Published on: August 03, 2026
By: BTNI
Location: Rajnandgaon, India
Experts train farmers, women and rural youth in post-harvest management, food processing and marketing to enhance agricultural income
Pandit Shiv Kumar Shastri Agricultural College and Research Centre, Surgi, celebrated its Foundation Day with a one-day workshop jointly organised by the Chhattisgarh Council of Science and Technology, Raipur, and the college.
Addressing the programme, Chief Executive Officer, District Panchayat, Durga Prasad Adhikari, said that training farmers in fruit and vegetable processing, packaging, branding and marketing would create new employment opportunities at the local level while strengthening their economic condition. He said that, in the present scenario, scientific post-harvest management, processing and value addition of fruits and vegetables, along with agricultural production, have become effective means of increasing farmers’ income.
He also encouraged farmers to include horticultural crops in the crop cycle in addition to paddy cultivation and informed rural youth about the benefits of commercial farming.
Dean and In-Charge, Coordinated Cell, Pandit Shiv Kumar Shastri Agricultural College and Research Centre, Surgi, Dr. Vinamrata Jain, said that processing and value addition enable farmers to secure better prices for agricultural produce while creating new employment opportunities for rural youth. She stated that the Horticulture Department has been continuously encouraging farmers to adopt value addition and processing practices, which would contribute to higher incomes and greater employment opportunities.
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Divakar Bajpai, grandson of Pandit Shiv Kumar Shastri and a social worker, paid tribute to Pandit Shiv Kumar Shastri and highlighted his contribution to the agricultural sector. He also encouraged students to imbibe moral values alongside education and congratulated the college for organising the state-level workshop on the occasion of its Foundation Day.
During the workshop, farmers, women and rural youth received training on post-harvest management of fruits and vegetables, value addition, entrepreneurship and skill development for generating additional income. Participants were given practical demonstrations on preparing nectar, pineapple juice, murabba, tomato sauce, ketchup, jam and RTS (Ready-to-Serve) beverages.
Dr. B.S. Asati, Professor (Vegetable Science) from Rani Avanti Bai Lodhi Agricultural College and Betel Vine Research Centre, Chhuikhadan, trained farmers in techniques for preparing value-added products from tomato, drumstick and betel leaves.
Workshop Organising Secretaries Dr. Abhay Bisen and Dr. S.P. Sharma delivered lectures and practical demonstrations on various technical aspects, including post-harvest management, processing, value addition, packaging, storage, quality control, marketing and entrepreneurship development related to fruits and vegetables.
The scientific interaction session with farmers was attended by faculty members Dr. Nitin Turre, Dr. M.K. Chandrakar, Dr. Shivaji Limje, Dr. Mahendra Deshmukh, Dr. Pooja Sahu and Dr. Santosh Sahu, along with the entire college staff. Rakesh Mishra assisted scientists during the practical training sessions.
The programme was conducted by Dr. D.P. Chaudhary, Associate Professor (Agronomy), while the vote of thanks was delivered by Dr. Abhay Bisen, Associate Professor (Fruit Science). A large number of farmers and youth participated in the workshop.
