21st August, 2023, Tiruchirappalli
The ICAR-National Research Centre for Banana celebrated its 30th Foundation Day and Kisan Mela on August 21, 2023. The event focused on its new vision regarding Artificial Intelligence in banana production and marketing technologies.
Dr. R Selvarajan, Director of NRCB, highlighted in his presidential address that ICAR NRCB conducts global research on bananas and maintains Asia’s largest gene bank for the fruit. Over the past one decade, ICAR NRCB has developed 60 technologies, introduced 6 new banana varieties, published over 1000 articles, and developed technologies to export bananas to various countries, including Italy and Europe.
Two patents for one on AI-based disease detection and suspension Basel seeds suspended banana juice were granted recently. The institution has also been working on gene editing technology to combat fusarium wilt and a viral disease affecting bananas.
The Chief Guest Dr. V. Palanimuthu, Director of the National Institute of Food Technology, Entrepreneurship, and Management (NIFTEM-T), Thanjavur, extended his best wishes to ICAR-NRCB for its commendable research and development in the banana sector.
Guest of Honour Dr. K. Alagusundaram, former DDG (AE), ICAR present MD & CEO of the Tamil Nadu Food Processing & Agri Export Promotion Corporation, explained that although Artificial Intelligence and IoT-based technologies have been developed in agriculture, many farmers are hesitant to adopt them due to cost concerns, especially for small and marginal farmers. He proposed establishing more custom hiring centers to facilitate the adoption of these technologies. He also mentioned how AI-based technologies like the "Falcon Drone" are used in the United States to deter birds and reduce the need for pesticides.
Guest of Honour Dr. V. Venkatasubramanian, Director of ICAR-Agricultural Technology Application Research Institute, Bengaluru, conveyed special wishes to ICAR-NRCB on its Foundation Day. He shared insights into banana research and promotion technologies, emphasizing the importance of quantity, quality, continuity, and cost-effectiveness in agricultural production.
To recognize the achievements of various stakeholders, 14 different awards were presented, The event attracted around 1000 participants from all over the country.
Dr. C. Karpagam, Principal Scientist at ICAR-NRCB, Tiruchirappalli, delivered the welcome address, and Dr. M. Mayilvaganan, Principal Scientist at ICAR-NRCB, Tiruchirappalli, conveyed the vote of thanks.
(Source: ICAR-NRCB, Tiruchirappalli)
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