KOCHI: Even as the global smart phone market continues to grow at a steady pace, the Kerala Veterinary and Animal Sciences University (KVASU) has decided to tap the potential of the smart phone industry by introducing smart phone-based courses to boost the organic farming and pet-rearing sector.
In a first kind of its kind initiative in the country, the School of New Media and Research in the varsity is planning to launch two to three months certificate courses in organic farming and pet care management.
The courses will be fully smart-phone based. Anyone with android phone can join the programme since more than 70 per cent of the mobile phone users are using smart phones in the country. The university is in the process of preparing the Mobile App for these courses, said Dr T P Sethumadhavan, Director of Entrepreneurship, who is working on this project.
Organic farming is emerging as a viable farming system in the country in areas of clean, green and ethical food production. But awareness about the farming method is comparatively scarce. Against this backdrop, the courses will pave way for popularising the concept of organic farming in the state, said KVASU VC Dr B Ashok.
Moreover, livestock farming has a major role in augmenting or facilitating organic farming in the country. At a time when pet animal rearing is acquiring momentum in the country, courses on dog care and management will create awareness on importance of pet animal rearing, and animal welfare among the stakeholders. The university will associate with UK and Australian universities like University of Edinburgh, Reading and Sydney to include advancements in this sector. Those who are enrolling in these courses can learn through smart phone and the evaluation process can also be done through smart phones. The content of the courses will be available in the Mobile App both in English and Malayalam. Through this Massive Smart phone-based programme, the university is planning to enrol more than 10,000 potential learners in the country, said Ashok.