Track 1. Agriculture:

Agriculture is the technique of producing food, feed, fiber and many different desired products by the cultivation of certain plants and the elevating of domesticated animals. The practice of agriculture is additionally known as "farming". Approximately 50% of the world's population and 75% of India's population is engaged in agricultural activity. Agriculture fulfils the basic needs of the vast human population like food, shelter and clothing.

Seeds, manure, fertilizer, equipment and labour are the inputs in the system of agriculture. Crops, dairy products, poultry products, fruits, silk and wool are some of the outputs of this system.

Types of Agriculture:

• Conventional Agriculture
• Sustainable Agriculture

Track 2. Agricultural Science:

Agricultural Sciences dealing with food and fibre manufacturing and processing. They consist of the technologies of soil cultivation, crop cultivation and harvesting, animal production, and the processing of plant and animal merchandise for human consumption and use. It is broad multidisciplinary area of biology that encompasses the components of exact, natural, economic and social sciences that are used in the practice and understanding of agriculture.

Track 3: Horticulture:

Horticulture, the branch of plant agriculture dealing with garden crops, usually fruits, vegetables, and ornamental plants. It is the science and art of the development, sustainable production, marketing. These specialty plants help sustain and enrich our lives by means of imparting nutritious food, enhancing the splendor of our homes and communities and lowering our carbon footprint. Horticulture also contributes to quality of life, and the beauty, sustainability and rehabilitation of our surroundings and the human condition.

Track 4. Farm Power:

Farm Power is an imperative input in agriculture for well-timed discipline operations for working different kinds of farm equipment and for stationary jobs like operating irrigation equipment, threshers, shellers, cleaners, graders and different post-harvest equipment. Farm power is one of the most expensive and crucial inputs when developing a rice crop. Humans, animals and machines are all used as sources of electricity in agriculture production.

Track 5. Digital Agriculture:

Digital agriculture is the use of digital science to combine agricultural manufacturing from the paddock to the consumer. Digital technologies have the potential to provide farmers with the information and ability to meet these challenges and seize possibilities for growth. Digital technologies can allow accelerated traceability of agricultural products, offering peace of thinking for consumers and multiplied cost for farmers. In a digital agriculture system gathers data more frequently and accurately, regularly combined with external sources (such as weather information). The resulting combined data is analyzed and interpreted so the farmer can make greater knowledgeable and appropriate decisions.

Track 6. Agricultural Diversification:

The process of diversification of agriculture is related to either a change in cropping pattern or the farmer taking to activities like animal husbandry, poultry farming etc., Instead of just growing of food crops or diversification in cropping pattern. The second category, i.e., diversification in cropping pattern refers to diversification between food and non-food crops, between cereals and non-cereals, between traditional crops and horticulture, and between low value and high value crops. This practice allows farmers to expand the production, which helps generate a higher level of income.

Two Categories:

• Horizontal Diversification.
• Vertical Diversification.

Track 7. Sustainable Agriculture:

Sustainable agriculture can be described in many ways, however ultimately it seeks to sustain farmers, assets and communities via promoting farming practices and strategies that are profitable, environmentally sound and suitable for communities. Sustainable agriculture matches into and enhances modern agriculture. It rewards the actual values of producers and their products. It attracts and learns from organic farming.

Sustainable Agriculture integrates three main goals:

• Environmental Health
• Economic profitability
• Social Equity

Track 8. Industrial Farming:

Industrial or Intensive Farming is distinguished from traditional agriculture by means of a high ratio of inputs to land area, and is additionally characterized by a reduction in fallow periods, in order to maximize crop yields. Industrial farming is a structure of modern farming that refers to the industrialized manufacturing of livestock, poultry, fish, and crops. The techniques of industrial agriculture are techno scientific, economic, and political. It consists of innovation in agricultural machinery and farming methods, genetic technology, methods for achieving economies of scale in production, the introduction of new markets for consumption, the utility of patent protection to genetic information, and global trade.

Track 9. Smart Farming:

Smart farming can be referred to as the 4.0 green revolution in the field of agriculture combining agriculture methodologies with technology — Sensors & Actuators, Information and Communication Technology, Internet of things, Robotics and Drones to achieve desired efficiencies of production with managed cost and with smart farming, you get the chance of effectively monitoring the needs of your farms, use fertilizers and pesticides well and selectively, as well as adjust how you use certain farming practices with the aim of better and healthy output.

Track 10. Agricultural chemistry:

Agriculture Chemistry is the study of both chemistry and biochemistry which are vital in agricultural production, the processing of raw products into foods and drinks and in environmental monitoring and remediation. These researches emphasize the relationships between plants, animals and bacteria and their environment.

Track 11. Agroforestry:

Agroforestry involves a broad range of trees that are protected, regenerated, planted or managed in agricultural landscapes as they engage with annual crops, livestock, wildlife and humans.

The advantages created by agroforestry practices are both economic and environmental. Agroforestry can make bigger farm profitability in below several ways:

• The total output per unit area of tree/ crop/livestock combinations is greater than any single component alone
• Crops and livestock protected from the damaging effects of wind are more productive
• New products add to the financial diversity and flexibility of the farming enterprise.

Agroforestry helps to conserve and protect natural resources by mitigating non-point source pollution, controlling soil erosion, and developing wildlife habitat.

Track 12: Climate Impacts on Agriculture:

Climate change is one of the most defining issues of today’s world and has appreciably reshaped or in process of altering earth’s ecosystems. The accelerating pace of climate change, combined with global populace and income growth, threatens food security everywhere. Agriculture is extraordinarily vulnerable to climate change. Higher temperatures eventually reduce yields of desirable crops while encouraging weed and pest proliferation. Agriculture contributes to local weather trade through anthropogenic emissions of greenhouse gases (GHGs), and by the conversion of non-farm land (e.g., forests) into farm land.

 

 

Agriculture Business Topics:

 

Track 1: Agricultural Marketing:

The term agricultural marketing is composed of two words- agriculture and marketing. Agriculture, usually means developing and/or raising of crops and livestock while, marketing encompasses a sequence of things to do involved in moving the items from the point of production to point of consumption. Agricultural marketing performs a necessary position not only in stimulating manufacturing and consumption, however additionally in accelerating the pace of economic development.

The crew in product marketing encompass farmers, traders, wholesalers, processors, importers, exporters, marketing cooperatives, regulated market committees and retailers.

Marketing Operation/functions involved:

• Collecting
• Grading
• Processing
• Preserving
• Transportation
• financing

Track 2: Organic Farming:

Organic farming, agricultural system that makes use of ecologically based pest controls and biological fertilizers derived generally from animal and plant wastes and nitrogen-fixing cover crops. Modern organic farming was once developed as a response to the environmental harm caused via the use of chemical pesticides and artificial fertilizers in conventional agriculture, and it has numerous ecological benefits.

Track 3: Agricultural Robot:

Agricultural robots are increasing manufacturing yields for farmers in various approaches from drones to autonomous tractors to robotic arms, the science is being deployed in creative and innovative applications. Agriculture is rapidly turning into an exciting high-tech industry, drawing new professionals, new groups and new investors. Harvesting and picking is one of the most popular robotic purposes in agriculture due to the accuracy and speed that robots can achieve to enhance the size of yields and reduce waste from crops being left in the field.

Track 4: Sericulture:

Sericulture is an Agro-based industry, the art of silk production is known as sericulture that includes cultivation of mulberry, silkworm rearing and post cocoon activities leading to manufacturing of silk yarn. Sericulture provides gainful employment, economic improvement and improvement in the high-quality of life to the people in rural location and therefore it performs an essential role in anti-poverty programmed and prevents migration of rural human beings to urban area in search of employment.

The production of silk generally involves two processes:

• Care of the silkworm from the egg stage through completion of the cocoon.
• Production of mulberry trees that provide leaves upon which the worms feed.

Track 5: Fertilizer:

Fertilizer, natural or artificial substance containing the chemical factors that enhance growth and productiveness of plants. Fertilizers enhance the natural fertility of the soil or substitute the chemical factors taken from the soil through preceding crops. The fundamental components of fertilizers include- nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium. Its rating describes the amount of nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium in a fertilizer.

• Fertilizers increase plants’ tolerance towards pests. This has reduced their reliance on insecticides and herbicides, thereby, producing healthier crops. Consequently, diseases have reduced, providing aesthetic value to the crops.
• Fertilizers improve the water holding capacity of the plants and increase root depth.
• The potassium content present in the fertilizers strengthens the straws and stalks of the plants.

Track 6: Women Empowerment in Agriculture:

Women are clearly an important part of the agricultural labor force. The nature and extent of women's involvement in agriculture varies greatly from region to region.

Development Initiative by women’s engagement in agriculture in five areas:

• Production
• Resources
• Income
• Leadership
• Time use

Track 7: Future of Agriculture:

The prospects are high that smart farming will change agriculture in an excellent way. Smart farming is expected to bridge the gap between large and small-scale farmers in both growing and developed countries. Technological advancement, increase in the internet of things, and the introduction of smartphones have contributed immensely to the adoption of technology in agriculture. Different countries recognize the worth of these technologies, which explains why most countries are keen to promote the implementation of precision farming techniques. There is no doubt that most agricultural operations that had been practiced historically have changed significantly nowadays. This can be attributed to technological advancement the adoption of smart farming strategies and methodologies such as the use of machines, devices, sensors, and data technology. Presently, farmers make use of sophisticated technologies like aerial images, moisture and temperature sensors, GPS science and robots. Such technology makes farming not only to be a profitable venture but also an environmentally friendly, safer, and efficient.

The global agriculture analytics market size is predicted to grow from USD 0.8 billion in 2020 to USD 1.4 billion by 2025, at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 12.2% during the forecast period. Growing trend of digitization and risk assessment, and unlock the potential of urban farming is also expected to drive the market growth. However, high value of gathering precise discipline data is one of the factors hindering the enterprise growth.