Mahatma Phule Krishi Vidyapeeth

About Mahatma Phule Krishi Vidyapeeth

The Maharashtra Krishi Vidyapeeth, Rahuri is established on March 29, 1968 and subsequently named as Mahatma Phule Krishi Vidyapeeth (MPKV) after a great social reformer "Mahatma Jyotiba Phule". It has started functioning from October, 1969 at Rahuri, District Ahmednagar, Maharashtra, India. The jurisdiction of Mahatma Phule Krishi Vidyapeeth, Rahuri extends over Western Maharashtra covering ten districts. The Mahatma Phule Krishi Vidyapeeth, Rahuri is a statutory body of the Government of Maharashtra. It is headed by the Vice-Chancellor who is appointed by the Hon.Chancellor of the State. The minister for Agriculture is a pro chancellor of the University. The Maharashtra Council Agricultural Education and Research (MCAER) is established to co-ordinate the smooth functioning of four agricultural universities in the State. The council has its head quarter at Pune. It consist of eminent scientists, administrator and legislators. The Executive committee appointed by the State is a apex governing body and the main decision making authority of the University which is headed by the Vice Chancellor. It consists of eminent agricultural scientists, educators, legislators and representatives of farmers. It is assisted by the Academic Council, faculty council meeting, Board of Studies of respective disciplines, Agricultural Research Council and Extension Education Council.

The Agricultural Universities adopted trimester system with a view to imparting more detail instructions in the subjects with more orientation of practical. However, experience in initial stages revealed that the trimester system was more rigid and did not take into consideration the season orientated farming in this country, As such the semester system was introduced in 1974. To make education more practical orientated, work experience programme was introduced in addition to the normal practical training in each subject. During the work experience education a student is expected to devote the entire period of learning to practice al training of growing crops and managing the soils. This too was considered in adequate for getting fully acquitted with the farming situation faced by the farmers. As such novel experiment was initiated during 1987-88 in the form of rural. Agricultural work experience (RAWE) programme on the line of Internship Programme in Medical Colleges. The students stay with the farmers for the entire period of a semester, learn the skills of farmers, experience difficulties faced by them and the knowledge gained at the college to suggest the modifications to the farmers. The RAWE programme was found very useful in learning agricultural live. A separate college of Horticulture was established during 1985 in the premises of the College of Agriculture, Pune and it offers B.Sc.(Hort) Degree. The University also deals with lower agricultural education through Agricultural Schools, Mali Training Centre and Training's for Livestock Supervisors. The University has a very good network of research stations spread over different agro-climatic zones. In all 23 research stations, 4 State level specialists and 16 research testing/verification centres are located in different agro-climatic zones in addition to 4 Zonal research stations. Of the three fold functions, it is mandatory on the part of the University to transfer the technology from the research centres to the ultimate users through extension education programme. Total admission capacity in colleges of Agriculture is 508, Agricultural Engineering 50 and Horticulture 20 per annum.

Constituent Institutes

• College of Agriculture, Pune - M.Sc.(Agri)
• College of Agriculture, Kolhapur - B.Sc.(Agri)
• College of Agriculture, Dhule - B.Sc.(Agri)
• College of Agricultural Engineering, Rahuri - B.Tech. (Agril.Engg.) and M.Tech.(Agril.Engg.)
• Post-Graduate Institute, Rahuri - M.Sc.(Agri.) and Ph.D. degrees in various branches of agriculture.
• Agriculture Schools - The GTCs are imparting training to the village level workers and KVKs offer skill oriented training to the self employed rural youths and cultivators. There are eight agriculture schools, two GTCs and one KVK in the jurisdiction of the university. Besides, the university has been encouraging NGOs to start short term skill oriented need based training programmes.

Location - The Campus is situated 160 km from Pune on Pune-Delhi highway in Ahmednagar district. Forty kilometres in the South is Ahmednagar town and 50 km in the North is Shirdi, famous for the saint Saibaba. Newasa, land of saint Dnyaneshwar is 33 km from Rahuri. The campus is 10 km from Rahuri Railway Station and 110 km from Manmad railway junction

Faculty

1. Agriculture
2. Agricultural Engineering

Facilities

Library - University library promotes the higher education, supports the teaching and extension programme of the University. The University Library, MPKV, Rahuri started functioning at Central Campus in the year 1971. Since its inception, the library is developing steadily and has been playing a vital role in providing all types of technological information to the students, teachers and scientists from Faculty of Agriculture and Faculty of Agricultural Engineering at Central Campus as well as to the progressive farmers. The students appearing for MPSC and other competitive examinations are greatly benefited by the services of University Library. The University Library has been shifted to its new building in December 1980. The four-storied building is having length of 117 feet and width of 130 feet. The carpet area of all four floors is about 35,640 sq.ft. The building has a capacity of stacking five lakh volumes and can accommodate 250 readers at a time. As on 31.03.2003, the University Library had a collection of 91,901 documents in the field of agriculture and allied subjects. Details of the same are as under:

ARIS - The project "Agricultural Research Information System (ARIS)" is being implemented to bring information management culture to National Agricultural Research System (NARS) so that agricultural scientist can carry out research more effectively by having systematic access to research information available in India as well as in other countries, better project management of agricultural research, and modernization of the office tools. The basic infrastructure required required for linking all ICAR institutes has already been created. The E-mail connectivity has been established to 72 out of 86 ICAR institutes by linking through dial-up including six institutes with VSAT connectivity using NICNET and ERNET services.

ARIS has four information modules namely:

• ARPIS - Agricultural Research Personnel Information System
• ARFIS - Agricultural Research Financial Information System
• ARLIS - Agricultural Research Library Information System
• ARMIS - Agricultural Research Management Information System

ARIC -The ICAR is also running an Agricultural Research Information Centre as the Central source of information on all research projects and schemes financed by the ICAR. Databases on A.P. Cess Fund Schemes, Deputation reports and research projects of institutions were computerized and updating of the databases is taken up. The ARIC is the national input centre for the AGRIS and CARIS agricultural databases of the FAO, which is the largest information system of its kind in the world. The ARIC is also the national focal point for the SAARC Agricultural Information Centre (SAIC). It has published several directories in addition to a half-yearly Directory of conferences, seminars, symposia and workshops in agriculture. It is being upgraded to provide on line uplinking and downlinking facilities to the ICAR system, and to the agricultural information system of the entire world.

Research - The MPKV has released number of varieties of important crops of the region. These varieties are further developed and tested rigorously at the testing/verification research centres of the University as well as on the farmers' fields under different agro-climatic conditions. Some of the varieties are very popular and has increased the remarkable production in this State as well as in the country. In addition to crop varieties, the University has developed numerous techniques in all the fields of related agricultural sciences. Research is one of the important activities of the University. The research programme is organised through 4 main research stations and 21 sub-stations located throughout the jurisdiction of the University. There are 172 research projects funded through ICAR, Govt. of India, State Govt. and other funding agencies in the country and abroad. The operational area of the University is divided into five zones on the basis of agro-climatic conditions. To strengthen the location specific research programmes, the ICAR has sanctioned National Agricultural Research Project (NARP) for these zones viz., i) Scarcity zone, ii) Plain zone iii) Sub-montane zone iv) Ghat zone and v) Assured rainfall zone.

Agricultural Extension - Agriculture must continuously move forward for which adoption of newer methods of farming becomes imperative. The University helps in assessment of refinement of latest agricultural technologies to be disseminated to farmers, extension functionaries and other agencies involved in development of agriculture. University has constituent and affiliated Krishi Vigyan Kendras (KVKs) which are located in each district. The University has recently launched innovative technology assessment and refinement project for institute cum village linkage programme (IVLP). The concept is based on participatory mode, ensuring greater scientists cum farmers linkage in predominant bottom-up approach. Considering role of women in Agriculture and allied activities, the University has also undertaken the programme for training and involvement of women in agriculture.

Central Farm - The central campus at Rahuri is the seat of the Mahatma Phule Krishi Vidyapeeth which provides agricultural facilities relating to land and cultivation of crops. The central campus farm is established in 1968 with the acquisition of the land from adjoining villages. The farm area is situated in revenue limits of villages viz., Rahuri (Kd), Khadambe, Sade, Digraj, Pimpri Awaghad, Varvandi of Rahuri Tahsil. The Director of Farms with the help of supervising staff, security officer and labour welfare officer manages the cultivation of different crops on the entire land except the land for research under the immediate control of Hon. Vice-Chancellor.

Reservation Of Seats - Certain seats have been reserved for the purpose of admission in the college under the provisions of Maharashtra Agricultural Universities (Krishi Vidyapeeth) Act, 1983 and as amended by Government Resolution from time to time.

Study Tours - Study tours for under graduate course of all the colleges are as under, subject to availability of funds.
1.  First year : Maharashtra State
2.  Second Year : South India
3.  Third Year : North India

Sports And Allied Activities - Facilities for sports and allied activities are available at all the colleges.

Hostel Accommodation - Hostel accommodation for a limited number of students is available at the hostels of the colleges of the Universities. Every student admitted to constituent colleges is not necessarily given or promised admission to the hostel attached to that college.

Medals, Cash Prizes And Awards - The medals, awards, and cash prizes are awarded to the meritorious students who top at various Bachelor and Master degree examinations as per the University regulations as approved by the Executive Council.

Scholarship And Concessions - Government of India scholarship to reserved category students, merit scholarship to the children of primary teachers, free studentship to the students of economically backward classes and Freedom Fighter's scholarship, Government of India National Loan Scholarship, Government of India merit cum means scholarship (ICAR) / Government of India post matric scholarship to SC and ST candidate (ICAR) and merit cum means scholarship (Government of Maharashtra) etc. are available at various constituent colleges and will be awarded as per rules in vogue.