Thursday, 13 November 2025
Kasaragod-based Central Plantation Crops Research Institute (CPCRI) has launched an online training programme — Kalpa Graduate Readiness Programme — for final year BSc (Agriculture/Horticulture) students from across the country.
Speaking at the launch of the online training programme, K Muralidharan, Head (Acting), Social Sciences, CPCRI, said that the 12-week-long Kalpa Graduate Readiness Programme is an effort to empower young professionals on the latest technologies for production and processing of coconut, arecanut and cocoa.
Stating that the perennial crops have a lot of intricacies, he said, students may not have learnt these intricacies thoroughly during their degree course. This programme has been designed to bridge that gap. More than 1,650 students from 18 states have, till now, enrolled for this online training programme, he said.
Inaugurating the online training programme from Delhi, BK Pandey, Assistant Director General of the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR), said this programme will provide a platform to the aspiring graduate students of agricultural and horticultural sciences to know more about plantation crops.
Plantation crops such as coconut, arecanut and cocoa have a profound influence on the rural economy, as they support the livelihood of 25 million people in the country. They also support the national agrarian economy with the contribution to the tune of ₹14,200 crore to the gross domestic product, he said.
Welcoming the participants to the online training programme, Anita Karun, Director (Acting), CPCRI, highlighted various initiatives of CPCRI in the plantation sector.
