Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) to promote cooperation in the field of agricultural education in open and distance mode. As per the MoU, it was agreed to promote agricultural education by sharing expertise in developing, testing and evaluating Open and Distance Learning (ODL) approaches, methods and materials. Dr. Mangala Rai, DG, ICAR termed this agreement as a new step further in spreading agricultural education to far flung areas of the country and said that this would benefit students who does not have access to formal means of education. The MoU was signed by Dr. Mruthyunjaya on behalf of ICAR and Dr. S.C.Garg, Pro-Vice Chancellor of IGNOU in New Delhi on Wednesday (21^st December 2005).
As per the MoU, ICAR and IGNOU have agreed to establish mutual relations between the scientific and technical divisions and identify learning needs of researchers, extension workers, and farm workers. Both parties will establish inter-institutional links specifically between State Agricultural Universities, Central Agricultural University, Central Universities having strong faculties of agricultural sciences, ICAR Institutes including the National Academy of Agricultural Research Management, and IGNOU headquarters and Centres.
This cooperation is expected to benefit faculty of agricultural universities, rural entrepreneurs, farmers, farm women and school dropouts, field staff of department of agriculture and other developmental organizations and regular students including research scholars. Formal and informal programmes requiring lesser field/laboratory facilities would be conducted through 50 EDUSAT Uplink and Downlink Stations throughout the country.
The MoU will be implemented through development of biennial work plans to be developed jointly. A joint monitoring and implementation committee will be set up from both the sides to follow up the execution of this MoU and suggest measures for its development.