Bhubaneswar: Sachin Ramchandra Jadhav, Commissioner-cum-Secretary, Department of Agriculture & Farmers’ Empowerment, government of Odisha, visited the International Rice Research Institute–South Asia Regional Centre (ISARC) in Varanasi on April 27–28 to advance collaboration on sustainable rice systems, digital agriculture, and value chain development.
The delegation was received by Dr. Vikas Kumar Singh, Interim Director, ISARC, along with senior scientists, who outlined ongoing initiatives in Odisha and efforts in climate-resilient, technology-driven agriculture.
The visit focused on strengthening rice-based agri-food systems through geospatial tools, digital platforms, capacity building, and value addition. A key highlight was the inauguration of a two-day workshop under the Innovative Project Scheme titled “Optimizing Agricultural Land Use and Rice Fallow in Odisha with Geospatial Technology and a Decision Support System.”
The workshop, being held from April 28–29 at ISARC and moderated by the Geospatial Intelligence Lab, has brought together around 23 officials from Odisha to support data-driven planning.
Dr. Swati Nayak, IRRI Scientist-cum-India Country Manager (Interim), briefed the delegation on IRRI’s work in India and its initiatives in Odisha. Senior officials, including the Additional Secretary and Joint Director, took part in the discussions.
The delegation toured ISARC’s facilities, including plant and soil science labs, remote sensing-based decision support systems, speed breeding units, a mechanisation hub, and regenerative agriculture models.
At the Centre of Excellence in Rice Value Addition, discussions focused on strengthening Odisha’s rice and millet value chains through product development, processing, and value addition. The review also covered a project on promoting self-help group-led entrepreneurship through rice value addition, aimed at developing products from traditional rice landraces and popular varieties for domestic and export markets.
Plans were discussed to establish a Specialty Rice and Millet Factory-cum-Training Centre in Bhubaneswar with modern food processing infrastructure to support entrepreneurship and capacity building. Emphasis was laid on promoting nutritionally enriched low glycemic index (low-GI) and high-protein rice varieties, along with rice-millet-based products to improve nutrition outcomes.
The project review was led by Principal Investigator Dr. Nese Sreenivasulu, along with IRRI scientists and team members. The visit concluded with a shared commitment to scale up geospatial and digital solutions, strengthen value chains, and promote climate-resilient agriculture in Odisha.
