National Seminar on Smart Technologies for Sustainable Agriculture and Environment

22nd February 2024, Hyderabad

National Seminar on ‘Smart Technologies for Sustainable Agriculture and Environment’ organized by the Indian Society of Agrophysics, Division of Agril. Physics, ICAR-Indian Agricultural Research Institute, was inaugurated at ICAR-Central Research Institute for Dryland Agriculture, Hyderabad, today.

The Chief Guest, Dr. Himanshu Pathak, Secretary, (DARE) & Director General, (ICAR), emphasized the evolution of Indian agriculture, contrasting the pre and post-Green Revolution eras. He highlighted the importance of Physics in Agriculture. Dr. Pathak briefed about the pivotal role played by the scientists of Agricultural Physics in researchers and in developing various technologies, spanning every aspect of food production, termed as smart agriculture or precision farming. The Secretary, (DARE) also emphasised that Precision farming uses space technologies like GIS, remote sensing, GPS, and satellites to improve agricultural productivity sustainably. He urged to strengthen the soil physics and agro advisory components of Agricultural Physics.

  

The Guest of Honor, Dr. Ch. Srinivasa Rao, Director, National Academy of Agricultural Research Management,  spoke about the use of drones for spraying and Variable Rate Technology for precise nutrient management. He further emphasized the need for technological advancements and innovative approaches to enhance agricultural productivity while maintaining environmental sustainability.

Guest of Honor, Dr. S K Chaudhari, Deputy Director General (Natural Resource Management), ICAR, highlighted the latest advancements in agriculture and other related sectors.

  

Guest of Honor Dr. Jacqueline Hughes, Director General, International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics, Hyderabad, highlighted the significance of dryland agriculture and the adoption of climate-smart technologies for a sustainable future. Dr. Hughes emphasised the importance of digital technologies in advancing agricultural practices.

Dr V.K. Singh, Director, ICAR-CRIDA, emphasized the importance of the seminar. He further explained how the new technologies can help in providing solutions for agricultural and environmental challenges.

Dr. Y.S. Shivay, President, Indian Society of Agrophysics, briefed about the vital role of the institute for sustainable agriculture and environment.

Dr. Pragati Parmanik Maity, Secretary, ISAP, highlighted the importance of Agrophysics research in agriculture, and the use of GIS, Remote Sensing, VRT, sensors, and crop modeling, AI, ML, robotics research. She also briefed the detailed program of the event.

The inaugural session was followed by the 10th Dr. B. P. Ghildyal Memorial Lecture, delivered by Dr. V. Geethalakshmi, Vice-Chancellor, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore, on “Smart Technologies for Sustainable Agriculture and Environment”.   

Digitization of agriculture, integrating digital technologies like artificial intelligence, Big Data Analytics, drones, and remote sensing, fostering productive interactions with participants was initiated during the seminar.

The DG, ICAR, also inaugurated the academic block of the ICAR-IARI Mega University in Hyderabad.

About 350 stakeholders including scientists, research workers, farmers, and students participated in the National Seminar. 

(Source: ICAR- Central Research Institute for Dryland Agriculture, Hyderabad)