BHUBANESWAR: With an aim to meet the industry requirement, the Odisha University of Agriculture and Technology (OUAT) will revamp its curriculum. This was decided at a high level meeting chaired by Chief Secretary Aditya Prasad Padhi in the Secretariat here on Monday.
OUAT Vice-Chancellor Surendranath Pasupalak, who placed the operational plan of OUAT for the coming three years for discussion, said courses offered by the university will be made more industry specific and sustainable as per changing conditions and market requirements.
The Chief Secretary stressed on the importance of updating and reforming the curriculum to meet industry needs and make students industry ready. “The meeting deliberated on quality enhancement in research, training, making the OUAT courses more industry specific and adding new frontiers like climate change and environment, landscape architecture, conservation, wildlife management, man-animal conflict management and IT applications in agriculture,” said Principal Secretary Agriculture and Farmers Empowerment Sourav Garg after the meeting.
The details will be worked out soon and steps taken to implement them, he added. The proposal for having agro-business based polytechnic trades was discussed in the meeting.The meeting also decided that the students of OUAT would have real time practice with the farmers at village level as a part of their course.
Chief Secretary directed to scale up the quality of teaching and learning for training more entrepreneurs than that of job seekers.
He advised the university to make the Krushi Vigyan Kendras (KVKs) more vibrant and farmer oriented. The KVKs should operate like the connecting point between the laboratory and the field. The innovative research projects undertaken in KVKs should be made outcome oriented leading to actual filed level benefit for the sustainable agriculture.
At present, the extension activities of OUAT are mostly being carried out through 33 KVKs operating in different parts of the State. Each district has at least one KVK while Mayurbhanj, Sundargarh and Ganjam have an additional Kendra. Around 6 scientists in each KVK lead the research and extension works.
Suggested changes
Courses offered by the university to be made more industry specific
The students to have real time practice with the farmers at village level
The quality of teaching and learning for training more entrepreneurs than job seekers
Krushi Vigyan Kendras to be made more vibrant and farmer oriented