A workshop was organized by Livelihood Alternatives, a social enterprise working with farmer- groups, SHGs and Youth of Odisha. The workshop was organized in collaboration with Siksha 'O' Anusandhan and Socratus Foundation as knowledge partners. The event brought together over 200 farmers from 17 districts, representing over 45 Farmer Producer Companies (FPCs) across different agro-climatic zones of Odisha.
The primary objective of the workshop was to align with the vision of Viksit Odisha @2036 and to formulate a comprehensive roadmap reflecting the challenges, aspirations, and opportunities of Odisha’s agrarian community. It served as a platform to amplify the voices of farmers, facilitate inter FPO dialogue and integrate their insights into future agricultural policy and planning. The workshop was an attempt to make agriculture an aspirational enterprise for the new generation of farmers. Key themes of discussion included input and production management, post-harvest challenges, market linkages, and the growing impact of climate change on agriculture.
The workshop was graced by a host of distinguished dignitaries, including Dr. Kamal K. Tripathy, Joint Secretary of the Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister; Dr. Bibhu P. Nayak, Professor at the Tata Institute of Social Sciences and Member of the Odisha Finance Commission; Prof. Sukanta Nanda and Prof. Subhakant Pati from IIT Bhubaneswar; Dr. Ramesh Biswal and Ms. Surekha Routray, noted social entrepreneurs.
The discussions and deliberations captured the various deficiencies, challenges and also opportunities in the agriculture sector of Odisha. The workshop represented an experiment in grassroots planning. The outcome would be a comprehensive report to be mentored by the participants from the domain of academia, research, policy making and industry.
The workshop was inaugurated by Shri. Sharada Satpathy, General Secretary, Bharatiya Janata Party. Shri Samir Mohanty, Former President, BJP