DW BUREAU / New Delhi

The Union Government has imparted skill training to over 1.22 crore farmers under three Skill Development Programmes all across the country in the last three years for capacity-building on modern agro-technologies, agro-processing and agri-export promotion. These initiatives are aligned with the evolving market demands to enhance farmers' competitiveness and entrepreneurial capabilities across the country. The integration of startups into these programmes has further strengthened grassroots-level innovation, real-time problem-solving and the development of a robust rural entrepreneurial ecosystem. This information was shared by the Minister of State for Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Ram Nath Thakur in response to a question raised by Rajya Sabha Member of Parliament, Satnam Singh Sandhu during the ongoing Monsoon Session of Parliament.

Rajya Sabha MP, Satnam Singh Sandhu in a question asked in the Parliament had sought details regarding the skill development programmes run by the union government to enhance capacity of farmers in modern techniques, agro-processing or agri-exports and the number of farmers trained under such schemes during the last three years.

The MoS for Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Ram Nath Thakur in a written reply stated, "The Union Government has trained 1,15,76,893 farmers under Support to State Extension Programs for Extension Reforms popularly known as ATMA Scheme (Agricultural Technology Management Agency) that's been implemented in all 740 districts of 28 states and 5 UTs in the country in the last 3 years. More than 5,96,000 farmers at Krishi Vigyan Kendras (KVKs) and as many as 45,565 farmers have been trained under Skill Training of Rural Youth (STRY) programme during the same period, taking the total number of farmers trained under these three programmes to 1.22 crores in the last 3 years."

Responding to another question asked by MP Satnam Sandhu regarding the number of farmers trained under such schemes during the last three years and involvement of Krishi Vigyan Kendras (KVKs) and agri-startups in these initiatives, MoS Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Ram Nath Thakur said, "While more than 99,162 farmers have been trained under the Krishi Vigyan Kendra program in Punjab in the last 3 years, as many as 2547 farmers have been skilled under STRY scheme during the same period. Farmers from Punjab have emerged as one of the major beneficiaries of the KVK programme, accounting for over 17 percent of the total farmers trained under the scheme across the country. Over 8,455 farmers have been trained in Pathankot district, 6,485 farmers in Bathinda and 6,181 farmers in Tarn Taran, making them the top three districts in Punjab with the highest number of trained farmers in the state."

The Minister further added, "The short duration skill-based training programs are organised by SAMETIs through different training partners including Krishi Vigyan Kendras. KVKs are responsible for designing the program, arranging resource persons, developing training materials and evaluation and certification.

(editor@dailyworld.in)