WHAT THE F(abric)?

Everything in India was so cheap for us Americans because of the exchange rate. Even when our driver Santosh told us that we got “cheated” we didn’t really care. The relative price was still cheap. Our dollar stretched a good way no matter what we bought. In conclusion, everyone bought soooo much stuff!!!! But what to do with it now that we are home? Especially the fabric?

I now sit in my dorm-room and to my right is my suitcase. Yes, it still has my sandals and various other warm weather articles in it. No, I do not plan on fully unpacking it and putting it away anytime soon. Yes, it has been almost a month since my return from India. Whatever!!!!! I like looking at it! It reminds me of the great trip I had (and I have a Bio test next week so I rationalize not unpacking by saying “I have to study”).

I also found that unpacking creates a problem. I have to find a place for all of the new stuff I got! And by stuff I mostly mean fabric. I can wear the extra long leggings and I can wear the tops, but where should I keep everything else? In my dorm-room I have yards of turquoise jacquard and a patterned doti I was planning on turning into a skirt. At home I left a full queen size piece of ikat I still have to sew into a real comforter. There’s also the pillow cases that match the bed cover and a sari. A SARI. what am I supposed to do with a SARI in America? Wear it? Haha image me, a pale, 5’9″, curly haired girl walking to class in her embroidered orange sari, winter coat, bean boots, and backpack? Not happening! Because the ikat (which is an amazing product) was at such a good price I bought two different sized table covers too. They’re pretty big. I don’t even have a table! I told my mom she could use them until I get my own place (haha “my own place”), but I’m sure they’re still folded in a pile with my sari and bed cover exactly where I left them in the living room because my mom doesn’t know where to put them either.

Alas, life goes on. It is now nearly one in the afternoon and I should change to go to the library and study Bio. So I will get up from my desk, step around my suitcase, move my jacquard fabric off of my folded t-shirts and onto my jeans, put on my bangles and extra long leggings and scoot.

Courtney A. FitzPatrick

One of my memorable trips I ever had!!!

I am really excited in writing the reflection paper for IARD 6020, which is one of my most memorable trips that I ever had! My tour along with my Cornell friends and faculties was a new experience. In fact, IARD 6020 has fulfilled all the requirements of the students of varied groups and personally I am extremely satisfied with this course. I was exposed to different faces of rural Indian agriculture which I never had before.

I was involved in Rural Infrastructure group and the places we visited in India were Chennai, Coimbatore, Ooty and Hyderabad. The trip commenced with the welcoming classical dance of Tamilnadu, ‘Bharata natyam’. Tamil Nadu Agricultural University is one of the prestigious universities in the country, pioneer in agricultural research and also strives hard to make new things and technologies to reach even the remote rural villages of the country. I am proud to be the student of such a great institution. We had the opportunity to join the first convocation ceremony of the Dual degree program offered by Cornell and Tamil Nadu Agricultural University. It was really a great success. Though Uzhavar sandhai at Coimbatore is my regular place of visit, this trip was of more fun and informative. It is the place where, the farmers sell their produce directly to the consumers and the market price of each produce are fixed by the authorities of the market. The farmers get good profit out of their sale due to the absence of middle men and the consumers are also happy with their fresh produces from the market. Dr. Rohini of DEMIC cell from TNAU provided an insight into the price forecasting of the agricultural produces and also about the advantages of e-communication in the scenario of Indian agriculture. Animal husbandry department of TNAU enlightened the students with the farming of cattles, poultry, goats and piggery.  Dr. Selvaraj, from Horticultural research station, Ooty attracted student’s attention with his ideas on panchakavya and Dr.cow. The lecture on the varied health benefits of different medicinal crops, mushroom cultivation and vermicompost was fascinating. His theory on meditation and yoga was really awesome.

I really enjoyed the tea plucking competition which was a new experience and an unforgettable one too. The visit to the tea factory was really informative about the different processes involved in tea manufacturing and also about manufacturing of best quality tea. Our trip to the floriculture unit really fascinated me about the construction of green houses and the cultivation of various beautiful ornamentals. The learned the techniques of plantation time and cultivation for better profit .In fact, I gained a good knowledge on establishment of a very good and a successful floriculture unit. The school which was involved in cleaning up the city from plastic wastes was mind blowing. I was impressed over the social consciousness of the young students on protecting the natural environment. The poly house build by the students is really appreciable.

ICRISAT, International Crop Research Institute for the Semi Arid Tropics is a nonprofit and non political organization which is involved with research in the development of five major crops namely, Pigeon pea, pearl millet, ground nut, chick pea and sorghum. Its research theme comprises of agro ecosystem development, Harnessing biotechnology, crop improvement and its impacts. Visit to Kothapally village was a great experience, where we gained a good knowledge on watershed management. We were exposed to the functioning of different self help groups in the village and also had a very good interaction with the people of the village. At the National Institute of Rural Development (NIRD), I was amazed by the different housing models, processing of agri produces and pearl production and designing at the rural level. Pochampally Handloom Park enlightened us with the traditional aspects and techniques of weaving. I realized the importance of people involved in weaving and also the significance of the role of textiles in India.

I really enjoyed the trip and thank the faculties involved in making the trip a great success. Thanks again!

 

Down The Memory Lane – IARD 6020 (Reflection Paper)



India with its rich vernacular tradition has a constant rise in population and food security is threatened by myriads of issues. Agriculture and other allied activities constitute the single largest component of grass domestic product and contribute a fair share in the Indian economy. I was very much interested to learn about the crop production patterns, infrastructure facilities and technology adoption by the farmers in rural India. Being a part of the rural infrastructure group helped me gain an insight into the agricultural activities and rural area development programmes. I also learnt about the initiatives taken by the government to improve the rural livelihood.

IARD programme on the whole was very much organized and the different groups catered to the varied interests of the students. I have provided a gist of my experience during the trip. The trip has definitely brought enlightenment in more ways than one.

TNAU (Tamilnadu Agricultural University) ,dating back to the British rule in India is one of the premier agricultural universities in India and offers various services thus transforming the lives of the farmers. The services offered include research and extension activities in agriculture, training programs to the farmers and agri portals. The concept of export and market intelligence cell of TNAU is of great help to the farmers by disseminating market and price information and helping them get a better income from their crop output. This service has been designed in such a way that it reaches out farmers in rural areas.Uzhavar sandhai, alternate scheme of marketing the produce of the farmers without the involvement of middlemen is a novel concept in southern India and should be carried out to the northern states also.

I have been to Ooty several times earlier but this visit was an experience by itself.Dr.Selvaraj gave a detailed account of the herbal remedies from medicinal plants in Nilgris but am not sure how far the concept of “Dr. cow” is efficient. Earthtrust(NGO) targets people from tribal communities and other rural areas in the Nilgris by involving them in organic agriculture and help them earn their livelihood by vermicomposting and other allied agricultural activities. I was very much impressed by the school children in a small village near Lamb’s rock who take so much trouble to collect the plastic litter from the tourist spots and preserve the environment. In the age where children are just glued to TV and addicted to computer games, these kids were really different and were concerned about respecting mother nature. I was very much impressed by the poly-houses that they had constructed with the plastic bottles and realized that the earth has to be treated kindly to gain maximum benefits of its resources. The visit to the floriculture unit made me realize that knowledge is only secondary and the owner of the carnation plantations was a mere laborer who persevered hard to start up his own business and was making a good income out of it.

ICRISAT (science with a human face) , aiming to serve the poorest of the poor researches on crops like pigeon pea. Chick pea,small millets and pearl millets and focuses on agricultural productivity and crop improvement. National Institute of Rural Development offers various trainings and workshops to people from rural areas such as honey making, making of pearl ornaments, construction of houses at low cost, silkworm rearing etc…The watershed development programmes that are implemented in villages around Hyderabad brings them many favors like improvement in the groundwater levels, restoration of eroded soils, crop rotation, improvement of agricultural technology, increased and improved animal husbandry, more green fodder to the milch and draught cattle leading to the improvement of the quality of life in rural communities. Akashayapatra, an organization providing mid-day meals to the school children is rendering a good service to the rural community and help children to overcome malnutrition by atleast providing a single meal per day.Pochampally handloom park provides means of living for majority of the rural poor by training them to weave in the traditional way.

Apart from the educational experience that I gained through this programme, the entire trip was so much fun and had a great time with the Cornell students. We had a great time visiting many places of interest, shopping with them and what not. So IARD 6020 is a total success and would like to thank our organizers and sponsorers for providing us this worthy experience.

Reflection on Factory Extremes

India is a country where extremes abound.  Our factory visits proved to be no exception.  Having read some horror stories of apparel sweatshop conditions in developing countries, we braced ourselves for the worst. In many cases, however, we were pleasantly surprised. Pioneer Embroideries & Lace Manufacturers welcomed us with flowers and fresh coconuts. Large, well-lit rooms housed their massive embroidery machinery separated by wide, marked walkways. Women in brightly colored saris walked back and forth, monitoring the machinery from a safe distance while others sat at tables in small clusters refilling bobbins. The workers did not seem tired or stressed and cheerfully obliged our ceaseless photos. We observed a similar environment in their quality control and lace facilities as well. We were equally impressed with Alpine knits the following day. In the one facility we visited, they carried out all stages of production from yarn to final garment. Imported knitting machines were ventilated to prevent dust accumulation. The entire facility was incredibly clean with wide aisles and doorways free of obstructions. The only things perhaps distracting from the order were the streamers and other paper decorations still up from the holidays, and even those were neat and strategically placed.

Inevitably, we also came across some factories that would not have passed inspection. In one dye plant, we found ourselves dodging bins and piles of fabric, particularly unnerved as we walked through puddles of water surrounding giant metal vats filled with caustic soda. That same day we visited a steamy printing factory with dye stains and handprints on almost surface. A few members of our group almost stepped into a vacant elevator shaft in search of the restroom. At a different dying/bleaching facility, we had the opportunity to see the water treatment area. Proudly touting their microbial water treatment system, the manager led us through a room with pipes and hoses jutting out from all directions. It smelled strongly of sulfur and tubs of water/chemicals balanced uneasily on piles of bricks. The floor was a wet jigsaw puzzle of broken tiles littered with reddish-brown water and rusty tools. Fiber Science Professor Juan Hinestroza commented that had he known what to expect, he wouldn’t have let us go inside. A later knitting facility was an asthmatic’s nightmare (especially in comparison to Alpine). We were shocked not only by the amount of dust in the air but by the piles of dust clinging to machines and windows.

We noted that the safer and cleaner factories (like Pioneer and Alpine) were those focused on the export market. They have contracts with large American and European companies and know that their continued business relies on meeting the rigorous international standards required of their customers. Domestic producers lack the incentive and perhaps the financial stability to make health and safety their top priority. Long-term contracts with international apparel companies are not only beneficial for the Indian Economy but positively affect the working conditions for Indian workers.

Jen Keane

Finally here comes my reflection paper!!

IARD trip over South India was one of the most memorable trips in my life. I had a chance to mingle with people from western culture and we had a great time together. In fact we had tons of fun at Shilpa Ram, streets outside Taj Deccan, ICRISAT and Chaminar. I saw this trip as an opportunity to learn new things apart from educational point of view. Visits to industries gave us the real picture of how technical ideas are conceptualized and how they are made economically feasible. I am so glad that I was able to have a great time with my American friends in my country. I have made few notes on the visits we made during this trip in following paragraphs.

We were taken to the ‘e’-Extension centre of TNAU. ‘e’-Extension team aims at extending technology from labs to field by means of information Technology. They developed Agri tech portal which is a kind of small database containing complete information on agriculture and are developing other information technologies to help farmers directly. Then we were given a brief idea about the incubator at TNAU. It was fascinating to hear the success stories and in particular the case study of a woman who developed meat like vegetarian product for vegetarians. Post Harvest Technology centre of TNAU is furnished with processing equipments worth 2 crores and are open to budding entrepreneurs as an effort to develop them.

Visit to coir pith institute was very informative. Value addition to coir pith is developing recently with many innovative ideas. Apart from ropes and floor mats, recently coir is employed in making wall hangings, furniture, artistic dolls, jewelries, bags, hats and even over coats. Coir pith is compressed by means of a latest technology and is made into blocks similar to wood. Their strength is equal to wood was very amazing and this can be attributed to recent technologies. Production of compost, substrate for bioethanol production and green house tent making are few other processes where coir pith is employed. Nano science study on fiber quality is one of the most fascinating ongoing researches of the institute. A research scholar is involved in analyzing the nano fibre strength of coir. All the researches are found to be well equipped with sophisticated equipments including GC-MS.

Incubator of ICRISAT is one of the best of its kind and their effort is commendable. So far they helped many small entrepreneurs to reach next level of growth and had been the backbone for release of their products in market. They support them by arranging fund, giving ideas, finding market, in product development and improvement.

Pedigree which comes under the network of a huge company called MARS, is a pet food manufacturer and in India they are located at Hyderabad. They manufacture tons of dog food with strict quality control procedures. One thing which impressed us was organization of the company, innovations in product development and their growth. In India, it is a recently developed product in the market and I was very excited to visit the place where the food of my pet is manufactured.

Synthite is one of the interesting places we visited. It is a large oleoresin producing industry in India and they own six manufacturing units around South India. Their present area of research interest which I liked is study of effect of gingerol and curcumin on cancer and use of super critical CO2 for secondary metabolite extraction and decaffeination. Super critical CO2 extraction unit seen costs about 5 crores and it uses 800kg of black pepper to produce a similar volume of oleoresin as produced by solvent extraction method by using 12 tons. This information was quite impressive.

Our visits to Mangala Marine and Suguna poultry gave us a vivid picture of preprocessing as a measure of value addition of chicken and marine products. Mangala Marine, a marine product processing industry located at Cochin mainly concentrates on exporting their products to other countries. Industry maintains a set of standards to process prawns to make them fit for export quality standards. Suguna chicken, poultry industry located on outskirts of Coimbatore is one of the major retail sellers of chicken meat in TamilNadu. They have their special breed of chicken which has tender meat and hence they have a special recognition in the market. They process and pack around 35,000 chickens a day. The industry is well maintained with proper sanitation and equipped with cold storage units.

Reflection Paper

Reflection paper

“All journeys have secret destinations of which the traveler is unaware.” – Martin Buber

IARD trip was the most wonderful journey I have ever had in my life. The trip was really an eye-opener and unique in its own ways.  We learnt, experienced and analyzed the real life situation of India.  Being from the value addition group, I was able to analyze the present status of India in Food Processing and the challenges and hurdles faced by the food industries. Throughout the tour, I was really astonished to see the way India is utilizing its biggest resource -“Manpower”.

Educationally, the trip covered almost all the aspects of food processing and value addition, involving raw material production, processing, waste management, byproduct utilization, marketing etc.  We visited TNAU Post Harvest Technology Center and ICRISAT where we learnt the concept of Agribusiness incubator, which helps young entrepreneurs to open a new venture. The visit to Farmers Market was very informative where we learnt about a novel intervention by Government of India to prevent the exploitation of farmer by minimizing the number of middleman in the supply chain. This reduces the post harvest losses and provides maximum returns to the farmer. We also visited some processing industries such as Suguna poultry, Mangla Marine Exim Limited, Synthite spice company, Mars India Ltd. (Pedigree) where we learned about the various unit operations involved in the processing of food products and effluent management. The most amazing visit was CRI visit where we saw the different ways to do value addition of coir (a waste product from coconut).  We saw various products such as cocolawns, coco logs and coir nets to prevent soil erosion, door mats, coir wood, necklaces, coats, net houses etc. developed by the R&D facilities in the institute.

Socially, we got a chance to learn both Indian and Western culture. We really enjoyed exploring India with our friends from other countries, as we critically analyzed the issues prevailing in India, which we never thought of. Group discussions, dance preparation, presentations etc. helped us to interact and share our thoughts with each other. I personally believe that I gained a lot more knowledge about the United States during IARD trip then when I was at Cornell. Therefore this trip intellectually developed my thought process and helped me learning the two countries educationally, socially, culturally and traditionally.

Shashank

 

Powerpoint Slides for Talk on Agricultural Credits and Microfinance

Here are the Powerpoint presentations from the talk on Agricultural Credits and Microfinance given by Mr. Vijay Mahajan.

Agri Credit and Microfinance – Cornell Univ

Microcredit is Dead – Long Live Livelihood Finance