IIT Guwahati Puts Soil Health Tools Directly in Farmers' Hands Across the Northeast

A North Eastern Council-sponsored initiative brings together scientists, administrators, and farmers to scale up soil carbon monitoring across the region.

Published 30 March 2026 | Category Community & Outreach | Office School of Agro and Rural Technology

The School of Agro and Rural Technology at IIT Guwahati hosted a one-day Training and Capacity Building Workshop on March 27, 2026, marking the launch of a major collaborative effort to improve soil health management across India's northeastern states.

The event brought together senior government officials, agricultural scientists, and farmers for hands-on training on the Soil Carbon Kit — a practical field tool designed to help farmers measure and manage soil organic carbon.

The workshop was attended by Dr. Ravi Kota, Chief Secretary to the Government of Assam, who served as chief guest, alongside Prof. Devendra Jalihal, Director of IIT Guwahati; Dr. M.S. Lakshmi Priya, IAS; and Dr. Kadirvel Govindasamy, Director of ICAR-ATARI Zone VI.

Prof. Sudip Mitra, Head of the School of Agro and Rural Technology and Principal Investigator of the project, anchored the academic and scientific dimensions of the programme.

A centrepiece of the event was the distribution of Soil Carbon Kits to participating farmers by Dr. Kota, who urged them to collect soil organic carbon data carefully and systematically, under the guidance of Krishi Vigyan Kendra scientists. Interactive sessions and hands-on training gave participants practical exposure to soil assessment techniques, GIS applications, and field-level implementation methods.

Sponsored by the North Eastern Council and implemented in collaboration with ICAR-ATARI Zones VI and VII and KVKs across the region, the initiative represents a concerted push to move soil science out of the laboratory and into the field — placing research-backed tools directly in the hands of the farmers who need them most.