Network of i-tech Centres for farmers in A

Port Blair, May 9 (UNI) Agriculture, animal husbandry and fisheries in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands is going hi-tech.

The union territory's agriculture department has opened a number of hi-tech Rural Knowledge Centres(RKC) covering the length and breadth of these Islands to educate farmers on the latest techniques.

The main aim of establishing these centres is to provide the farmers with all kinds of information at their door-step from where they can enquire about the latest advancement in farming and related activities, Mr Abdul Salam, the Director of Andaman's Agricultural Department told UNI here today.

Till now the Andaman and Nicobar administration had opened 10 such RKCs across the islands, he said.

''The RKCs will have facilities like computers with internet service, television sets with DVD players, besides video conferencing,'' he said. Various other important information on marketing like inter-islands sailing schedule and present market rates would be available for the farmers' reference.

The group of 572 islands, of which now only 36 are inhabited, had suffered a major setback after the 2004 tsunami which destroyed vast tracts of land. Some have simply disappeared from the face of the earth. At present the staff of Tata Institute of Social Science (TISS) would help the officials of agriculture department to run all the RKCs.

''We are planning more RKCs for other remote villages so that everybody can benefit, but we need to upgrade the present RKCs with more facilities,'' Salam said.

Post tsunami the union government had approved a special package for revival of agriculture at a cost of Rs 2395 million which includes 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