The State Government has rolled out a proposal to start field-level application of research findings regarding production of crops, including pulses, in the semiarid zones of the State.
Official sources here said the proposal has been envisioned by Director of Country Relations & Business Affairs of the International Crop Research Institute for Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT) Arvind Kumar Padhee
Dr Padhee discussed the proposal with Chief Secretary Aditya Prasad Padhi in the State Secretariat here recently.
Considering the proposal, the Chief Secretary said that since Odisha is yet to be self-sufficient in pulses, the findings of the ICRISAT would be of great value for enhancing pulse production in the dry climate areas of the State.
As a part of this proposal, focus would be on production of millets, ragi, groundnut, arhar (pigeon peas), bazra, etc., in the first phase.
Further, the Chief Secretary advised Dr Padhee to work out the financial details of the project in consultation with the State’s Departments of Agriculture and Water Resources.
Dr Padhee expressed the hope that the project would yield encouraging outcomes in Odisha.
It may be pertinent here to mention that Dr Padhee, an Odisha-cadre IAS officer, served as State’s Director of Agriculture for quite some period.
During his tenure, many innovative steps in the areas of mechanisation of agriculture, growth of agri-entrepreneurship and application of scientific techniques in agricultural farming were successfully implemented in the State.