IIT Kharagpur to start course on digitization of farming technologies
Team Careers360 | July 13, 2020 | 11:48 AM IST
NEW DELHI: Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur, or IIT Kharagpur, will start an online course to train researchers in application of digital technologies in agriculture.
The online programme will be conducted by the Department of Agriculture and Food Engineering at IIT Kharagpur, an official statement said.
“Outreach projects in agricultural digitization are of paramount importance towards development and adoption of knowledge-intensive agriculture education. Globally researchers have been extending their support to precision farming and smart farming through innovations and data analytics,” Virendra Kumar Tewari, IIT Kharagpur director, said in the statement.
The short-term course will focus on teaching farmers about how to use technologies for enhancing productivity with minimal effort and cost.
This includes devices such as sensors, drones, robots, Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning, machine vision techniques, Computer Aided Design and advanced digital technologies application in agriculture.
“The recent calamities and their aftermath has shown we need to be ready for bad monsoon or climate change or even return to organic farming ways while enhancing agricultural yields by means of technology,” IIT Kharagpur director added.
The pilot programme will start with the postgraduate and doctoral students, faculty members, and scientists from the Vasantrao Marathwada Krishi Vidyapeeth, Maharashtra.
Need for the programme
Agriculture is the largest employment vertical of India with a GDP share of 14%.
India has been witnessing significant increase in yields and crop diversity due to mechanization programmes.
However, the high consumption due to population explosion and rising income has been a constant challenge for the agricultural sector.
The course envisages the enhancement of quality and relevance of agricultural higher education to the agricultural university students.
“It is crucial to empower the human resources with digital technologies in the field of agricultural science and technology, particularly in less-explored domains,” said Rajendra Machavaram, joint principal investigator of the NAHEP-CAST, IIT Kharagpur.
Also Read:
- IIT Kharagpur will support developers after ban on Chinese mobile apps
- IIT Madras announces undergraduate Young Research Fellow programme
Write to us at news@careers360.com
Follow us for the latest education news on colleges and universities, admission, courses, exams, research, education policies, study abroad and more..
To get in touch, write to us at news@careers360.com.
Featured News
]- National Digital University to be ‘world’s largest online university’: UGC Chairman
- Lok Sabha Election 2024: Over 50 students, teachers arrested over past 5 years
- Diversity and inclusion ‘all on paper’, writes a transgender activist on experience at work
- ‘This is terrible’: West Bengal teachers who fought recruitment scam dismayed by cancellation
- More women joining engineering with scholarships, affirmative action in admission, placements
- BTech in Marathi: How PCCOE Pune is showing the way
- ‘We hope to admit students from outside Kerala’: CET Trivandrum principal
- IIIT Bangalore plans to launch BTech programmes, says director
- COMEDK UGET ‘model exam’ for engineering colleges: Executive Secretary
- Top IT companies have cut thousands of jobs in past months, reports on headcounts show