Information Technology and Agricultural Education in India: Some Concern

Indian agricultural education today finds itself at the crossroads. To make it an active agent for development thrust needs to be on information technology and its proper implementation at grassroots level. Further its success and utility requires a special focus on marginalised and small farmers. This can bring real empowerment which is a multi-dimensional social process and helps people to gain control over their own lives and life situations. It is a process that fosters power in people which they use in their own lives, their communities and in their society, by acting on issues they define as important. Ostensibly, empowerment as an objective of agricultural development should be a welcome addition to the democratic discourses by making use of information technology. In this context, to become empowered and prosper in agriculture, information technology can be vital vis-à-vis agricultural education. The break through made in satellite technology and communication system inaugurated many changes which have had enduring and far reaching impact upon almost all aspect of human life, including agricultural education. But it has not made any significant penetration to the rural and peripheral areas and educational institutions. As a result its impact and utility is restricted and could not bring desired and substantial results. In this context the present paper is an attempt to provide a comprehensive picture of the linkages between agricultural education, information technology and its coverage in terms of its implementations at rural and peripheral educational institutions.