The Institute of Food Science and Technology, Sindh Agriculture University (SAU), Tandojam, is reported to have planned creation of a Mobile Unit (MU) which could be made available at the doorsteps of needy people in rural areas by way of providing them with training in various branches of food technology, with prime focus on cottage level units.
Evidently, inspired by the interest of the rural people in short term training programmes, the MU will be devoted to creation of skilled manpower capable of working in food production extension activities in accordance with the public-private partnership strategy.
The manpower thus trained will not only be entitled to rewarding jobs in this unique sector, but may also gain expertise to explore and identify a range of food projects for profitable business ventures.
Needless to point out, the whole new approach can contribute a great deal to purposeful promotion of cottage industries in rural Sindh, leading, in particular to production of a range of items based on fruits, vegetables and cereals through modern methods, with wide scope of collaboration with local businessmen and district governments.
At the same time, it should help the SAU institute to strengthen its already established linkages with food industries in order to take up agreed research on ways and means of resolving the problems cropping up in the process. This will be in the line of the research it has carried out on Mycotoxin and Aflatoxins for use in different food products to safeguard human health from flawed storage management.
However, although the SAU has already distinguished itself with the work already undertaken towards benefiting the youth and others at the grassroots level from promotion of agro-based small industries on modern line, the programme now planned seems to have also been influenced by the launch of the Benazir Bhutto Shaheed Youth Development Programme (BBSYDP), which seeks skill development of the graduates for the local and international job market.
For it provides for training and certification courses relating to agriculture for one year, with prospects of further extension for subsequent years.Under this programme Agriculture Departments are marked for arranging training to the targeted groups.And since the SAU was already seized with this kind of task, it appears to have been, understandably, motivated to adapt the training side of BBSYD on its own initiative, or so it appears.
Reference, in this context may specifically be made to its training for food technology. For it has been explicitly noted that Sindh Horticulture Research Institute and Sindh Agriculture University Tando Jam have facilities to train fresh matriculates in food technology.
As such, it has been stipulated that 150 aspirants would be trained in three batches, two months in Sindh Horticulture Institute of Mirpurkhas, and two months in Sindh Agriculture University Tando Jam, each to be paid Rs 4000 per month during the four months of training.
And those trained would be adjusted in fruit juices factories, processing units newly established in Agro Export Processing Zones in Sindh. It is not known if the Institute of Food Science and Technology, of the SAU will still pursue its own project or merge it with the BBSYD.
Perhaps, it would be better not to abandon its own project, which has a wider appeal in so far as the Sindh province is concerned.It will be recalled that early in February, Sindh Governor Dr Ishratul Ebad expressing his satisfaction over the progress of the SAU in terms of academic research, and infrastructure development, also urged the management to evolve a strategy to benefit the farming community from their achievements at grass-roots level.
He said that short training courses, awareness programme must be arranged to inform the farming community about the achievements of the university and policies and programmes launched by the government for facilitating the growers and modernising the agriculture sector.
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