Patna: Rajendra Prasad Central Agricultural University (RPCAU), Pusa, has approved around 50 technology-driven research projects aimed at tackling climate change, rising input costs and declining natural resources.The projects were cleared at the university’s two-day special research council meeting, which concluded on Friday. The research programme seeks to move beyond conventional agricultural research by taking laboratory innovations directly to farmers’ fields, vice-chancellor P S Pandey said.Chairing the meeting, Pandey said the projects had been designed around three critical priorities—climate adaptation, natural farming and digital agriculture. “The results of the approved projects will be visible in the next two to three years, and we expect they will benefit agriculture and farmers significantly,” he said.He added that advanced research and technology-led innovation would not only improve farm productivity and farmers’ incomes but also help RPCAU strengthen its position in national and international rankings.The projects will deploy AI and machine learning for predictive agriculture, including early identification of pest attacks and nutrient deficiencies. Remote sensing and GIS-based technologies will be used to monitor soil health, surface moisture and groundwater levels. The research is also expected to develop tools for precision irrigation and targeted micro-dosing of fertilisers, helping farmers reduce input use and conserve water and soil resources.The programme also includes research on bio-fortified crop varieties, with the objective of improving nutritional quality while addressing region-specific agro-climatic challenges.The director (research) of Rani Laxmibai Central Agricultural University, Jhansi, O P Chaturvedi, who attended as an external expert, said the research strategies directly addressed major agricultural and soil-health challenges and described the standard of the proposals as “international level”. If similar research is undertaken at other agricultural universities, India can become a ‘Vishwa Guru’ in agriculture within the next 10 years, he said.Former director of ICAR-Central Institute for Subtropical Horticulture, Lucknow, and head of the department of Soil and Water Conservation Engineering, MPKV, Rahuri (Maharashtra), Sachin Nandgude, also participated as an external expert at the meeting.
