Agriculture

India is agro-finance based country. Agriculture is the main sources of financial standard in Indian village life. About 80% Indians are living in rural & semi-urban areas whose occupations are agriculture or equivalent.

In that case everyone should extremely focus on agriculture, because agriculture produces raw materials of production unit. Production is the measurement scale of economic standard of a nation.

We at Heritage foundation believe that Agriculture is the backbone of Indian Economy. Industrial reformation will make India a super power, but without a strong Agricultural portfolio, the foundation will be weak. We strive to integrate the entire technological enhancement in the agricultural sector with the current infrastructure available. We believe that we can and we will make every Farmer, an agricultural scientist. With the help of technology, automation, biochemical, and many more innovation we can make India shine again.

We are working independently and also under guidance of government projects to fulfil our dream of “New India” and “Organic India” in case of agriculture for optimizing Indian agricultural natural resources. We have arranged awareness camp for farmers & farmers’ club to inspire them to cultivate seasonal crop, varieties crop cultivation by following crop chain. That may develop the quality or yielding power of soil. We can aware farmers about the organic manure, fertilizer, usefulness of cow-dung, compost manure. We will suggest to use organic medicine & vitamins for crop & vegetables or animal husbandry.

National Agricultural Innovation Project

Agriculture is and will continue to be the main driver of country’s economic growth with social justice. Our agriculture did extremely well and it was on the ascendancy till the mid-nineties but after that the growth slowed down. Since 1996-97 the growth rate of agricultural GDP has been, on an average, 1.75 % per year in contrast with the rate of 4% that is required. On the other hand the farmer has been facing rising input costs, declining returns from the inputs, uncertain market, increasing role of market in agriculture and blurring of distinction between the domestic market and the international market. To assist the farmer in these changing contexts new strategies and innovative solutions are urgently required which in turn will require technological support. Hence the agricultural research system which generates technologies, has to conduct the business of agricultural research in an innovative way. The World Bank aided National Agricultural Innovation Project (NAIP) has been conceived to pilot this innovation in conducting agricultural research.

The Basic Principles:

• To give the agricultural research and technology development system an explicit development and business perspective through innovative models. In other words, the agricultural research system should be able to support agriculture as a business venture and also as a means of security of livelihood of the rural Indian while maintaining excellence in science.
• To make the National Agricultural Research System a ‘pluralistic’ system where every Organization having stake in agricultural research: public, private or civil society, has to play a role.
• Working in well-defined partnership groups with clear common goals and understanding on sharing responsibilities and benefits.
• Funding through competition so that a wide choice of excellent innovative ideas come in from the stakeholders themselves.
• Work with focus, plan and time frames.

We have developed well-tested models for application of agricultural research and technology for profitability of farming, income generation and poverty alleviation. Presently with association of the resource persons of Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Department of Agriculture, Bidhan Chandra Krishi Viswavidyalaya (BCKV), Kalyani University and Kochi University (Japan) we are trying to fulfil our dream for the sustainable development of Indian agriculture and agricultural food products as well as agricultural industries and want to address the unemployment question by employment generation through Agricultural and industrial development.

We, the Heritage Foundation initiate the betterment of Indian Agriculture through our core research works on:

1. Awareness programme on farming to the farmers
2. Training for the farmers for best outputs
3. Uses of Bio-Fertilizers in organic farming
4. Employment generation through skill development training
5. Training on Betel, Pea nuts and local crops farming
6. Training on food processing & Preservation
7. Training on agricultural product marketing and branding
8. Increase of GDP (Gross Domestic Product)
9. Training on water resource preservations etc.

Aqua-culture & Pisciculture:

Aquaculture, also known as Aqua farming, is the farming of fish, crustaceans, molluscs, aquatic plants, algae, and other aquatic organisms. Aquaculture involves cultivating freshwater and saltwater populations under controlled conditions, and can be contrasted with commercial fishing, which is the harvesting of wild fish. Mari culture refers to aquaculture practiced in marine environments and in underwater habitats.

According to the FAO, aquaculture "Farming implies some form of intervention in the rearing process to enhance production, such as regular stocking, feeding, protection from predators, etc. Farming also implies individual or corporate ownership of the stock being cultivated." The reported output from global aquaculture operations in 2014 supplied over one half of the fish and shellfish that is directly consumed by humans; however, there are issues about the reliability of the reported figures. Further, in current aquaculture practice, products from several pounds of wild fish are used to produce one pound of a piscivorous fish like salmon.

Particular kinds of aquaculture include fish farming,

• Shrimp farming,
• Oyster farming,
• Mari culture,
• Alga culture (such as seaweed farming), and
• The cultivation of ornamental fish.
• Particular methods include aquaponics and integrated multi-trophic aquaculture, both of which integrate fish farming and plant farming. Fish farming or Pisciculture involves raising fish commercially in tanks or enclosures, usually for food. It is the principal form of aquaculture, while other methods may fall under Mari culture. A facility that releases juvenile fish into the wild for recreational fishing or to supplement a species' natural numbers is generally referred to as a fish hatchery. Worldwide, the most important fish species used in fish farming are carp, tilapia, salmon, and catfish.
• Demand is increasing for fish and fish protein, which has resulted in widespread overfishing in wild fisheries. China provides 62% of the world's farmed fish. As of 2016, more than 50% of seafood was produced by aquaculture.
• Farming carnivorous fish, such as salmon, does not always reduce pressure on wild fisheries, since carnivorous farmed fish are usually fed fishmeal and fish oil extracted from wild forage fish. The 2008 global returns for fish farming recorded by the FAO totalled 33.8 million tonnes.
• Growth is limited by available food, commonly zooplankton feeding on pelagic algae or benthic animals, such as crustaceans and mollusks. Tilapia filter feed directly on phytoplankton, which makes higher production possible. Photosynthetic production can be increased by fertilizing pond water with artificial fertilizer mixtures, such as potash, phosphorus, nitrogen, and microelements.
• Another issue is the risk of algal blooms. When temperatures, nutrient supply, and available sunlight are optimal for algal growth, algae multiply at an exponential rate, eventually exhausting nutrients and causing a subsequent die-off. The decaying algal biomass depletes the oxygen in the pond water because it blocks out the sun and pollutes it with organic and inorganic solutes (such as ammonium ions), which can (and frequently do) lead to massive loss of fish.
• To tap all available food sources in the pond, the aqua culturist chooses fish species which occupy different places in the pond ecosystem, e.g., a filter algae feeder such as tilapia, a benthic feeder such as carp or [catfish and a zooplankton feeder (various carps) or submerged weeds feeder such as grass carp.
• Despite these limitations, significant fish farming industries use these methods. In the Czech Republic, thousands of natural and semi-natural ponds are harvested each year for trout and carp. The large ponds around Trebon built from around 1650 are still in use.

We have been closely associated with eminent personality in the field of Research and Development in Aquaculture. One of our main association is as follows:

DR. JATINDRA NATH BHAKTA, Ph. D.


Our mentor Dr. Bhakta is Associated with International Centre for Ecological Engineering (ICEE), University of Kalyani, India and Kochi University, Japan. He has been awarded prestigious Postdoctoral Research Fellow of the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS), Japan. Dr. Bhakta worked as Researcher Faculty in the Department of Environmental Engineering and subsequently in Research Institute of Molecular Genetics, Kochi University, Japan. He has research experiences and more than fifty publications in the following research areas: Ecological engineering, Environmental engineering, Environmental microbiology, Probiotic bacteria, Bioremediation, Biofuel, Environmental dynamics & risk assessment in coastal aquaculture, Wastewater treatment, Reclamation of aquatic environment (wastewater and eutrophic wetlands), Fisheries & aquaculture and Limnology. He is a editorial board member and reviewer of number of reputed international research journals published by reputed international publishers. He is associated with nongovernmental organizations, Kalyani Shine India, Kalyani, WB, India and Heritage Foundation Trust, Kolkata, WB, India with the mission of upliftment of socioeconomic status of rural sector in India by disseminating the scientific knowledge for educating the rural people in respect to environment, health and agriculture in practical field.




Horticulture:


"Horticulture is the growing of flowers, fruits and vegetables, and of plants for ornament and fancy." Simply put, horticulture is the art and science of plant production for both beauty and utility.

Research & Development has been one of our primary focus. We encourage research activities, education and development which are relevant and are of primary interest of the horticulture in rural sectors. We conduct seminars and conferences from time to time in rural Bengal to disseminate knowledge on all new developments in the sphere of Horticulture. Our research team devotes much time and energy in Research & Development Activities for improvement of horticultural crops such as high yielding fruits, vegetables, flowering, medicinal and ornamental plants. Workshops are also organized to create awareness amongst the general public on Home Gardening, Herbal Medicinal Plants, Bonsai Culture, Ikebana Style Floral Decoration, Mushroom Growing and Roof Gardening.

Our major Research & Development Activities consists in 2 areas:

• Basic Research
• Bio Diversity



Vermicomposting:


Vermicompost is an organic manure (bio-fertilizer) produced as the vermicast by earth worm feeding on biological waste material; plant residues. This compost is an odourless, clean, organic material containing adequate quantities of N, P, K and several micronutrients essential for plant growth. Vermicompost is a preferred nutrient source for organic farming. It is eco-friendly, non-toxic, consumes low energy input for composting and is a recycled biological product.

Earthworms have been on the Earth for over 20 million years. In this time they have faithfully done their part to keep the cycle of life continuously moving. Their purpose is simple but very important. They are nature’s way of recycling organic nutrients from dead tissues back to living organisms. Many have recognized the value of these worms. Ancient civilizations, including Greece and Egypt valued the role earthworms played in soil.

Darwin said,

“It may be doubted whether there are many other animals in the world which have played so important a part in the history of the world.”

The solid waste generated in any area if left to rot would eventually deteriorate the environment and would become public nuisance. Our researchers have developed an efficient waste disposal system by culturing the lowly earthworm in an appropriate environment. The process allows for the safe conversion of waste into a valuable nutrient rich humus fertilizer-Vermicompost.

We conduct workshops and awareness programmes in rural and urban areas to spread its benefits and motivate people for a better waste management practice.