International Conference on Recent Advances in Agricultural Sciences, 2021 organized by Amity Institute of Organic Agriculture
Inaugurating the conference, Dr. Jason C. White- Director, University of Conneticut, USA, spoke on the theme Nanotechnology in Agriculture. He briefly introduced National Nanotechnology Initiatives by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), followed by the current perspectives of agriculture. He then threw light on the use of agrichemicals in Agriculture, followed by an account on Nanotechnology and Agriculture. He further, elaborated the reasons for the decline of Global Food Security, which could be tackled using Nanotechnology, and explained about the “Nano” Research at the CAES. He concluded his presentation by providing an overview on technology readiness, overcoming barriers and the immense potential of nanotechnology when it comes to improving Agriculture.
Dr. Ashok K. Chauhan, Founder President, Amity Group of Institutions stated this conference is really valuable and close to his heart. He talked about learning and strategically following the practices of developed countries with the best innovations and practices in the field of agriculture. He also underlined that for the countries growth and development, the three basic requirements are Innovation, Education and Health which need to be the key focus areas.
Dr. Mirza Hasannuzaman- Professor of Agronomy at Sher-e-Bangla Agricultural University, Dhaka, Bangladesh highlighted on the emergence of food insecurity in Bangladesh and other countries due to COVID-19 outbreak. He spoke on the theme Innovations and Translational Research in Agriculture, and added that the food insecurity has been triggered by population growth. He spoke on the vulnerability of India in the agriculture sector because of its high dependency on climatic factors. Therefore, adoption to climate change, developing coping mechanisms, making resilient and resistant varieties to overcome the various stresses is important. Steps like precision agriculture, gene editing, use of GMOs etc. should be taken to avert the crisis. Lastly, he emphasized on the adoption of sustainable agriculture and its practices.
Dr. W. Selvamurthy – President, Amity Science, Technology and Innovation Foundation delivered the welcome address, focusing on the introduction and importance of cost effective and accessible agricultural solutions which would benefit even the small and marginal farmers of India. He showcased the research areas of Amity University including microbial technology, bio control of diseases, receptive blocking, bio fortification using zinc, smart and precision agriculture and many areas.
Dalci de Jesus Bagolin- Agricultural Attache: Embassy of Brazil, spoke on the theme Sustainability and Innovation in the Brazilian Agriculture. He talked about the high percentage (66%) of areas in Brazil dedicated to vegetation preservation, followed by an account on Brazilian production and market share. He then illustrated the increasing land use and agriculture productivity in Brazil for the past couple of years, later talking about the Brazilian Agricultural Research Corporation (Embrapa) initiatives. He called upon companies to disseminate conservation practices, bio-based solutions for cropping systems, recovery of degraded pastures and other such replenishing steps amongst agriculturist. He also talked about the Brazilian Genetic Zebu Bovine, using ethanol as a biofuel and finally concluded by stressing on the importance of sustainability.
Prof. C D Mayee, President SABC (South Asia Biotechnology Centre) talked about how agriculture has come a long way from the journey of green revolution to food security and surplus. He talked about the dry land agriculture that comprises 65% of Indian land and said that substantial technology is already available, problem is to make it available to the 80% of our farmers that are marginal. The key areas to focus should be on production and productivity and also to double the farmer’s income. He emphasized on the important role the youth has to play in agriculture for the innovation and research.
Mr. Chhabilendra Roul former Secretary, Ministry of Fertilizer, Govt. of India appreciated the topics of the sessions as the most exciting and significant areas of agriculture. He said that genome sequencing and gene editing are the most important technologies in animal sciences and plant breeding. But these technologies are very costly to the concerned group of farmers. He laid stress on adopting mission mode approach in agriculture sector. He also talked about the two paradigm shifts that have taken place in this sector, firstly, from subsistence agriculture to agribusiness that is producing for market. Secondly is the need to increase the amount allocated for the research field that is from 0.5% of agriculture GDP and requirement of significant policies. He averred that the focus should be on new research areas such as livestock semen, antibiotic resistance in crops and the green ammonia. New and exciting innovation are already t aking place like, precision farming, Artificial intelligence, vertical farming and nano- fertilizers. He concluded that agricultural policies and agri-business have a very significant role to play.
Dr. Naleeni Ramawat- Director, Amity Institute of Organic Agriculture briefed about the theme of the conference where she focused on the importance of agricultural innovations for sustainable development. She added that ICRAAS is a great platform for academicians, scholars and students from across 25 countries to share and exchange their inputs on recent agricultural innovations. She mentioned that the event has 7 sub-themes, including Climate Change, Sustainable Development, Crop Improvement, Biotic stress, Smart agriculture, Organic Agriculture and other such themes.
During the Program, Conference E- Book souvenir was also released amongst the presence of eminent scientist, students and faculty from across the globe.