Garhwal Post Bureau
Dehradun, 30 Sep: The three-day national training programme under the “ICAR Reform Utsav” on “AI and Data-Driven Approaches for Sustainable and Climate-Resilient Natural Resource Management”, organised by ICAR-Indian Institute of Soil and Water Conservation (ICAR-IISWC), Dehradun, concluded today with a valedictory function. The programme ran from 28 to 30 September 2026 in hybrid mode.
Dr. J.M.S. Tomar, Head, Plant Science Division, ICAR-IISWC, was the Chief Guest at the closing ceremony. He distributed certificates to the trainees who attended in physical mode. In his address, he congratulated the participants and encouraged them to apply AI, machine learning and data analytics tools to real-world challenges of soil, water and watershed management in their institutions.
The programme received about 500 applications from across the country. A total of 143 participants were selected: 36 attended in person at Dehradun and 107 joined online. They included scientists, faculty members, officers, research scholars and other professionals.
Over three days, experts from ICAR-IISWC, ICAR-IASRI, IIRS-ISRO, ICFRE-IFP Ranchi, UPES, NIC Uttarakhand and Kerala Agricultural University delivered lectures and hands-on sessions. Topics included GeoAI for GIS and remote sensing, AI-based land use and land cover classification, deep learning and computer vision for crop protection, time-series analysis and soil quality assessment using R, digital soil mapping, climate change and social vulnerability assessment, climate analytics and predictive modelling, the RAISINS analytical tool, and AI services developed by NIC.
Feedback from the physical-mode participants was highly positive. The programme received an overall rating of 4.64 out of 5, and all respondents said they would recommend it to others. 96% reported improved knowledge of AI and data analytics for NRM, and interaction with resource persons was the highest-rated aspect (4.82 out of 5). Participants particularly appreciated the hands-on practice with real data and the sharing of code and datasets, and requested longer programmes and a foundation course in R in future.
The programme was conducted under the guidance of Dr. Shakir Ali, Director, ICAR-IISWC. Dr. Bankey Bihari served as Course Director, Dr. Rajesh Kaushal as Course Co-Director, and Dr. Sadikul Islam as Co-Director and Coordinator. The technical and supporting team included Er. Amit Chauhan, Mangal Singh Chauhan, Sonia Chauhan and Meenakshi Pant.
