24 August 2024, New Delhi: ICAR-National Research Centre for Banana celebrated its 31st Foundation Day and Kisan Mela, emphasizing its vision of ‘Banana Diversity and Wealth from Waste today.
The Chief Guest, Dr. Trilochan Mohapatra, Chairperson, Protection of Plant Varieties and Farmers’ Rights Authority, emphasized the importance of precision agriculture in reducing water, fertilizer, pesticide, and carbon footprints in banana cultivation. He also highlighted the potential of microbes in agriculture, particularly in natural farming. Dr. Mohapatra urged the adoption of technologies developed by NRCB at the farmer’s level and stressed the importance of characterizing and promoting local banana varieties for value addition.
Guest of Honour, Dr. V. Palanimuthu, Director, National Institute of Food Technology, Entrepreneurship and Management, Thanjavur, urged the farmers to take advantage of NIFTEM’s schemes for value addition. He highlighted the export potential in the banana sector and emphasized the importance of product development, branding, and marketing.
Dr. R. Selvarajan, Director, ICAR-NRCB, highlighted the centre’s achievements over the past year and its vision for the future. Among the key achievements are the release of new banana varieties—Kaveri Kanchan, known for its high carotenoid content, and Kaveri Vaman, a dwarf variety suitable for terrace gardening.The NRCB also plans to commence commercial production of tissue culture plants for these released varieties, he added. Dr. Selvarajan accentuated that two farmers’ varieties, Numaran and Manoranjitham, have been registered with the Protection of Plant Varieties and Farmers’ Rights Authority (PPV&FRA).
Dr. V. Venkatasubramanian, Director, ICAR-Agricultural Technology Application Research Institute, Bengaluru, addressed the banana as a sacred plant and stressed the need to motivate youth to pursue careers in agriculture and agri-entrepreneurship. He also highlighted the significance of branding farmers’ products for effective marketing.
Dr. Shaik N. Meera, Director, ICAR-ATARI, Hyderabad, briefed about the importance of germplasm collection, the preservation of local varieties, biofortification, and setting standards for value-added products to ensure quality and better marketability.
The event attracted around 1,000 participants from across the state and featured a panel discussion on banana biodiversity, wealth from banana waste, and banana production and protection technologies, with active participation from farmers, entrepreneurs, and other stakeholders. Additionally, 31 exhibition stalls were part of the programme.
(For Latest Agriculture News & Updates, follow Krishak Jagat on Google News) (+80 Million Farming Audience Visits Krishak Jagat’s Hindi Website – Click Here for Website)
