Shri Narendra Singh Tomar. Established in the year 2012, this KVK is one of the 731 KVKs in the country, under whose functional jurisdiction there are 28 divisions of Prakasam and Nellore districts. Speaking on the occasion, Shri Tomar said that all KVKs are like the backbone of the agriculture world, on which farmers have great faith. Keeping this in mind and considering the need of the hour, KVKs should accelerate their work and contribute more to the agriculture sector and, on the auspicious occasion of Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav, in the making of the New India.

Shri Tomar said today India is in a very good position in terms of agricultural production, in which agricultural scientists have a major contribution besides the farmers and the farmer-friendly policies of the government. KVKs need to play a more active and catalytic role in the technology drive transformation of agriculture and allied sectors. The role of KVKs is important for the progress of the farmers in each district with a view to increase the income of the farmers, grow better crops, use latest technology, get appropriate data about the health of the soil of his farm using the Soil Health Card, minimize use of chemical fertilizers and adopt natural farming.

Shri Tomar said that the KVK scientists need to work continuously according to the region-wise situation and climate. Scientists need to do more to reduce the double harm caused by indiscriminate use of chemical fertilizers, which has adverse effects on both soil and human health, and make farmers aware of alternatives. By adopting natural farming, farmers can increase their income by reducing the cost of farming along with enriching the soil content and protect human health. There is also a need to motivate farmers to adopt crop diversification.

The Minister stressed on strengthening the agriculture sector so that farmers and villages will be better off, markets will prosper, they will get better returns and the country's economy will emerge strong. Farmers will be able to get higher income with better yield and improved markets. Shri Tomar said that we have exported agricultural products worth Rs.3.75 lakh crore, in which agricultural scientists have made a huge contribution. He stressed on connecting more and more farmers through the recently set up 10,000 FPOs.

Dr. Trilochan Mohapatra, Secretary, DARE and Director General of ICAR also addressed the programme.

5-Apr-2022: Technological Products by Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVKs)

The Government has made provision for opening of Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK) in each of the rural districts keeping in view the rationale that new agricultural technologies and best practices are assessed and demonstrated at farmers’ fields.

The quality technological products produced by KVKs during the last three years are 5.48 lakh quintals seeds, 1150.53 lakh planting materials, 2.74 lakh quintals bio-products; and 680.79 lakh Livestock strains and fingerlings.

The activities of KVKs include assessment and demonstration of agricultural technologies; training of farmers and extension personnel; providing farm advisories to farmers; and production of quality seeds, planting materials and other technological inputs, besides creating awareness on improved agricultural technologies among the farmers. These activities lead to the adoption of new technologies by the farmers that solve their field problems, reduce the cost of cultivation and increase production and returns to them.

15-Mar-2022: Krishi Vigyan Kendras

There are 38 KVKs under the control of State Governments, 66 under ICAR Institutes, 103 under NGOs, 506 under Agricultural Universities, 3 under Central Universities, 3 under Public Sector Undertakings, 7 under Deemed to be Universities and 5 under Other Educational Institutions.

The technologies developed out of research conducted by ICAR are taken to farmers’ fields for its assessment by KVKs to ascertain their location specificity under various farming systems. KVKs also conduct large number of technology demonstrations at farmers’ fields for their adoption by the farmers. The KVKs conducted 1.12 lakh assessment trials of technologies in farmers’ fields and 7.35 lakh demonstrations on different technologies related to crops, livestock, fisheries, farm machineries and other enterprises during the last three years.

10-Aug-2021: Government has made a provision for opening of Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK) in each of the rural districts across the country

The Government has made a provision for opening of Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK) in each of the rural districts across the country. A total of 725 KVKs have been established across the country till date.

KVKs are mandated for frontline extension which act as a bridge between research organizations and the main extension system operated by different development departments of the State Governments. Considering the role and resources of a KVK, it caters to the requirement of the selected farmers of the district and provide capacity development support to State Development Departments. The coverage of entire district is the responsibility of development departments of State Governments.

Sanctioned staff strength of each KVK is 16 including one Senior Scientist-cum-Head, six Subject Matter Specialists, one Farm Manager, two Programme Assistants, two Administrative Staff, one Tractor Driver, one Jeep Driver and 2 Skilled Support Staff. At present, 68.44% posts in KVKs are filled.

As many as 657 KVKs have administrative building and 521 KVKs have Farmers’ hostel. The Government aims to provide required infrastructure in the remaining KVKs expeditiously.

As per requirement, large number of KVKs have been strengthened with other infrastructure facilities like, pulses seed hubs, soil testing kits, micro-irrigation systems, Integrated Farming Systems units, farm machineries and equipment, District Agro-Met Units, etc. during last five years.

20-Jul-2021: Improving Krishi Vigyan Kendras (KVKs)

The following steps have been taken by the Indian Council of Agricultural Research to make Krishi Vigyan Kendras (KVKs) more effective in the interest of farmers:

• Technical staff of the KVKs are regularly trained on latest agricultural technologies for upgrading their knowledge and skill.
• Management Development Programme is organized for the newly recruited heads of the KVKs for better management of KVKs.
• KVK Portal has been developed to integrate all the KVKs of the country for online monitoring and management of KVKs and to disseminate useful knowledge and technologies to farmers
• The KVKs are provided with different demonstration units, farm machineries and vehicles.
• As per requirement, large number of KVKs have been strengthened with other infrastructure facilities like, Pulses seed hubs, soil testing kits, micro-irrigation systems, etc. during last five years.
• Collaboration with different Departments have been made for different activities like establishment of District Agro-Met Units in KVKs in convergence with India Meteorological Department; and organization of Frontline Demonstrations on oilseeds and pulses and Skill Development Training Programmes in convergence with Department of Agriculture, Cooperation and Farmers’ Welfare.

28-Feb-2020: Shri Narendra Singh Tomar inaugurates the 11th National Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK) Conference

The Union Minister for Agriculture & Farmers’ Welfare, Rural Development & Panchayati Raj, Shri Narendra Singh Tomar has urged the agricultural scientists in the field to reach out to the marginalised farmers. Inaugurating the 11th National Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK) Conference -2020 here today, he said the KVKs should serve not only the affluent, resourceful and Progressive farmers but also focus on the small and deprived farmers. KVKs have a great responsibility by taking the fruition of the laboratories to the field. He said enough R&D has been done in Agriculture sector, - superior crop varieties released, 171 mobile apps developed for farmers and more than three lakh Common Service Centres (CSCs) opened, but now this must percolate down to the poorest of poor farmers. This is crucial to fulfilling the target set by the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi of doubling farmers’ income by 2022, added Shri Tomar.

Shri Tomar said the eNAM portal has been created so that the farmer gets better price for his produce. Already 585 Mandis have boarded the eNAM platform and another 415 Mandis will be added in due course. More than Rs.91,000 crore of eVyapar (e-trade) has been performed on the eNAM, he said. Shri Tomar said the share of Agriculture & allied sector to India’s GDP is itself low, but it is matter of concern that within this sector, the contribution of Agriculture alone is lower than that of Horticulture, Fisheries and even Animal Husbandry. He said the Government aims to set up at least two Farmer Producer Organisations (FPOs) in each block. There are three factors that have contributed to surplus foodgrains, - primarily the farmers’ labour, secondly the role of agricultural scientists, labs and universities and thirdly the central and state governments’ farmer welfare policies, schemes and incentives. “We have to create an ideal situation where agriculture sector becomes lucrative. Let the farmer not only leave behind for his inheritors the piece of land but also the legacy of agriculture as a profession,” said Shri Tomar.

Underlining the crucial role of KVKs as a bridge between the laboratories and farmland, Shri Kailash Choudhary, MoS for Agriculture and Farmers' Welfare, said since the creation of the first KVK at Puducherry in 1974, there are 717 KVKs spread across the country today. Calling for strengthening KVKs, he said we have to ensure the farmer gets superior and resilient seeds, irrigation and fertilizers for growing healthy crops, mechanised harvesting and a market providing the best price for his produce.

In his address, Dr. Trilochan Mohapatra, Secretary, Department of Agricultural Research and Education (DARE) & Director General, ICAR, called for updating the farmers’ database in each KVK. He said the KVKs should provide single window service to meet the farmers’ various needs.

On the occasion, Shri Tomar and other dignitaries released a number of KVK publications and various products developed by the KVKs.

20-Mar-2018: MoU on skill development training programmes at Krishi Vigyan Kendras

The Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare and the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship signed an MoU to conduct skill development training programmes for agriculture and allied sector, on a regular basis, at Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVKs). Meanwhile, the skill development training programmes currently being run across KVKs will continue.

The government believes that agriculture must be developed as a private enterprise so that it attracts more youth. For this, the Ministry is working at four levels, namely:

1. Increase productivity,
2. Post-harvest management and fair-prices to the farmers for their produce,
3. Lower risk in agriculture,
4. Strengthen and develop other aspects of farmers' income such as horticulture, animal husbandry, beekeeping, dairying, fisheries etc.

In view of the latest developments in agriculture, several new dimensions in Agri-warehousing, cold chain, supply chain, dairy, poultry, meat, fishery, horticulture, agricultural mechanization, micro-irrigation, hydroponic greenhouses etc. have emerged for skilled and trained youths to gain self-employment.

In 2016-17, 203 skill development programmes comprising 200 hours were organized by 100 KVKs and 8 national training institutes, training 3549 youths. For this, Rs 3.53 crore was spent from Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana (RKVY). In 2017-18, 94 training institutes have organized 116 skill development training programmes and imparted training to 2320 youths. A provision of Rs 2 crore has been made for conducting skill training programmes in 2017-18 which is proposed to be increased to Rs 17 crore in 2018-19.

Due to the low presence of Agro-based industries in rural areas, it is important to increase the ratio of self-employment to employment to 100%. He said there is a need to study the Skill Gap Analysis in agriculture sector by the Agriculture Skill Council of India (ASCI).