In T, farmers too set to have tinkering labs soon

Introduction

In a bid to up the innovation quotient in the state’s agricultural sector, the Research and Innovation Circle of Hyderabad (RICH) is planning to set up the first-of-its-kind agri experiential learning park for farmers to be able to test out new technologies, tools or harvesting ideas before implementing it on farms, RICH director general Ajit Rangnekar said here on Friday.

RICH has been reaching out to various stakeholders such as agricultural universities, agri-equipment manufacturers, seed companies, farmer organisations and government bodies, among others to partner in this initiative, he said on the sidelines of the ‘Global R&D Summit 2019’ organised by FICCI in partnership with the Department of Science & Technology (DST) here.

Rangnekar pointed out that the agri experiential learning park will be a sort of ‘tinkering lab’, where a farmer will get access to latest technologies and requisite assistance and he expects this project to kickstart within a year’s time. “We have identified two to three locations but it has not been finalised yet,” he said, adding that it will be a 5-10-acre land parcel. He said RICH aims to set up
two to three such parks in the state. Agriculture has been one of the focus areas of the state government and it is also planning to roll out a food processing policy in the near-term to attract investments in the sector.

Meanwhile, union science and technology minister Harsh Vardhan on Friday said India is keen on sharing technology and innovations with its African partners to boost prosperity in the region. After the successful implementation of the India Rwanda Innovation Growth Programme, where innovative
companies from India partnered with companies in Rwanda to bring in sustainable innovative solutions across sectors such as health, education and IT, among others, the Indian government on Friday launched the India-Ethiopia Innovation, Technology Transfer & Commercialization Programme that will also work in similar areas.

Source

The Times of India, 16 February 2019