Vijayawada:A Fodder Bank and Skill-Based Training Facility, supported by IndianOil under its CSR Program, was inaugurated today at theLivestock Farm Complex, NTR College of Veterinary Science, Gannavaram, Vijayawada by Mr. R S S Rao, Executive Director & State Head, IndianOil – Telangana & Andhra Pradesh in the presence of Dr. T. Ravikumar, Associate Dean, NTR College of Veterinary Science, Dr. C H Venkata Sesiah, Prof. & Head, Livestock Farm Complex, NTR College of Veterinary Science, Mr. Phani Rammohan, Chief General Manager (HR), IndianOil and Mr. G. Swaminathan, General Manager (CSR), IndianOil.

The Fodder Bank and Skill based training facility for youth and farmers is a Rs.50 Lakh project, set up for mitigating fodder scarcity and for improving food and employment security in the surrounding areas. It is set up on2.2-kilometer tank bund and in about 10 acres of plain landat the Livestock Farm Complex of NTR College of Veterinary Science.

The primary objective of this project is to support sustained feeding of cattle and buffalo during the periods of fodder scarcity to avoid significant drop in milk production,leading to economic loss to the rural dairy farmers. The rural women / farmers can get the silage bales from the fodder bank as and when there is a fodder shortage. Each fodder bale weighing about 50-60 kg is sufficient for one dairy animal for 2-3 days.

High yielding locally adaptable green fodder varieties like Hybrid Napier grass (Super Napier), Guinea grass, COFS 29 and fodder trees like Moringa, Subabul and Sesbania are planted as part of the Fodder Bank to ensure year-round fodder availability. Around 2000 tons of green fodder is produced every year both from the bund and the land.

The fresh green fodder is passed through a customised sileage making equipmentwhich cuts and compresses the fodder which is stored in the form of silage bales. The silage bales stored in the fodder bank are used for distribution to landless, marginal, and small dairy women farmers whose livelihoods depend on cattle and buffalo rearing.

Apart from the Fodder Bank, a classroom has also been constructed under this project to imparttraining programmes for about 200 unemployed youth and women per year in areas of livestock and fodder production, thereby empowering them to settle as livestock entrepreneurs.

This project would yield multiple socioeconomic and environment benefits including:

·      promoting employment

·      enhancing vocational skills & livelihood enhancement

·      empowering women

·      ensuring environmental sustainability

·      maintaining quality of soil, air and water, animal welfare

·      rural development projects