Bhagalpur: A state-of-the-art Farm Machinery Testing Centre (FMTC) at Bihar Agricultural University (BAU), Bhagalpur, has received an approval to start functioning from the ministry of agriculture and farmers’ welfare. A letter regarding its approval was received by the university on Tuesday.
The FMTC, established by the department of agricultural engineering at BAU, will be used for comprehensive tests of all types of agricultural machinery, including tractor-operated, power tiller, and manual and animal-drawn implements, to ensure quality, reliability and compliance with govt standards, said BAU vice-chancellor (VC) D R Singh.
Underlining the importance of FMTC, the BAU VC said that they aim to provide easy access to high-quality machinery and boost agricultural productivity through reliable and tested equipment for the farmers.
“We have collaborated with Northern Region Farm Machinery Training and Testing Institute at Hisar, Haryana, and North Eastern Region Farm Machinery Training & Testing Institute in Assam for hands-on training of the FMTC personnel and stakeholders. This collaboration aims to further enhance their technical skills and capacity vis-à-vis Sub-Mission on Agricultural Mechanization guidelines, as per the ministry of agriculture and farmers’ welfare, the BAU VC said.
Rajesh Kumar, in charge of Kisan Vikas Kendra at BAU, said that the FMTC will serve the farmers of Bihar by helping them adopt mechanisation and innovation in farming.
Director of research at BAU, Anil Kumar Singh, said that the facility of FMTC will also serve the researchers in optimizing farm yields.