Andaman opens Rular Knowledge Centres for tsunami-hit farmers

Port Blair, Apr 3 (UNI) The Andaman and Nicobar islands have opened a series of Rular Knowledge Centres (RKC) for its far-flung and tsunami-hit villages to educate the farmers on the latest techniques of agriculture, animal husbandry and fisheries.

''The main aim of establishing these Centers is to provide the farmers with all kind of information at their doorsteps from where they can enquire about the latest advancement in farming and other related activities,'' Mr Dharam Pal, Development Commissioner of Andaman and Nicobar Islands told UNI today in Port Blair.

The Andaman and Nicobar Administration has so far opened 10 such RKCs in the scattered islands.

Mr Pal said villagers living in different remote islands often fail to get proper information regarding agriculture and latest technologies.

''The RKCs will have facilities like computers with internet, television set with DVD players, besides video conferencing,'' he said.

Various other important informations about marketing, like inter-island sailing schedule of islands vessels and present market rates, will be available for the farmers' reference.

The group of 572 islands of which now only 36 are inhabited had suffered a major setback after 2004 tsunami which At least 10,610 hectares of land has been lost to tsunami permanently. Some have simply disappeared from the face of the earth.

At present staff of Tata Institute of Social Science (TISS) will help the officials of Agriculture department to run all the RKCS.

''We are planning more RKCs for other remote villages so that everybody can have the benefit but we need to upgrade present RKCs with more facilities,'' said Abdul Salam, the Director of Andaman's Agricultural Department.

After tsunami catastrophe the Centre has approved a special package of Rs 2395 million for revival of agriculture sector, including repair and reconstruction of dykes, site clearance, scrapping of surface salt, application of organic matter,application of gypsum, rainwater harvesting through check dam, creation of water body-pond/well, pump sets, cropping programme, creation of drainage facility and farm implements/equipment.

UNI