Jharsuguda (Odisha): Vedanta, the largest aluminium producer in the country,organized a series of training sessions for nearly 250 farmersfrom Siriapali, Gudigaon and Kelendamal villages, on best practices of organic farming, crop planning and care, post-harvest management, product salesand marketing.
The initiative was rolled out under the company’s sustainable livelihood program ‘JeevikaSamridhhi’ in two phases – virtual training sessions of agri-entrepreneurs with scientists from Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK) and subsequent peer-learning workshops between agri-entrepreneurs and farmers from their respective Farmer Producer Groups.
Speaking about the company’s social outreach initiatives, Vedanta Ltd., Jharsuguda, CEO CN Singh said, “While we fulfill our mission to boost India’s self-reliance as the country’s largest aluminium producer, we are also cognizant of our social responsibilities.From enabling women entrepreneurs and helping farmers make their livelihood more remunerative to bridging the digital divide through computer literacy programs, we are working on multiple fronts to transform lives and livelihoods in the region. With a significant focus on agriculture, the backbone of India’s economy, we have rolled out crucial projects that bring together technology, expertise and resources to boost production and increase revenues offarmers.”
KVK Jharsuguda senior scientist Manoj Kumar Barik, who trained the agri-entrepreneurs in post-harvest management and product sales, said, “Collaborations like theseare crucial to enabling a viable and thriving agrarian ecosystem. Vedanta is bringing skill trainings and expert consultations to the doorstep of farmers in partnership with us. We strive to ensure timely, customized and interactive sessions that can truly benefit farmers in the long run.”
Agri-entrepreneur from Kelendamal Nalini Patel says, “Training programs like these boost our skills and address all of our queries related to farming. The expert trainers have shareda lot of information and knowledge on advancedagriculture techniques which will be helpful for me as well as other farmers in the future. I am grateful to Vedanta and SEWA for these virtual trainings in current scenario and supporting our farming fraternity under JeevikaSamridhhi project.”
Vedanta’s social interventions in the domains of sustainable livelihood, women empowerment, quality education, health, water and sanitation, bio-investment and community infrastructure reach out to a total of 72 villages in Jharsuguda and nearby areas, benefiting nearly 80,000 people in a year. It empowers more than 4000 women fromover 330 SHGs, provides doorstep healthcare services to about 32,000 people annually, gives educational support to more than 6400 students, has planted more than 1.48 lakh trees in partnership with the community, and built 570 plus infrastructural projects at community level.
Vedanta is India’s largest producer of the greenmetal, aluminium, operating a world-class 1.6 MTPA aluminium smelter and 3615 MW thermal power generation facility in Jharsuguda, Odisha. The only Indian smelter in the global ‘1 Million Tonne’ production and export club, Vedanta Jharsuguda is a leader in value-added aluminium products that find critical applications across core industries. With one of the largest technically qualified and diverse workforces in the country, the company is working towards a sustainable and greener future for all by spurring emerging applications of aluminium, the ‘Metal of the Future’.
