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Now, E-world within farmers' reach
Learning process.
THAT THE E-world systems such as e-mail, e-commerce, internet, browsing, voice mail and chatting are only for suave and English speaking youths living in cosmopolitan areas, it is a wrong notion.
Today, e-commerce and internet have been percolated to remote villages in Tamil Nadu.
The illiterate but intelligent men and women living in Kannivadi, a remote village in Dindigul district, have been using all these sophisticated communication systems with great ease for day-to-day work.
Created by farmers in Kannivadi region, the Reddiyarchatram Seed Growers Association has started a computer centre on its premises not only to make rural mass a computer literate but also to provide farmers adequate information about the region, soil condition, seasonal crops, yield and availability of fertiliser in the neighbouring towns. The climate, humidity and rainfall are updated everyday. Moreover, data for the past six months about rainfall and weather reports are also available.
The centre has also displayed print-out of weather report at the centre. All agri-products including wet and dry crops, horticulture, floriculture products, botanical name, characters, cultivation methods, seed processing, seed protection, post harvesting techniques, possible pest attack period, curing and prevention methods are available with support of colour pictures in the portal.
Notes about pests and insects are available at the click of a mouse. The description is in simple Tamil. The association president, N. Shanmuganathan says, `photos of insects displayed on the screen are helpful even to new farmers to know physical features of insects and could identify them in the field. Possible periods of attack help farmers take precautionary measures in advance.
The RSGA did not stop just advising farmers on safe cultivation but also help identifying market for their produce to enable them to get better price and prevent exploitation of traders.
To know market prices, the RSGA has its own web site — Oddanchtrammarket.com. — where they upload buying and selling prices of wholesale vegetable market in Oddanchatram. Besides, details on uzhavar sandhais at Palani and Dindigul are also displayed. The prices are updated every evening. Ryots in Udumalpet, Pollachi, Dharapuram, Moolanur, Vellakoil, Palani, Vedasanthur, Dindigul and Kodaikanal bring more than 1,500 tonnes of vegetables and fruits to this market. They are transported to Kerala, Karnataka and Tiruchi, Thanjavur, Kumbakonam, Tirunelveli, South Arcot and Chenni in Tamil Nadu.
The RSGA has deputed young persons at Oddanchatram vegetable shandy to collect buying and selling prices to update portal. Earlier, merchants in distant places had to contact agents through phones in Oddanchatram to know prices of vegetables. Now, even upcountry agents in Calcutta and Mumbai could place direct orders to farmers.
Similarly, farmers too can understand selling price and fix price for their produce. Besides, this portal has stock of pesticides and fertilisers available in shops in Dindigul and Reddiyarchatram. The centre was also involved in social service also. The results of various examinations and computer learning are extended to rural people. Above all, special training was given to farmers in seed processing. They sell quality seeds.
Kannivadi has become a role model by setting an E(asy)-way to make profits by using computers and information technology.
By Raju K.
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Life
Bangalore
Chennai
Coimbatore
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Hyderabad
Kochi
Madurai
Thiruvananthapuram
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