Coimbatore: Minister of Agriculture and Farmer Welfare M Panneerselvam on Wednesday launched the Vermicompost (TNAU) unit Tamil Nadu Agriculture (TNAU) and forage plant pellets for nutritional pellet production to increase livestock productivity.
He also witnessed the demonstration of fertilizer spraying drones on plants and those used for mapping and surveys.
Tea has launched fodder pellets to avoid lack of feed, improve quality and ensure sustainable productivity during the lean season.
The animal feed used for making pellets includes hybrid-napier hybrid grass, grass guinea, animal feed, Lucerne, Cowpea Fodder, Hedge Lucerne, Subabul, Agathi, Moringa and Kadamba.
Scientists also began to collect and utilize non-conventional feed resources such as a by-product of plants and plant residues.
They will experience additional value through merging proteins, a mixture of minerals, oil cakes and probiotic microbes to increase palatability and nutritional value.
“We also plan to create awareness about pellet production and additional value techniques to be made for entrepreneurs, livestock farmers.
And producers of green animal feed through training and demonstrations,” said a statement from the University.
The university exhibits the agricultural drone laboratory to stand and show drone technology in agriculture and their efforts to train agricultural students to become pilot drones.
The remote sensing department and GIS show the use of drones for intelligent nutritional delivery, TNAU and bioinoculant amplifiers, plant protection chemicals, nano fertilizers and organic inputs in rice, corn, pulses, sugar cane, tapioca.
“We tell the minister of technology drones can be developed for dispersion of seeds and fertilizers, plant health assessments, estimates of soil moisture and mapping pests and diseases to facilitate precision agriculture to increase plant productivity,” said an official of the remote sensing department.
The Minister also shown a research study to detect plant health status using sensors.