SELF RELIANT INDIA – AGRICULTURE AND BEBYOD
Bureau,Odishabarta
BHUBANESWAR: School of Rural Management, Xavier University, Bhubaneswar, hosted a national webinar on ‘Self-Reliant India: Agriculture and Beyond’ on the 11th and 12th of December. The school of Rural Management celebrated its 25 years of excellence in Rural Management Education, and the national webinar included students and academicians, practitioners, and policymakers from all over the country.
The Webinar was presided over by the Dr.Fr. Antony R. Uvari, S.J., Vice-Chancellor, Xavier University, Bhubaneswar, and the Inaugural and Keynote Address was delivered by Shri V.L.V.S.S. Subba Rao, IES, Principal Economic Advisor, Ministry of Rural Development, Government of India. Prof. S. Peppin, Academic Dean of School of Rural Management, Xavier University, Bhubaneswar gave the welcome address and set the objectives of the Webinar. There were four panels over the two days, two panels each day.
The theme for the first panel was ‘Agriculture for Self-Reliant India: Role of Academic Ecosystems.’ The Panel constituted Dr. S.K. Kashyap, Dean, College of Agriculture, GBPUA&T, Pantnagar; Dr. Karanjeet Singh Thind, Dean, College of Agriculture, PAU, Ludhiyana; and Prof. K. K. Rout, Dean, College of Agriculture, OUAT, Bhubaneswar. The discussion was more focused on how we should be focusing on creating skillsets, improving the technologies and combining both for the development of agricultural sector. New Education policy will be the only way to achieve the same. The theme for the second panel was ‘Going Beyond Agriculture For Self-Reliant India.’ The Panel members were Dr. B. P. Mishra, Director (Acting), IVRI, Bareilly; Dr. P. G. Wasnik, Associate Dean Dairy Technology (MAFSU); and Dr. Anthony Joseph Raj, Dean, College of Forestry (SHUATS, Formerly AAU).The topic revolved around the consumption of dairy products. The speakers talked about a range of things that included Dairy Farming, Agroforestry and topics that supported the theme, showing the interconnectedness between the diary and forestry. For the third panel the topic was ‘Enabling Academic Ecosystems of Agriculture And Allied Sciences; Role of International Institutions.’ The Panel members were Dr. Sreenath Dixit, Principal Scientist & Head ICRISAT Development Center (IDC) Asia Program; and Mr. Andrew Goodland, Lead Agriculturist, India and Srilanka, World Bank. The third panel had discussions on the opportunities for Indian Agriculture and the issues of soil fertility, groundwater sustainability and how the World Bank is contributing to the betterment of agricultural sector. They also focused on how digital technology can be used to resolve this sector. The topic for fourth panel was ‘Enabling Academic Ecosystem of Agriculture and Allied Sciences; Role of National Institutions.’ The Panel members were Mr. Vijay Pratap Singh Aditya, Co-Founder, Director and CEO, Ekgaon ;Shri K. J. Satyasai, CGM, DEAR (NABARD) Head Office, Mumbai; and Shri C. Udaya Bhaskar, CGM, Orissa Regional Office. The major points that the speakers specifically discussed were about the improvement of the supply chain management in the agricultural sector and creating better awareness, literacy, education and prospects from educational institutions about the rural areas and the agricultural sector.
The School of Rural Management is one of the first schools in the University and houses the 25-year-old Postgraduate Programme in Rural Management of XIMB. Our MBA-RM program has been ranked 2nd in India and 15th in the world by the Eduniversal Best Masters Ranking 2019. Our long-standing engagement with Rural Management education encourages us to bring all the actors involved in rural development together to discuss and explore various strategies for making AtmaNirbhar Bharat Abhiyan a reality.
