Low external input sustainable agriculture - Leisa India

Shaping the changeagents of futureShreena Keswani, Neha Upreti andGaurav PapnaiVSM is a unique model of development wherein youngurban farm graduates are moulded to bring about achange in the agriculture scenario as change agents.This model based on ethics and social values is helpingshape the lives of many young people making themsocially responsible, professionally sharp andnationally proud.Its evening at Pantnagar when students and faculty tend to retreatto their hostels and residences after classes. But it seemsto be jubilant in the educational technology cell of theDepartment of Agricultural Communication where about fortystudents are still hanging around with some interesting task. Theenvironment is cheerful and energetic. It is a Public SpeakingWorkshop where a group-process is in advanced stage. A peer groupreview of performance of each student, supported with criticalcomments of faculty members and self-analysis through videoreplay is going on in a tension-free environment. By the end,students get a complete analysis of their performance areas identifiedas strengths as well as deficiencies over which they will work inhostel to come prepared the next day.‘It’s a regular routine for us’ tells Dr.Shivendra Kashyap, AssociateProfessor in the Department, who is looking after activities ofEducational Technology Cell. ‘Its really encouraging to see studentschanging drastically by these scientific approaches of personalitymanagement. They are performing excellently even at nationalplatforms. Our students have won National Cooperative Debateof NCCT continuously for last five years and National Elocutionof National Agricultural Science Congress for last two years besidesmany other national achievements.’He reveals that the personality management programmes ofPantnagar are designed not merely for employability andperformance enhancement but for integrated development of lifeincluding ethical and spiritual being. ‘The bigger concern is thatof outlook and attitude of youth; speaking skills is merely aperipheral element. Ultimately, we are preparing developmentagents who are expected to work at grassroot level’, he adds.The genesis of Vivekanand Swadhyay MandalIndia has a vast youth population with great energies. But the energyof India’s youth is largely getting scattered instead of beingconcentrated in developmental efforts due to plethora of problems.The awakened and conscious youth is the only enduring resourcewho can find solutions to the varied problems of the country lyingin the path of social and economic development of masses. Thesituation implies that a major task in front of the nation today isgenerating conscious, responsible and visionary youth who canlead the nation out of her multiple challenges earmarked in themillennium development goals. But the task of youth leadershipgeneration is not an easy one.Believing that the awakened and conscious youth is the onlyenduring resource of a nation, Vivekanand Swadhyay Mandal,popularly known as VSM, started working in Uttarakhand withthe hub at Pantnagar University since 1999. The vision behindVSM approach is that the youth have inherent excellence whichrequires manifestation through proper environment orconsciousness. To achieve this vision, a unique model based onvaluing and promoting growth and learning, collaboration,inclusivity, diversity, openness, creativity, flexibility, innovation,and harmony has been standardized. VSM has the mission ofshaping the lives of young people to make them socially dedicated,nationally proud, spiritually active and professionally sharp. VSMundertakes different kinds of activities round the year but with acentral goal of evolution and growth of competent change agentsamong youth masses.The replicable working modelThe model is broadly based on the following major assumptions,which are the guiding principles of VSM.• Leadership development is important because it providesmembers of a group with the skills, knowledge and abilitiesthey need to more effectively work together to deal with issuesfacing a community or group26LEISA INDIA • MARCH 2011