The University of Illinois plans to collaborate with the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) in the areas of animal husbandry, food technology and agricultural engineering, among others. For this, the two will sign a memorandum of understanding (MoU) tomorrow. “ICAR has some concerns related to agriculture and the collaboration will see how we can address those concerns. We are having a series of conversations with them to create a framework for discussion on the use of information technology (IT) in agriculture, agri-business, agriculture marketing and finance,” said Robert Easter, chancellor and provost (interim) at the university.
Easter will also meet Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar after the MoU is signed.
Moreover, the varsity is also scouting for partnerships in the industry. Easter will meet IT giants Tata Consultancy Services, Infosys Technologies and Wipro during his visit to Bangalore, Mumbai and Pantnagar.
“IT can be used in agriculture to facilitate water management, logistics in the supply chain and help the farmers in the pricing and marketing the produce,” added Easter.
