Garhwal Post Bureau
Dehradun, 28 Sep: The ICAR-Indian Institute of Soil and Water Conservation (ICAR-IISWC), Dehradun, today launched a three-day national training programme on “Artificial Intelligence and Data-Driven Approaches for Sustainable and Climate-Resilient Natural Resource Management”. The training is being conducted in hybrid mode from 28 to 30 September.
The training was formally inaugurated by Dr Shakir Ali, Director, ICAR-IISWC, Dehradun. Scientists, faculty members, government officials, researchers, students and professionals from different parts of the country are participating in the programme through physical and online modes.
Dr Shakir Ali highlighted the increasing importance of Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning and data analytics in addressing emerging challenges related to climate variability, soil degradation, water resources and sustainable natural resource management. He emphasised that AI-based approaches should be supported by sound domain knowledge, quality data, field validation and responsible interpretation.
The programme has received an encouraging response, with nearly 500 applications received from across the country. Following the selection process, 143 participants—36 attending physically at Dehradun and 107 participating online— are taking part in the training. Participants represent more than 20 States and Union Territories and include scientists, university faculty, government officials, project experts, research scholars and students.
The three-day programme comprises ten technical sessions covering emerging applications of AI and data-driven approaches in natural resource management. Major themes include land use and land cover classification, deep learning and computer vision for crop protection, time-series analysis, GeoAI, remote sensing and GIS, soil quality assessment, climate-change vulnerability assessment, digital soil mapping, climate analytics and predictive modelling, RAISINS, and AI services developed by the National Informatics Centre.
The training places strong emphasis on hands-on learning, with participants gaining practical exposure to R, Google Colab and RAISINS, along with machine learning, deep learning, GeoAI and predictive modelling techniques.
The programme brings together nine eminent resource persons from seven leading organisations, including ICAR-IASRI, IIRS-ISRO, ICFRE-Institute of Forest Productivity, Kerala Agricultural University, National Informatics Centre, UPES and ICAR-IISWC.
The inaugural session included a welcome address by Dr Bankey Bihari, Course Director, an overview of the programme by Dr Sadikul Islam, Course Co-Director and Coordinator, the introductory address by the Chief Guest, and a vote of thanks by Dr. Rajesh Kaushal, OIC, PME & KM Unit and Course Co-Director. The session was anchored by Dr Trisha Roy, Senior Scientist and OIC, Central Laboratory.
