The Zonal Agriculture Office in Campbell Bay recently hosted a thorough training session to integrate progressive farmers from Great Nicobar Island to the National Pest Surveillance System (NPSS). The program sought to provide farmers with cutting-edge equipment and technologies for efficient pest control. The event was led by Dr. Shiva Kumar H. D., Assistant Plant Protection Officer at the Central Integrated Pest Management Centre (CIPMC) in Sri Vijaya Puram, who also introduced the farmers to the NPSS Mobile application and cutting-edge pest control techniques. The NPSS platform, which enables farmers to detect pest infestations, report them, and obtain timely warnings to make informed decisions that safeguard their crops, is crucial, he underlined.
Ms. Shakila Nawaz, Assistant Director (Agri) at the Zonal Agriculture Office, emphasized the importance of Integrated Pest Management (IPM) in contemporary agriculture throughout the course. She described how IPM lessens the need for chemical pesticides and encourages healthier, more sustainable farming practices by combining biological, mechanical, and chemical control techniques. In his speech to the farmers, Mr. Sitaram, a junior agriculture assistant, emphasized the importance of biopesticides in island farming.
In order to safeguard the island’s delicate ecology, he emphasized the health risks linked to pesticide residues in food and promoted environmentally friendly bio-pesticide substitutes. Furthermore, Mr. Jeyaraj, ATMA’s Agriculture Technology Manager, gave a summary of the several programs and subsidies that farmers can access to help with their farming endeavors. This program is a big step in equipping local farmers with cutting-edge equipment and expertise, guaranteeing a more effective and sustainable method of managing pests on Great Nicobar Island.
