A 3-day Inter-State Exposure Visit on Dryland Farming Technologies for Tamil Nadu farmers was successfully organized from 18.06.2025 to 20.06.2025 at KVK, ICAR-CRIDA to introduce farmers to advanced and practical technologies related to dryland farming and a total of 18 farmers attended the event.
The program began with an introductory session by Dr. Chandrakant MH, Senior Scientist & Head, KVK-Ranga Reddy, who highlighted the importance of the exposure visit in enhancing farmers' awareness of location-specific, sustainable agricultural practices.
Dr. S Vijaya Kumar, SMS (Agricultural Engineering), the co-ordinator of the programme, explained the importance of farm mechanisation in improving efficiency and productivity. The live demonstration was also taken to the machinery workshop, where they demonstrated the functioning of several farm machinery and equipment, which enabled practical learning. He discussed various applications of drones, such as aerial spraying of pesticides and fertilisers, crop monitoring, field mapping and assessment of crop health through real-time data collection. He arranged a field visit to a farm pond based solar powered micro irrigation system for various crops.
Dr. Jagruti Rohit, Scientist (Agricultural Extension), ICAR-CRIDA, explained the concept and importance of extension activities in agriculture to the farmers, emphasizing their vital role in bridging the gap between research institutions and farmer communities.
Dr. Sudhir, SMS (veterinary), discussed the vital role of livestock and veterinary care in dryland farming systems. He arranged a visit to a fodder field and explained the importance of various fodder varieties grown at the KVK demonstration unit.
Mr G Srikrishna, SMS (Horticulture), focused on growing horticultural crops suitable for dry lands. He arranged a visit to the dragon fruit and explained the management methods of horticultural crops.
Dr. S. Dilip, SMS (Agricultural Extension), presented an overview of various extension and outreach activities being undertaken by KVK. He explained the importance of farmer-scientist interactions, field demonstrations, training programs, and awareness campaigns that aim to promote the adoption of improved practices.
Mr. P Ramakrishna, Technical Officer, explained to the farmers the seed processing unit, where he demonstrated the various stages involved in seed cleaning, grading, treatment, and packaging.
