Natural resources are inherited by the society from earlier generations and should be used judiciously so as to keep them intact for sustenance of future generations. The Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) deputy director general (agricultural engineering) K Alagusundaram said this while speaking as the chief guest at the inaugural function of the four-month long certificate course on soil and water conservation and watershed management at the ICAR-Indian Institute of Soil and Water Conservation (IISWC) here on Monday.
Addressing the trainees from different States on the occasion, he shared his experience about resource-poor countries like Israel which has made tremendous development in the field of agriculture despite having scarce water and soil resources. He said, “India as a country has these resources and is growing in the field of agriculture, but still better results can be achieved with our efforts for a sustainable development of the country.” He exhorted the officer trainees of the 117th batch to reach out to the society to spread the knowledge of soil and water conservation and make more people aware about them and learn to value them.
Expressing his views on the occasion, the ICAR-IISWC director PK Mishra emphasised on the importance of conservation of natural resources. He spoke about how this training programme helps to percolate knowledge to different stake holders through the officer trainees to all parts of the country. He highlighted the importance of the training in the context of doubling farmers income, PMKSY schemes and its significance particularly for the rain-fed areas of the country.
Speaking on the occasion, the ICAR- IISWC head in charge of human resource development and social sience division, Bankey Bihari briefed the gathering about the training programe which began in 1956 at ICAR-IISWC and has been continuing since then. He focused on how the training programme focuses both on theory and practical modules to teach the know-how and do-how to the officer trainees, making it a unique programme on the aspect of natural resource management.
According to the institute officials, a total of 25 trainees from 10 different states including Chhattisgarh, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Kerala, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, Uttarakhand and Gujarat are attending the four month course.
