Chaudhary Sarwan Kumar farm varsity’s journey to academic excellence
Established on November 1,1978, Chaudhary Sarwan Kumar Himachal Pradesh Krishi Vishvavidyalaya, Palampur, has stood as a beacon of excellence in agricultural education, teaching, research and extension.
Since its inception (then christened College of Agriculture), the university has grown into a prestigious Indian Council of Agricultural Research-accredited university with four constituent colleges, specialising in agriculture, veterinary & animal sciences, community science and basic sciences.
These colleges offer an array of academic courses — 7 bachelors, 26 masters and 15 doctoral degree programmes. In 2024, the university received an ISO 9000-2015 certification from TATA consultancy, and was named in the National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF) rankings. The varsity stands at the 19th position among agriculture and allied sectors, and 15th among State Agricultural Universities.
At present, there are over 2,000 students studying in the four constituent colleges of the university. In 2024 year, 535 students were admitted to the university, and 435 students completed their degrees.
The university is committed to providing easy and faster access of academic records to its students, and, in this direction, the university has initiated the process of digitising students’ academic records by adopting the process of Academic Bank of Credits (ABC).
Automated Permanent Account Registry (APAAR) IDs of about 1,500 students were created in 2024. The year the students of the university were also a part of the NAARM-Hyderabad entrepreneurship development programme.
The university’s students also excelled in various competitive exams this year, with 62 students passing the SRF exam, 17 qualifying for NET and over 40 students bagging various scholarships.
Furthermore, 63 students cleared the NCC “C” Certificate test, and 72 students passed the NCC “B” Certificate test. Over 75 students were placed in various government and private organisations, and Tarun Kamal brought laurels to the university by cracking the UPSC examination. The main research focus of the university is in the areas of crop production, protection, post-harvest technology, livestock production and management, animal disease diagnostic and health services, and women and youth empowerment.
This year, much of the university’s research was focussed on chemical-free agriculture, hydroponics, value addition, development of drought and disease resistance varieties of various crops, conservation agriculture, mushroom cultivation, and use of nanotechnology and drone technology in agriculture. During 2024, 22 improved varieties of different crops and 7 farm technologies have been recommended for the farming community of the state, with a focus on natural farming. Research efforts for soil profiling up to micro levels are in process.
Nano ZnO (zinc oxide) has been bio-synthesized and characterized from HARAD plant and chemical synthesis of nano ZnO has also been done. This year, the university successfully grew ‘Gherkin’, a new vegetable crop.
The university is also addressing contemporary agricultural challenges with the help of the 35 All India Coordinated Research Projects and 87 adhoc projects.
Apart from this, 59 MoUs for academic and research collaborations with government and private agencies are operational at the university. Recently, 23 MoUs with private agencies for seed multiplication were made operational. A MoU was also signed with the Army to impart entrepreneurship training for wards and family members of armed forces personnel.