The programme, funded by the Agriculture Department and the Bio-control Research Laboratories (BCRL) and supported by the Centre for Agricultural Bioscience International (CABI), aims to create a pool of plant health workers to run 72 independent, community-based plant clinics across Karnataka. As many as 400 farmers have been trained since the inception of the programme.
The trainees were chosen on the basis of their family background, interest in agriculture, and basic training in integrated pest management or a related subject.
The plant health clinics advise farmers on pests and diseases, and are run by local technical people who visit markets every week. The programme also aims to empower farmers who, otherwise, do not have access to technology to tackle endemic pests and diseases.
Eighteen districts have been selected for the training in 2010-11.