Udupi: Since there is a need for an agriculture college here, I am going to discuss constructing such a college in Brahmavar with the Chief Minister and he will try to get it done in the next budget session, said Udupi MLA Raghupathi Bhat.
He was speaking at the inauguration of the two-day “Krishi Mela 2019” at the Brahmavar Agricultural Centre on Saturday, October 19. The mela was organised by the Brahmavar Agricultural Science Center, Agriculture and Horticulture University (Shivamogga), Zonal Agriculture and Horticultural Research Center (Brahmavar and Ulavara), ICAR Agricultural Science Center (Brahmavar), Diploma Agricultural College, Directorate of Gear and Cocoa Development (Cochin), Department of Agriculture, Horticulture, Silk, Forestry, Animal Husbandry and Fisheries, Shrestha Dharmasthala Rural Development Project (R) Udupi, Milk Producers Federation Mangalore and District Agricultural Society (Udupi and Mangalore).
In the past, Brahmavar had been approved as the location for starting an agriculture college but due to technical reasons, the proposal never became a reality. The youth of today are reluctant to pursue a low-paying job in agriculture, mainly due to the lack of wages and the fact that agriculture is not a profitable profession.
Addressing the gathering, Raghupathi Bhat said that if automation was able to make more profits in the agriculture sector, it could be possible to make more profit at a low cost if there is a shortage of labour in the district. In order to prevent this, the Brahmavar Agrarian Science Center has developed a special cultivation of the Sahyadri Panchamukhi Kempakki seed cultivation, which has been practically given to the farmers, while the paddy pyres of the breed are of high quality and provide high yields to the farmers.”
“About 400 acres are being cultivated using automation. Over 50 acres of paddy cultivation has been registered, 12,000 farmers have been registered for weather forecasting, and they have been sent SMS messages on the weather,” he added.
Udupi District Panchayat President Dinakar Babu released the new rice paddy breed “Sahyadri Panchamukhi”, which was developed by Brahma’s Agricultural Science Center. District Panchayat Vice-President Sheila K Shetty released the Sahyadri toxic manure and Sahyadri lure water.
Earlier, Brahmavar Agricultural Science Center Co-Research / Extension Director Dr SU Patil welcomed the gathering and Dr Dhananjay compered the programme.
Udupi Taluk Panchayat President Nita Gururaj Poojary, Vice-President Bhujanga Shetty, District Panchayat Agriculture and Industry Standing Committee President Udaya S Kotian, Gram Panchayat member Myermadi Sudhakar Shetty, Chantaru Gram Panchayat President Saraswati, members of the Agricultural Management Board, Directors of the Vishva Vidyalaya and others were present.
Various agricultural machinery shops, nursery stores, organic manure stalls, paddy stalls and an exhibition of domestic bred cows were observed at the Krishi Mela.
Brahmavar sugar factory to be revived
Addressing the gathering at the Krishi Mela 2019, Udupi MLA Raghupathi Bhat promised that he would revive the ailing Brahmavar Cooperative Sugar Factory by leasing it to a private entity.
He said, “Being a representative of the people, we have certain responsibilities. One of those responsibilities is to revive the Brahmavar Cooperative Sugar Factory.”
Bhat further said that the chairman of the sugar factory and himself had recently met with officials from the state’s sugar ministry in Bengaluru and had sought funds from the government to revive the factory.
However, the officials said that the government had decided to lease ailing sugar factories in the state to private firms via tenders. But Bhat still insisted that his objective was to save the sugar factory in order to help the farmers and the residents of the district.
It can be recalled that the Brahmavar Cooperative Sugar Factory closed down in 2004 due to various technical reasons.
