District Specialities
1) The first
industrial co-operative venture in Asia
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Ahmednagar ,
the largest district in the State. It
is home to 19 sugar factories
and is also
the birthplace of the cooperative movement. Sugar, milk and bank
cooperatives flourish here. Exactly 100 years ago, a great visionary was
born in deep into the
heartland of Maharashtra. Padmashree Dr. Vithalrao Vikhe Patil was one such
visionary.The pioneer of Cooperative movement was bestowed a Padmashri for
his Contribution to the community he belonged to.
Born in the drought prone district of Ahmednagar in Maharashtra ( Western India ) in an ordinary
peasant family, he was deeply moved by the pathetic condition of the
rural masses. |
But he was also aware of the immense storage of
resources hidden within the humble rural people. which could be tapped to
combat poverty, illiteracy, disease and inertia among the rural masses. He had
made a decision. He had decided to take the lead. His lack of
formal education did not deter him from his chosen path. With his untiring
efforts and the unfliching support from stalwarts like Shri. Vaikunthbhai Mehta
as well as Shri.D.R.Gadgil, the first industrial co-operative venture in
Asia - Pravara Sugar Factory (1948) was started. What started as a small
step, soon developed into an approach that has since been widely recognised as
The Pravara Model of Integrated Rural Development.
He established the first sugar Factory at Pravaranagar for
uplifting socio-economic condition of the farmers. Towards the fulfillment of
the vision of the great son of soil, a mission of educational Institutions were
set up in Loni, Ahmednagar, Pune and Nashik District. Padmashri Dr. Vithalrao
Vikhe Patil Foundation is one of such educational trust.
2) An Ideal village –Ralegaon siddhi
A role model of water
conservation work can be seen at Ralegaon-Siddhi, which is also called the
Ideal Village.
A
success story –
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In 1975,
when Anna Hajare, a retired army man, went back to his village in Ahmednagar
district, Maharashtra, he found the village reeling under drought, poverty,
debt, and unemployment. He decided to mobilize the people and, with the
collective support of all the villagers, he began to introduce changes. Today Ralegaon Siddhi
is being taken as a role model for other
villages by the Maharashtra government and by other
states too. Massive tree plantation has been
undertaken, and hills have been terraced to check
erosion. Large canals with
ridges on either side
have been dug to retain rainwater. |
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As a result, the water table in this
area is now considerably higher and the wells and tube wells are
never dry, making it possible to raise three crops a
year where only one was possible before. The villager's
biggest achievement is undoubtedly in the
area of non-conventional energy. All the streets in the village
are lit by solar lights, each with a separate
panel. There are four large community biogas plants
and one of them is fitted to the
community toilet. There is a large windmill used for pumping water. A number of households
have their own biogas plants. The village is self sufficient . |
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3)
An Ideal village-HIWARE BAZAR
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The
visionaries of the village, along with some youngsters, invited Mr. Popatrao Pawar
for the gramsabha (village meeting). He was unanimously elected as the
Sarpanch after he addressed the need for an all-round development of the
village that touched a chord in the people's hearts.
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The village has managed to beat back drought and fight drinking water problems. In Hiware Bazar, they have implemented a drip-irrigation system throughout the village to conserve water and increase food production, and have avoided water-guzzling crops like sugar-cane and bananas. Soil and water conservation treatments - from contour blocking of rainwater, to afforestation, to trenching on private land, to built earthen structures and percolation tanks - all have played an important role. Together with the green agenda, the reformer in Hiware Bazar have also implemented a program for social change, which involved banning liquor, adopting family planning program, and rendering voluntary labour - called shramadan - to develope their village. Positive results are being reported from the field - the out-migration of villagers to nearby urban areas has been arrested; there is now an influx of families seeking better water, health and economic conditions. For Shri. Pawar, the young man who changed the image of the high-crime village, prone to infighting that was Hiware Bazar prior to 1989, there has been a positive fallout too, personally. He has been elected the village head continuously since 1989 without opposition. "The ban on grazing increased the production of grass from 200 tons in 1994-95 to more than 5,000 tones in 2001-2002," says shri. Pawar. "Likewise, the ban on felling trees has increased the biomass by 900,000 trees. Banning liquor has increased the efficiency of manpower," Villagers in Hiware Bazar also decided at their local council meetings to ban the sale of village land to "outsiders," and make HIV/AIDS testing compulsory before marriage. Shri. Pawar says that their experience
shows it is easier to carry on such work without an influx of big money. |
4) Mahatma Phule Krishi
Vidyapeeth (MPKV)
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The Maharashtra Krishi Vidyapeeth, Rahuri is established on
March 29, 1968 and subsequently named as Mahatma
Phule Krishi Vidyapeeth (MPKV) after a great social reformer "Mahatma Jyotiba Phule". It has
started functioning from October, 1969 at Rahuri, District Ahmednagar,
Maharashtra, India. |
The Campus
is situated 35 kms from Ahmednagar on
Nagar-Manmad highway. The campus is 10 km from Rahuri Railway Station and 110
km from Manmad railway junction.
The basic
mandate assigned to this University are advancement in teaching, research and
imparting extension education to the farmers of the State. There are four
Agricultural Universities in the State , catering the similar services in their
locality. The jurisdiction of Mahatma Phule Krishi Vidyapeeth, Rahuri extends
over Western Maharashtra covering ten districts.
The University has two faculties
namely Agriculture and Agricultural Engineering. The under-graduate and
post-graduate programs are offered
in both faculties.
The University also deals with lower agricultural education
through Agricultural Schools, Mali Training Centre and Training's for Livestock
Supervisors.
The University has a very good network of research stations
spread over different agro-climatic zones. In all 23 research stations, 4 State
level specialists and 16 research testing/verification centers are located in
different agro-climatic zones in addition to 4 Zonal research stations.
Of the three fold functions, it is
mandatory on the part of the University to transfer the technology from the
research centers to the ultimate users through extension education program.
5) Sanctuary for Black-Buck
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There is a sanctuary for Black-Buck at Rehkuri in the Karjat
taluka of the Ahmednagar district. The total area of the sanctuary is 340 hectares, wherein exceeding 400 black bucks and 300 Chinkara antelopes can be seen. The total sanctuary, is surrounded by agricultural cultivation outside. Many a times it used to happen, that the antelopes destroyed the crops. It was hence that a fence which gives a mild shock generated from solar means is raised along the sanctuary borders. |
6) Maldhok( The Great
Indian Bustard) Bird Sanctuary
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Beautiful
birds called the great Indian bustard (Maldhok) which is not seen at any other place
is seen in Karjat, Shrigonde, Nevase talukas.
This region has been declared a sanctuary for these birds. The sanctuary
occupies space of nearly 300 hectors. September to December is the best
period to visit. |
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7) Vehicles Research & Development Establishment
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The
history of Vehicles Research & Development Establishment dates back to
1929, with the inception of ‘Chief Inspectorate of Mechanical Transport
(CIMT) at Chaklala (now in Pakistan) in 1947, the Establishment was shifted to Ahmednagar and was renamed
as Technical Development Establishment [Vehicles], popularly known as TDE
[V]. In 1962, the Engineering Wing was separated with the establishment
of an independent establishment at Pune, named as R&DE (Engrs).
Further in 1965, the activities were bifurcated between ‘R&D’ and
‘Inspection’ and two separate establishments viz. Vehicles Research &
Development Establishment (VRDE) and Controller ate of Inspection Vehicles
(CIV), (now known as Controller ate of Quality Assurance Vehicles (CQAV),
came into existence. Click for more |
