KVK - Krishi Vigyan Kendra

Krishi Vigyan Kendras commonly known as KVKs are the agricultural science centres established as innovative institutions for imparting vocational training to the practising farmers, school dropouts and field level extension functionaries.

Krishi Vigyan Kendra has been in the news as the 11th National Krishi Vigyan Kendra Conference was held in New Delhi in February 2020. 

Hence, facts related to KVK which is discussed in the article are important for candidates who aspire to prepare for different Government exams.

Aspirants of IAS Exam would also be benefited with the information given for the preparation of Prelims and General Studies paper of UPSC. 

What are KVK – Krishi Vigyan Kendra?

1. Krishi Vigyan Kendras are the centres for agriculture extensions created by Indian Council for Agricultural Research (ICAR) and its affiliated institutions at the district level. 
2. KVKs are an integral part of the National Agricultural Research System (NARS) and serve as the link between the NARS and the farmers.
3. The KVK centre provides various types of farm support to the agricultural sector and creates awareness about the improved agricultural technologies.

KVK Overview

1. The first Krishi Vigyan Kendra, on a pilot basis, was established in 1974 at Puducherry (Pondicherry) under the administrative control of the Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore.
2. KVKs are sanctioned to Agricultural Universities, ICAR institutes, related Government Departments and Non-Government Organizations (NGOs) working in Agriculture. Usually, a KVK is associated with a local agricultural university.
3. All KVKs fall under the jurisdiction of one of the 11 Agricultural Technology Application Research Institutes (ATARIs) throughout India.
4. These Krishi Vigyaan Kendra are 100% financed by the Government of India and are crucial to fulfilling the target of doubling farmer’s income in near future. Read about Krishi Kalyan Abhiyan Scheme on the given link. 

Related schemes and initiatives to support farmers and agriculture growth in India –

Krishi Vigyan Kendra Features

1. Creation of valuable resources in terms of technical manpower and assets
2. Confirmation of technologies to suit local specificity
3. Showcasing the frontier technologies
4. Capacity-building among stakeholders
5. Front runner in technological application, information and inputs
6. Participatory approaches in planning, implementing, executing and evaluation

KVK – Aims & Objectives 

1. Krishi Vigyan Kendra plays a vital role in conducting on-farm testing to demonstrate location-specific agricultural technologies.
2. It aims at assessment of location-specific technology modules in agriculture and allied enterprises, through technology assessment, refinement and demonstrations. It also aims to apply agricultural research in a practical, localized setting.
3. Krishi Vigyan Kendras have been functioning as Knowledge and Resource Centre of agricultural technology supporting initiatives of public, private and voluntary sector for improving the agricultural economy of the district.

Candidates preparing for various competitive exams can visit the link provided to prepare even better for the examination-

1. Free Online Quiz for Government Exams
2. Government Exams Free Mock Test Series
3. Government Exam Previous Year Question Papers with Solution PDFs

Mandate of KVK

The mandate of KVK is Technology Assessment and Demonstration for its Application and Capacity Development. To implement the mandate effectively, the following activities are envisaged for each Krishi Vigyan Kendra-

1. On-farm testing – operating a small farm to test new technologies such as seed varieties or innovative farming methods to assess the location specificity of agricultural technologies under various farming systems.
2. Frontline demonstrations – organising programs and showcasing the efficacy of new technology to establish production potential of technologies on the farmers’ fields.
3. Capacity development-boosting farmers and extension personnel to update their knowledge and skills on modern agricultural technologies.
4. Multi-Sector Support – To work as the Knowledge and Resource Centre of agricultural technologies for supporting initiatives of the public, private and voluntary sector in improving the agricultural economy of the district.
5. Advisory Services – Provide farm advisories using information and communication technologies and other media on varied subjects of interest to farmers such as weather advisories or market pricing.

In addition, Krishi Vigyan Kendras produce quality technological products (seed, planting material, bio-agents, livestock) and make them available to farmers, organize frontline extension activities, identify and document selected farm innovations and converge with ongoing schemes and programs within its mandate.

Krishi Vigyan Kendra – KVK Portal

The Government has launched an online portal of Krishi Vigyan Kendra. The KVK portal will aid in monitoring all the KVK centres at the national level and providing timely advisories to the farmers. 

KVK Portal – Objectives

1. Monitor various Krishi Vigyan Kendras for their activities and resource utilization
2. Creating a database of the various programmes organized by the KVK
3. Assisting farmers in resolving their queries using web-portal and mobile technology
4. Providing relevant information to farmers such as weather and market information quickly through the portal. Also, assisting with information about various facilities and activities performed by the KVK.
5. The stakeholders i.e. farmers and the Agricultural Officers can register themselves and can access relevant details about different Krishi Vigyan Kendras.

Aim of Krishi Vigyan Kendra Portal

The aim of the portal is to transfer the technologies developed by the agricultural scientists to the farmers in a fast and effective manner using the web and mobile technology as well as to monitor the activities of Krishi Vigyan Kendras (KVKs).

Recent Developments in Agriculture

1. eNAM portal has been created so that the farmer gets a better price for his produce. Read about e-National Agriculture Market (e-NAM) in detail on the linked page.
2. Superior crop varieties have been released. (Eg;-Wheat: HD 4728 (Pusa Malvi))
3. More than three lakh Common Service Centres (CSCs) opened.
4. 171 mobile apps developed for farmers. (Eg:-Kisan Suvidha)

Other Relevant Links

Aspirants preparing for the UPSC exam can check the links given below –

1. UPSC 2023
2. UPSC Calendar 2023
3. UPSC Syllabus
4. Analysis of the Press Information Bureau
5. Agriculture Questions GS 3 Mains UPSC

You can also check out the preparation strategies for competitive exams to fine-tune your exam prep.