ICAR-IIAB is enthusiastically implementing Scheduled Caste Sub-Plan (SCSP) since 2018-19.Under this program, ICAR-IIAB supported more than 1200 Scheduled Caste beneficiaries of Latehar, Khunti, Hazaribagh, Ramgarh, Giridih and Deoghar districts by providing critical agricultural inputs. The promotion of the cultivation of drought-tolerant high yielding rice varieties like IR64 drt1 and Sahbhagi Dhan and Indian mustard in rice-fallow land, besides other interventions like piggery, fishery, and backyard poultry had been the focus of the Institute. The
major interventions taken up under SCSP were as follows:

• Promoting quality seed production in rice for increasing productivity and food security
  1. Distribution of 350 quintals seeds of high-yielding rice varieties like IR64 drt1, Sahbhagi Dhan, and TRC 15-5.
  2. Distribution of 4.0 quintals of seeds of Indian mustard for cultivation in rice fallows.
• Promoting piggery and backyard poultry for increasing nutritional and livelihood security
  1. Distribution of piggery units, consisting of one weaned male piglet and two weaned female piglets (unit: 1M+2F, avg. body-weight 15 Kg) of Jharsuk (T&D) crossbred pig.
  2. Distribution of poultry units consisting of five chicks, five ducklings, balanced feed for one-month period and prophylactic medicines.
  3. Distribution of poultry incubators cum hatcheries with power back-up (4 units)
• Promoting fish culture for increasing nutritional and livelihood security
  1. Distribution of fish fingerlings and fish feed.
  2. Distribution of sinking fish feed pellet machines with accessories (2 units),floating fish feed pellet machine (1 unit) and mono block pump (30 units).
• Promotion of farm mechanization
  1. Distribution of 15 HP power tillers with accessories (40 units)
  2. Distribution of 5 HP water pump (40 units) with accessories and irrigation pipes.
  3. Distribution of chaff cutter machine (7 units).
  4. Distribution of paddy thresher (39 units) and solar drier (3 units).
  5. Distribution of agricultural tool kits (100 units).
• Organizing field day, training and farmer-scientist interaction program
  1. Farmer’s trainings and farmer-scientist interaction programs on quality seed production of rice and Indian mustard.
  2. Field days on drought-tolerant rice production and Indian Mustard production in rice fallow land.
  3. Hands-on-training on scientific poultry farming.
  4. Hands-on-training on scientific pig farming.
  5. Farmer’s trainings on use and handling of power tillers.
  6. Farmer-scientist interaction programs on scientific fish production.

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