The 21st meeting of the Research Advisory Committee (RAC) of the ICAR Research Complex for Eastern Region (ICAR-RCER), Patna, commenced on July 2, 2025. The three-day event was inaugurated under the chairmanship of Dr. K.D. Kokate, Former Deputy Director General (Agricultural Extension), ICAR, New Delhi.
Distinguished committee members in attendance included Dr. Masood Ali, Former Director, Indian Institute of Pulses Research, Kanpur; Dr. S.D. Singh, Former Assistant Director General (Fisheries), ICAR; Dr. K.N. Tiwari, Former Professor, IIT Kharagpur; and Dr. S. Kumar, Former Head, ICAR-RCER Research Centre, Ranchi. Dr. A. Velmurugan, Assistant Director General (Natural Resource Management), ICAR, New Delhi, also joined the meeting virtually.
During the meeting, Heads of Divisions from ICAR-RCER Patna, the Research Centre in Ranchi, and KVKs in Buxar and Ramgarh presented updates on ongoing research initiatives and recent achievements.
Chairman Dr. Kokate appreciated the research efforts of the institute and acknowledged the multifaceted challenges faced by Indian agriculture, such as climate change, limited natural resources, unstable markets, and fragmented landholdings. He stressed that research should focus on strengthening farmers’ livelihoods by providing practical, scalable solutions. Highlighting the concept of "Wealth from Waste," he emphasized that scientific waste management can not only boost productivity but also contribute to environmental protection and the achievement of sustainable development goals. Dr. Kokate also underscored the importance of incorporating advanced technologies like Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) to make agricultural research more effective and future-oriented.
Dr. A. Velmurugan commended the institute’s ongoing work and recommended further research in key areas such as developing farmer-centric economic models, studying soil nutrient and moisture profiles in rice-fallow areas, enhancing value chains, and exploring waste-to-wealth initiatives.
Committee members also offered valuable suggestions in their respective domains. Dr. Masood Ali emphasized the need to enhance green cover in rice-fallow areas and explore the implementation of integrated farming system models across eastern districts. Dr. S. Kumar acknowledged the Silver Jubilee of the institute as a major milestone and proposed adopting a System Productivity Optimization Index.
Dr. K.N. Tiwari highlighted the urgency of assessing groundwater and soil quality in Jharkhand’s coal mining zones, especially in relation to arsenic contamination in the eastern region. Meanwhile, Dr. S.D. Singh called for greater focus on post-harvest research and minimizing losses in agriculture and allied sectors.
Earlier, Dr. Anup Das, Director of the Institute, welcomed the Chairman and RAC members and presented a brief overview of the institute’s accomplishments over the past 25 years. He emphasized the institute’s future vision of promoting smart and resilient agricultural systems by integrating cutting-edge technologies like AI and ML to enhance sustainability and profitability.
As part of the visit, committee members toured the institute's experimental fields, research trials, and laboratories, where they were briefed on various progressive research initiatives. An exhibition was also organized on the occasion. Two extension folders were released during the event, and a significant Memorandum of Understanding related to mushroom research was exchanged. The program concluded with a vote of thanks delivered by Dr. Kamal Sharma, Member Secretary of the Research Advisory Committee.
