National Innovation Foundation – India (NIF) entered into an understanding with the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) recently to verify, validate and promote innovations from the agricultural sector.
The agreement was signed by Prof Anil K Gupta, Executive Vice Chair, National Innovation Foundation – India and Dr.S. Ayyappan, Secretary, DARE and Director General, Indian Council of Agricultural Research at New Delhi.
Working areasNIF, an autonomous body of the Department of Science and Technology, Govt of India is engaged in scouting, documentation, augmenting and adding value to the innovations at the grassroots level whereas ICAR is engaged in conducting research and development in agriculture and allied sectors in a number of institutions spread all over the country.
Under the agreement, NIF will share with ICAR, promising technologies from its database comprising innovative agricultural machineries, plant protection practices, improved plant varieties, farm practices etc., which will be verified and validated through ICAR’s available R&D facilities. A Joint Implementation Committee (JIC) chaired by Director General ICAR will monitor and steer the activities proposed under the agreement.
ExpectationThis collaboration is expected to convert many of the ideas and innovations from the grassroots to the value added products and generate wealth for innovators, and value for society. These technologies will also generate livelihood options for the youth and self- help groups in rural areas.
The ICAR has played a pioneering role in ushering in the Green Revolution and subsequent developments in agriculture in India through its research and technology development that has enabled the country to increase the production of foodgrains, while NIF’s major contribution from the Honey Bee Network, has been able to build up a database of more than 2, 10,000 technological ideas, innovations and traditional knowledge practices (not all unique, not all distinct) from over 575 districts of the country.
Published - May 13, 2015 10:07 pm IST