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Dimapur, May 30 (EMN): Agricultural Technology Management Agency (ATMA) Kohima organised a farmers’ training and exposure visit to Dimapur and Chumoukedima district on May 27 and 28.
A team of 20 farmers accompanied by four officials from Tseminyu and Chinlikha block with team leaders Keviu Shuya and Rokosenuo Angela, (Deputy Project Director, ATMA) visited various institutions during the visit.
The visiting team was received by Alemtemsu, Officer in-charge for State Horticulture Nursery (Green Park) where he highlighted various activities being taken up by the department.
Resource person Chenithung, AHO and Temjenwapang, HEA trained and demonstrated the team on air layering of litchi and mango grafting. Resource person Imtitemsu, FTA taught about various edible mushrooms and their production technology. The team also visited high-tech poly houses and nurseries.
At the Nagaland Tool Room and Training Centre, Dimapur resource person Mezovolhou Marcus Ovung, showed the various training units and agriculture-related machinery such as paddy thrasher, palm leaf plate maker, pallet and feeds maker, pineapple and banana fiber extractor, sun dryer, meat drying machine and maize sheller machine.
The team also visited a mushroom unit at Aoyimkum village where Director of Konger Agritech Dr. Sosang Longkumer interacted and taught the visiting team about the commercial aspects of mushroom cultivation like raw materials, hygiene, housing, etc.
Later, the team visited an agricultural input dealer outlet at Supermarket to make the farmer aware of agricultural seeds, tools, implements, organic fertilisers, nutrients, etc.
With an aim to boost awareness and to train and master unskilled farmers on scientific methods of tapping rubber latex and processing, ATMA also undertook a within-district farmer training and exposure visit to Watiyim village, Tsurangkong block, Mokokchung on May 26 and 27.
The team was led by Sentinaro Longchar, Deputy Project Director, ATMA, Mokokchung along with staff from different blocks. A training on the scientific method of tapping rubber latex was conducted at a rubber farm situated at Watiyim village for the rubber growing farmers from Chungtiayimsen, Watiyim, Longpha yimsen and Moayimti villages. The resource persons for the training were Dr. Sashiyangba, District Project Officer, Department of Land Resources, Mokokchungand Imo Yaden, a certified rubber expert from Anakiyimsen village, Tuli.
The farmers were trained on the different methods of tapping rubber latex and were familiarised with all the types of rubber tapping tools. The resource person explained and demonstrated about tapping standards, high level tapping, intensive tapping, dilution of acid and water, latex and water dilution formula etc. On-site demonstration on how to tap latex from the rubber tree was conducted, which was further processed for the rubber sheet. The farmers were then taken to a rubber smoke house unit where the finished product of rubber sheets is dried and sorted. They were also highlighted on the proper method of smoke house construction and its set up.
Imo Yaden emphasised on the importance of the economy where most farmers bring tapping experts from outside the state, which results in huge income differences due to wages paid to the expert. He also mentioned the economic losses due to improper processing and care. He challenged the rubber cultivars to equip skills in tapping and never depend on one's income generation from others.
Besides visiting rubber farms, the participants were also taken for an exposure visit to SAMVRUDI Handloom Textile Park at Chungtiayimsen village, a first of its kind in Nagaland.
Altogether, 25 trainees from four villages attended the training programme. All the participants were given rubber tapping equipment and tools.