Regional workshops are conducted once in every year for need assessment and finalization of the training areas. The training programmes of EEI every year are finalized during the month of February by the representatives of all the client states and the concerned officials of Directorate of Extension, Ministry of Agriculture, Government of India, new Delhi, the Members of Management Committee, EEI and the faculty of EEI based on the current needs of the client states. The deliberations lead to the finalization of training areas and calendar for the consecutive year with necessary suggestions from the delegates representing client states and departments.
Organization of Regional Workshop on Training Need Assessment
A 2 day Regional Workshop on “Training Need Assessment of Client States” was held at EEI, Hyderabad on 21st and 22nd January, 2020. Twenty three (23) Delegates from Southern Indian States took part in the programme.
The main purpose of the workshop is to assess the training needs of development sectors of different states through brain storming and group discussion techniques for finalization of Annual Training Calendar of EEI for the year 2020-21. Programme began with lighting of the lamp followed by a brief presentation of EEI activities during the year. Dr. V. Sudha Rani, Director, EEI. Director has emphasized the new initiatives, started during the year viz., digital evaluation of training prgrammes, virtual training sessions during On-Campus programmes and use of digital feedback mechanisms Dr. D. Vishnu Vardhan Reddy, Director of Extension, PJTSAU and the Chief guest urged all the members to take part actively in all the sessions and come up with realistic training needs and the gaps considering the training programmes to be proposed for the year 2020-21 and it would be relevant to the present agriculture scenario only when actual training needs are assessed. Dr. M. A. Kareem from Deputy Director, MANAGE suggested a shift in orientation of the training towards Marketing, Value chain, FPO’s rather than simply on communication and management aspects.
A guest lecture by Dr. B. D. Traipathi, Former Director (HRD), MANAGE was held on “Strengthening of SAMETI’s: Issues & Challenges”. A comprehensive note of SAMETI’s functioning, issues & challenges since SAMETI’s inception were presented followed by the need and role of SAMETI’s in present agriculture scenario in the country followed by suggestions to strengthen SAMETI’s. The guest lecture was followed by a brain storming session wherein all the members were asked to give issues and challenges they are facing and recommendations to overcome them by strengthening of SAMETIs.
From the afternoon session the training need assessment was initiated with a guest lecture by Dr. S. Venku Reddy, President, PRDIS on “Capacity building for extension professionals in present scenario” to give the members a broad and comprehensive understanding of present issues and challenges for the doubling the farmers income and making the agriculture remunerative. As a senior extension expert Dr. Venku Reddy felt that there is a need for EEI to expand its client base by having 20 participants from Agri. and allied departments and ten more from other stakeholders of Agril. development viz. FPOs, input agencies agriprenurs, electronic media, agribusiness people and NGO’s etc., He also suggested EEI, Hyderabad to consider the new areas along with its flagship programmes to address Sustainable Agri. Development goals viz. Dynamic agriculture, nutritional sensitive Agri., for chemical free Agri,. organic farming, family farming for small holdings and emotional intelligence. A focused group discussion by forming sector wise groups of members was held where in participants were asked to thoroughly deliberate on problems/challenges of their sector, training gaps and delinate training needs by distributing the structured proforma and members deliberated thoroughly for three hours and arrived at training areas that need to be considered for On and Off-Campus programmes for next year. At this juncture all the members felt that EEI, Hyderabad should conduct “Sector specific On-Campus programmes also so as to build capacities of officers effectively and efficiently”.
During the second day of the workshop the members presented the training areas with tentative months for organising of On & Off-Campus programmes by EEI for their department middle level officers. All the departments expressed that as during their department induction training programmes for their new recruties only administrative and technical aspects are covered. As Managerial / Communication / Extension Management Oriented aspects are not the part of their induction training programmes, the members felt that EEI to come up with a module on these aspects and conduct induction programme for the new recruits in future on consultancy basis. Dr. I. Sreenivasa Rao, Professor, Univ. Head and Training In-Charge in the afternoon session presented the overall issues, challenges and training areas to be considered in the forth coming proposal of training calendar 2020-21. During valedictory session Dr. V. Sudha Rani, Director, EEI, congratulated all the delegates for their meticulous and systematic deliberations and suggestions in delinating not only training needs and areas but also ways to address certain operational issues and problems in organizing Off-Campus programmes in laggard states and UT’s and also On-Campus training programmes. The programme was concluded with formal vote of thanks proposed by Dr. S. Chandra Shekar, Professor, EEI.