Agricultural Skill Development Training Programme for Women Farmers and Farmers

What is the Agricultural Skill Development Training Programme for Women Farmers and Farmers?

The Agricultural Skill Development Training Programme for Women Farmers and Farmers is an extension and training scheme of the Agriculture, Farmers Welfare and Co-operation Department, Government of Gujarat, delivered through the state's network of farmer training centres. In Gujarati usage it is the "Krishi Kaushalya Vikas Talim" programme for khedut bahen and khedut bhai: farmer sisters and farmer brothers, and that pairing is written into the scheme itself.

According to the Agriculture Department, 28 farmer training centres function in Gujarat, at which farmers are trained under various state and central government schemes. The main purpose of a farmer training centre is to carry the agricultural research and new technology produced by scientists at the state's four agricultural universities to the farmer, so that knowledge and skills rise, crop production rises, farmers become economically stronger and the country becomes self-sufficient in food.

The scheme was started as a programme for women farmers in 2012-13, and from 2013-14 the government sanctioned it jointly for women and men. It runs under a gender audit, with training at farmer training centres to be provided to farmer men and farmer women on a 50:50 per cent basis based on their needs.

The department's own description of the scheme is unusually explicit about why the women's half matters: it aims to train semi-educated as well as educated farmer women through audio-visual aids and direct demonstration, and, by putting them in direct exchange with agricultural scientists and experts, to replace timidity with self-confidence.

Who is eligible for the training programme?

You can apply if:

• You are a farmer of the district where the training centre is located. The scheme states that all farmers of the district can benefit.
• You are between 18 and 55 years of age, trainees are selected within this band.
• You are a woman farmer, a man farmer, or a young person from a farm family. All three groups are named in the scheme, and there is a separate youth organisational training class.
• You are a permanent resident of Gujarat.

Progressive farmers, economically weaker farmers and conventionally educated or uneducated farmers are all named as intended trainees; literacy is not a condition, because the training uses demonstration and audio-visual methods.

You are not eligible and cannot apply if:

• You are below 18 or above 55 years of age.
• You are looking for personal financial assistance. The department states directly that the scheme does not provide the benefit of personal financial assistance to farmers, and there is no cash benefit to claim.
• You are not a resident of Gujarat.

What does the scheme actually fund?

This is the point readers most often get wrong, so it is worth stating plainly: no money reaches the farmer's bank account under this scheme. The rates below are the cost norms at which the state funds the training activity itself.

At Rs 400 per trainee per day, a three-day organisational class for 30 trainees is funded at Rs 36,000, and a four-day youth class at Rs 48,000. That money pays for the training, boarding arrangements, materials and demonstration costs at the centre, the farmer attends free.

Earlier published descriptions of the programme list a wider set of activities under the same scheme, including Krishimela with stalls, competitions and seminars, an in-state educational inspiration study tour of 7 days, an out-of-state study tour of 10 days, an international study tour of 10 days, and a state-level sharing workshop. Those activities are not costed in the department's current scheme table, so treat them as components that may or may not be operating in a given year and confirm locally.

What is taught at the training?

The scheme's stated content covers:

• Agricultural research and new technology developed by scientists at Gujarat's four agricultural universities.
• Scientific demonstrations, so that a practice is shown rather than only described, and adoption is encouraged directly.
• Introduction of new crops, with information on how to take them up.
• Home science subjects that raise the value of agricultural produce, and so the income of the household.
• Animal husbandry: modern knowledge on care of milch cattle and dairying, aimed at raising milk production and household income.
• Energy resources such as solar energy and biogas, covered with technical information.

A distinct objective listed for the programme is that farmers' own agricultural problems are resolved during training — the exchange runs both ways, with trainees putting questions directly to scientists.

How to apply for the training programme

Enrolment is offline. There is no iKhedut application and no online form for this scheme.

1. Identify your district's farmer training centre. Gujarat has 28 such centres; your Taluka Agriculture Office, ATMA office or Gram Sevak can tell you which one serves your area.
2. Visit the farmer training centre, or contact your village-level worker (Gram Sevak), and ask for the application form for the training programme.
3. Fill in all the mandatory fields of the application form and paste a passport-size photograph.
4. Attach the mandatory documents, a government-approved photo identity card such as Aadhaar or voter ID, and a caste certificate if applicable.
5. Submit the form to the receiving authority at the centre or through the Gram Sevak.
6. Wait for batch selection. Trainees aged 18 to 55 are selected against the batch size for the activity to 30 for an organisational class, and the camps need a minimum of 50 (pre-seasonal) or 30 (follow-up) farmers.

Because selection is by batch, the practical advice is to ask the centre when the next batch in your subject is forming, and to apply in the weeks before a season starts, when pre-seasonal camps are being planned.

What documents do I need?

No land record, income certificate or bank account is required, because there is no financial transfer to the trainee.

Why do applications not go through?

• Age outside 18 to 55, which is the selection band for trainees.
• Batch already full. An organisational class takes 30 trainees, so late applicants roll over to the next batch.
• Camp not yet scheduled in your village, since a pre-seasonal camp needs a minimum of 50 farmers and a follow-up camp 30.
• Gender balance, since the 50:50 audit means a batch may hold seats open for women farmers; if you are a man and the women's half is unfilled, you may be moved to the next batch.
• Expecting a cash benefit and being told none exists. This is the most common misunderstanding about the scheme rather than a rejection.

Where do I get help?

• Your district farmer training centre. The operational authority for applications, batches and schedules.
• Gram Sevak (village-level worker), the first point of contact in the village, and an accepted route for the application form.
• ATMA Directorate and SAMETI, listed on the Agriculture Department website, which run agricultural extension and training in the state.
• Agriculture, Farmers Welfare and Co-operation Department, Gandhinagar, telephone 079-23250803.

Training under this scheme is free. No fee should be paid to any agent for a seat in a batch.