Why in News?

• Recently, The Biotech-Krishi Innovation Science Application Network (KISAN) scheme has been successful in providing benefits to over 1 lakh 60 thousand farmers in the last one year.

Highlights

• Biotech-KISAN scheme is a farmer-centric scheme for farmers, launched in 2017, developed by and with farmers under the Department of Biotechnology, Ministry of Science and Technology.
• It is a pan-India program, following a hub-and-spoke model and stimulates entrepreneurship and innovation in farmers and empowers women farmers.
• It has a unique feature to identify and promote local farm leadership in both genders.
• Such leadership helps to develop science-based farming besides facilitating the transfer of knowledge.
• Biotech-KISAN Hubs have been established covering all 15 agroclimatic zones and Aspirational Districts in the country.
• The programme links available science and technology to the farm by first understanding the problem of the local farmer and then providing scientific solutions to those problems.
• The Biotech-KISAN hubs are expected to fulfill the technology required to generate agriculture and bio-resource related jobs and better livelihood ensuring biotechnological benefits to small and marginal farmers.
• Under the scheme farmers are provided counseling and demonstrations on improved seed, planting stock of vegetable, interventions for use of plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR’s)/bio-fertilizers, irrigation & protected cultivation technologies.
• Improved livestock (goat, pig), poultry and fishery as well as health management of livestock/poultry are also covered under it.