Practical Agri Education Should be a Must For All says Dr Jaskaran Singh Mahal

Every year the Agriculture Education Day is celebrated on 3rd December, to commemorate the birth anniversary of Bharat Ratna Dr Rajendra Prasad, who was the first President of Independent India and was also the Union Minister of Agriculture in 1946. 

To commemorate this occasion as well as to make people understand more about the significance of this day Krishi Jagran Held a webinar on the 3rd of December 2021. 

One of the most prominent speakers of the day was Dr Jasakaran Singh Mahal who vehemently spoke that quality education on agriculture should be made mandatory for all as agriculture is a vast field with a lot of diversity and hence can be used in a lot of places.

He also vehemently spoke on how the quality of education in India has dropped in the past few years due to new institutions cropping up everywhere and how government supervision should be placed on the colleges that give education on agriculture. He further went on to compare the role of an Agri graduate to be similar to a doctor as dealing with biosystems is a job as imp as a doctor’s and it might lead to a lot of disastrous consequences if they prescribe the wrong medication. 

Dr Jaskaran further emphasized the importance of education in spreading awareness of the already existing measures that farmers can take advantage of to further increase the yields of their crop and overall just make it all a little easier for them. 

He ended his address by quoting former President of the United States Dwight D. Eisenhower “Farming looks mighty easy when your plough is a pencil and you're a thousand miles from the cornfield.” while speaking about the importance of practical education in the field of Agri education. 

Dr Jaskaran Mahal holds a doctorate degree in Farm Power and Machinery from Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana, where he specialized in ‘Decision support system for farm machinery and energy management. He worked on the invention of mechanical rice transplanters, high clearance sprayers, sunflower threshers, maize dehusker-cum-shellers, and manual equipment for small and medium farmers such as single-row seed drills for mustard, gramme, chickpeas, peanuts, garlic, and other crops. 

Dr Mahal focused on extension efforts in the field of Farm Machinery and Power Engineering after being selected as an Agricultural Engineer (Extension) in 1999 through active involvement in Kisan Melas, workshops, KVKs, and FASS activities, as well as on partnerships with extension organisations.