Atari Address - ICAR-ATARI Zone-X Hyderabad CRIDA Campus, Santhosh Nagar Hyderabad, Telangana

Host institute Name - Acharya NG Ranga Agril. University Rajendranagar, Hyderabad

Pin Code - 515761

Preview KVK's – "The genesis of KVKs can be traced to the Second Education Commission (1946-66), under the Chairmanship of Dr. D.S. Kothari, which inter alia recommended the establishment of ‘agricultural polytechnics’ to provide vocational education in agriculture to school drop-outs and other rural youths. After careful deliberation by the Union Ministry of Education, Ministry of Agriculture and the Planning Commission and as a follow-up of the Kothari Commission recommendations, the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) appointed a committee under the Chairmanship of Dr. Mohan Singh Mehta of Seva Mandir, Udaipur in 1973 for formulating an institutional design for Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK) to provide vocational training in agriculture.

            Krishi Vigyan Kendra (Farm Science Centres), an innovative science-based institution, was thus established mainly to impart vocational skill training to the farmers and field-level extension workers. The concept of vocational training in agriculture through KVK grew substantially due to greater demand for improved/agricultural technology by the farmers. The farmers require not only knowledge and understanding of the intricacy of technologies, but also progressively more and more skills in various complex agricultural operations for adoption on their farms. The effectiveness of the KVK was further enhanced by adding the activities related to on-farm testing and front-line demonstrations on major agricultural technologies in order to make the training of farmers location specific, need- based and resource-oriented.        

The training programmes of KVKs were designed to impart the latest knowledge to the farmers through work experience by applying the principles of ‘Teaching by Doing’ and ‘Learning by Doing’. The prime goal of KVK was to impart training as per needs and requirements in agriculture and allied enterprises to the farmers, farm women, and farm youths including school drop-outs in the rural areas. No formal certificate or diploma was awarded, irrespective of the duration of the courses to avoid the rush for jobs instead of self employment. While designing the courses, the concept of farming system as well as farming situation are taken into account to ensure that the enterprises in which they are trained are commercially and ecologically viable, sustainable and profitable. The vocational training was intended to help them to sustain themselves through self-employment and to make them   self-reliant economically and thus discourage them from migrating to the urban areas. KVKs provided training not only in agriculture and allied vocations but also in other incomegenerating activities that supplemented the income of farm families.

             Smt. Lakshmi Devi Krishi Vigyan Kendra was started on 11th October 2010 as second KVK in Anantapur district. About 40% (6.77 lakh ha) of the total cultivated area (16.74 lakh ha) of Anantapur district is under the jurisdiction of Smt. Lakshmi Devi Krishi Vigyan Kendra-Kalyandurg,  shared by 31 revenue mandals namely, Agali, Amarapuram, Atmakuru, Beluguppa, Bommanahall, Bramhasamudram, Chennekottapalli, Dandihirehal, Gudibanda, Gummgatta, Hindupur, Kalyandurg, Kambadur, Kanaganapalli, Kanekal, Kothacheruvu, Kuderu, Kundurpi, Lepakshi, Madakasira, Parigi, Penukonda, Ramagiri, Rayadurg, Roddam, Rolla, Setturu, Somandepalli, Uravakonda, Vajrakarur and Vidapanakalu., with net cropped area of 4.63 la kh ha in the district under different farming situations latest by 2012.The predominant soils of this region are red soils which cover 89.81% (77.47 % are rainfed and 12.34 % are under irrigation from different sources) of the total area. The black soils cover 9.95% (6.02% rainfed and 3.93% under Irrigation from different sources) of the total area."

Official Website:   http://www.drikvkbeed.org/