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Sri Lankan Minister impressed with bio-village projects

Special Correspondent

He hopes to try out the experiment of the MSSRF in his country Tissa Vitharana visits the Knowledge Centres of the MSSRF in Pillayarkuppam replicate

Pondicherry: Sri Lankan Minister for Science and Technology Tissa Vitharana has paid compliments to the exemplary efforts and collective approach adopted by the M.S. Swaminathan Research Foundation (MSSRF) at its Village knowledge centres and also bio-village projects in transferring information and technology in Pondicherry to the people at large.

Mr. Tissa Vitharana who led a delegation of experts and visited the hub of Bio-village and Knowledge Centres of the MSSRF in Pillayarkuppam village near here on Thursday told The Hindu after an interaction with the members of volunteers of the Virtual Academy and other projects of the Foundation that he was very much impressed with what he had seen on the premises. He said the transfer of knowledge and technology to the people was taking place as a `voluntary process with active participation of the people themselves.'

Mr. Tissa Vitharana said that the people were gaining self-confidence and also ability to emerge out of poverty and the whole exercise was being accomplished as a collective approach associating the people in the village.

Good approach

The Minister said that the experiment seen in MSSRF sponsored bio-village and knowledge centres in promoting mutual help among the people was really impressive.

He said such an approach was good as it was avoiding lop sided development.

`I have learnt a lot from my visit and hope to try out the experiment of the MSSRF in Sri Lanka on my return to my country,' he asserted.

He thanked the Chairman of the MSSRF and renowned agricultural scientist M.S. Swaminathan and his team of staff for having made possible his team's visit to the projects here. The Programme Director of JRD Tata Eco Technology Centre of MSSRF Chennai Sudha Nair and the Site Coordinator of the Information Village Research Project of the Foundation K G Rajamohan explained to the visiting team the activities of the project, the Virtual Academies, promotion of self help groups and also implementation of the bio-village programmes for uplift of the poor. Mr Rajamohan acquainted the delegation with the experiment of Information Communication Technology benefiting rural areas for socio-economic development of the rural people. The endeavour to bridge the digital divide was also bearing fruit covering the people coming under below poverty line category. He explained the programmes implemented to benefit the villagers in farm-based hamlets and also in coastal villages in Pondicherry over the years.

The needs of farmers and also the fishermen were also being met through Internet connectivity.

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