TAD NewsDesk, Guwahati: Dr Ron Malka, Ambassador of Israel in India along with Assam CM Sarbananda Sonowal laid the foundation of the first Indo Israeli Centre for Agriculture (CoE) for vegetables in the state.
This is a step forward to bloom the growing partnership in agriculture between Israel and India.
Ambassador Dr Ron Malka said,
“We are excited to collaborate with the Government of Assam in agriculture, which is a significant part of the Indo-Israeli partnership. Today we have laid the foundation of a Centre of Excellence for Vegetables to benefit farmers of Assam. This is a milestone in the development of the State’s agriculture sector, and will give local farmers a competitive edge in the national and international market which will enable them to double their income, aligned with the vision of honorable prime minister Modi.”
Some of the focal interests of The Centre of Excellence in Assam would be:
- It will introduce modern Israeli technologies in agriculture and water management to the local farmers under the Indo-Israel Agricultural Project (IIAP).
- It will also aim to increase farmers’ yield and productivity while diversifying local crops and optimizing resource efficiency of individual farmers using advanced micro-irrigation systems and other adapted technologies.
- Farmers in Assam will be able to choose the technology that suits them best, and the priority would be to double the income.
In his visit to Assam, Dr Malka along with a team of Israeli experts had a meet with Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal. Some of the pertinent issues discussed were:
- Agriculture
- Water management
- Horticulture
- Fisheries
- Dairy
Across India, there are fully functional 29 Indo-Israeli Centres of Excellence in different states across the country and this is one of the firsts in the Northeastern region. Each centre acts as a venture to an exchange of knowledge on Israeli Agro Technology. The focus areas mostly concerns regarding introducing crop diversity, increasing crop variety nad make the water accessibility better.
Source: Agriculture Times
