NAMSAI, 10 Sep: The Namsai Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK) conducted a participatory rural appraisal (PRA) activity in Momong village in Namsai district for the students of Pasighat (E/Siang)-based College of Horticulture and Forestry (CHF) and agriculture faculty members of the AUS here on Thursday.

The village is adjacent to the KVK, and has been adopted under the rural horticultural work experience (RHWE) of the CHF.

The students were briefed on the PRA activity by KVK scientist Dr Madhumita S Bora, AUS faculty member Dr Shravani Sahani, Chikithya Mounglang and Dr Oyem Kombo, following which they formed small groups, including three farmers each. The students then interacted with the farmers to understand the socioeconomic and agricultural conditions of the village. The interaction was facilitated by Nancy Mounglang, who is local to the area.

The students went around the village on a transect walk, after which they drew a social map, resource map, and venn diagram of the village along with the villagers, indicating the important institutions and their relative distance for the farmers. They also identified major crops cultivated by the farmers of the village, and important resources like river, and irrigation channels.

Through the exercise, the students, as well as the villagers, gained a comprehensive understanding of the agriculture scenario in the region.

Based on this, the students suggested certain improved techniques for the farmers. Winter vegetable seed kits developed by the IARI were also distributed among the farmers.

A total of 75 people, including students, facultymembers, KVK staff, and villagers participated in the programme.