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January - 2015 - Special issue > College of the Year 2014

School of Agricultural: Lovely Professional University

SI Team
Thursday, January 22, 2015
SI Team
Branded as "the back bone of an economy," Agriculture contributes the highest percentage of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of any developing country. However, the rapidly growing population in India has resulted in large-scale demolition of our agricultural lands. Hence, the domestic production of agricultural commodities is decreasing gradually and it has become inevitable for the country to spend more money on importing the same. In this scenario, it is imperative to study and practice agriculture from the grassroots level of formal education as it is one of the key sectors of the Indian economy. Eventually, when schools embark on micro agric industries within their premises, skillful youths will certainly rise to the occasion. Managing commodities and ensuring that its flow is accurately distributed, takes a certain degree of understanding. Considering its pivotal nature, the need of the hour is to bring more courses on food management in Indian Universities specifically to train the youth for a better tomorrow. Catering to this need, School of Agriculture (SAGR) at Lovely Professional University (LPU) has more than 1000 students on the roster thereby contributing significantly towards the development of trained human resource professionals in agriculture and allied fields.

"Agriculture is now science, it is no more a traditional trade that generations pass on to each other. Understanding the gap between the availability of knowledge to the people and the demand required by the country, this program is an essential one," says Ashok Mittal, Chancellor, LPU. Agriculture research and education have played a key role in increasing food grain production in several states of India. This has also led to notable contributions in increasing livestock, poultry and milk and honey production. The School of Agriculture at Lovely Professional University focuses in carrying out research in agriculture and allied fields to impart resident instructions in different disciplines. Under innovative pedagogy, faculty members lay emphasis on case studies and inter-personal based teaching. With an experienced and dedicated faculty in the field, the mission of the school is to prepare globally competitive professionals. Research and innovation to meet the future challenges in agriculture to ensure global food and nutritional security is the school's prime priority.

"The School of Agriculture has distinguished faculty from all the disciplines of agriculture who are highly experienced and mostly engaged in consultancy, research and publication to add immense value to the academic life by sharing experiences and suggesting growth steps time to time," says Mittal. Adopting many mandates, which are practiced by faculty members, the focus on quality research and teaching is carried out. Identifying a location's specific problems and major constraints in agriculture development, the school develops suitable techniques for natural resources conservation and management. Today LPU School of Agriculture aims to perform the integrated functions of teaching, research and extension in agriculture, with a different approach. Ensuring that food is managed well by the capable students, the school focuses on teaching management for the supply and demand.

Career and placement opportunities in agriculture

"There are great job aspects for these courses and we help the students through our Division of Career Services to achieve a better career graph," says Mittal. The division of agriculture is very vast. This is the one factor, which makes employability easier when compared to other fields of science as students of agriculture can be employed in multiple industries. Industries from fertilizers, pesticides and seeds are the highest recruiters of these candidates. Various government departments also offer jobs in administrative services and as R&D personnel, Food Scientist, Food Development Manager, Quality Control Officer, Sensory Scientist and Food Safety Auditor. There is always a flexibility to become an independent entrepreneur or consultant as well. Students can further enter academic fields, like research expert or educational organizations.


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