A four day Off-campus training on Market led Extension to the officers of Department of Agricultural Marketing and Agri Business, Tamil Nadu State at Salem during 17th-20th June, 2025.

Access to markets is critical to speed up commercialization of agricultural production. Lack of access to markets may act as a disincentive to farmers to adopt improved technologies and quality inputs. The number driven growth in agricultural production may not sustain in the long run due to its increasing stress on the limited natural resources. The future growth has to come from improvements in technology and service delivery systems leading to accelerated productivity, processing and marketing.Extension efforts were directed towards transfer of production technologies and almost no or very little attention was paid for higher price realizations of the farmer produce. This has made no substantial impact on increasing farm incomes over decades. However, the advent of globalization and emergence of new market mechanisms has opened new opportunities with a shifting focus from productivity to profitability, subsistence to commercial farming, commodity oriented to farming systems orientation, local market to export market, value addition and processing in agricultural sector and so on. In this connection, the EEI, Rajendra Nagar, Hyderabad has organised a four day Off-campus training on Market led Extension to the officers of Department of Agricultural Marketing and Agri Business, Tamil Nadu State at Salem during 17th-20th June, 2025. The programme was started with the inaugural programme on 17.06.2025 by Sri Ravi Chandran, Joint Director of Agriculture (Training) atTamil Nadu State Agricultural Marketing Board Training Centre, Salem. Smt Jeyamala, Assistant Director of Agriculture (Training) has welcomed the participants and dignitaries. Dr. N. Praveen, Professor, EEI has given an overview of the training module while, Dr. V. Ravinder Naik, Professor, EEI has highlighted the importance of the Market led Extension training to the participants. Sri Ravi Chandran, Joint Director of Agriculture (Training) while addressing the participants has expressed gratitude to the EEI, Rajendranagar for taking up the training on the relevant topic which would enrich the trainees. Following the inaugural session, an Ice breaking session was organised by the training coordinators which included pre-evaluation. The four days deliberations include on the very relevant topics such as Importance of Market led extension, paradigm shift of extension from TOT to Start-ups, Role of e-NAM and e-Trade in promotion of Agricultural marketing, digital initiatives in marketing of agri and allied commodities and market intelligence , supply chain management of agricultural commodities,role of NABARD in promotion of Market led extension, State and National portals in marketing of Agri. and allied products, GoI schemes, programs, initiatives in Agri. and allied sectors,DRP/BPs to take up the market oriented entrepreneurial activities, Certification, branding, labeling consumer preference to meet the food market demand, extension strategies to promote Market led extension.On 18.06.2025 Dr. R. Brinda Devi, IAS, Collector and District Magistrate, Salem has visited the training centre and enquired about the details of the training imparted to trainees and appreciated the EEI for such a training for the first time in Salem. On the occasion, madam,Interacted with training coordinators and participants. As part of the training programme, on third day (19.06.2025), a filed visit was organised at Green fields farming and Horticultural Research Station,Yercaud to orient the trainees towards the export opportunities to the rose saplings and to acquaint them with the research activities at the Horticultural Research Station, Yercaud. Valedictory was organised on the fourth day (20.06.2025), Sri Ravi Chandran, Joint Director of Agriculture (Training) Department off Agricultural Marketing and Agri Business Tamil Nadu State was the chief guest while, Smt Jeyamala, Assistant Director of Agriculture (training) has welcomed the participants and dignitaries. Dr. N. Praveen, Professor, EEI has given an overview of the training topics deliberated for the four days while, Dr V. Ravinder Naik Professor, EEI has highlighted the benefits of the Market led Extension training to the participants. On the occasion, sri Ravi Chandran, Joint Director of Agriculture (Training) has interacted with participants to understand the speck of their learning due to the training and informed to the trainees that, there is a need to implement the ideas deliberated during various training sessions. On the occasion he once again expressed his gratitude to the Director, EEI for making efforts to organise such a training at Tamil Nadu State Agricultural Marketing Board Training Centre, Salem. A total of 20 participants from Dept. of Marketing and Agri Business, Tamil Nadu State were participated in the said training programme. Which was coordinated by Dr.N.Praveen and Dr.V. Ravinder Naik, Professors, EEI, Hyderabad on the occasion, the chief guest has distributed certificates to the trainees. The programme was concluded with the vote of thanks by Smt.Jeyamala, Assistant Director of Agriculture.