As a part of the celebration of the International Year of Millets, 2023, the Department of Botany organized a guest lecture titled ‘Millets: The Miracle Grains’ on 7th September 2023. The objective of the lecture was to familiarise various kinds of millets among students so that they would be able to identify them and understand their cultivation practices and food value.
The invited speaker for the occasion was Smt. Vismita Marathe, Subject Matter Specialist (Agronomy), Krishi Vigyan Kendra, South Goa. Smt. Marathe with her 25 years of experience in the field of Agriculture described the characteristics of various millets, their cultivation practices and the importance of including them in the diet for a healthy lifestyle. She also listed the value-added products that can be made from these millets with a scope for entrepreneurship in the field of food processing and provided links to important websites for the same.
An exhibition of various kinds of millets and value-added products developed from them was arranged by Smt. Marathe. Charts providing the comparative nutritional value of these millets were also displayed.
In all, 60 students and 10 faculty members enthusiastically interacted with the speaker and keenly observed the various exhibits. Dr. Puja Sakhalkar, Assistant Professor, Department of Botany coordinated the programme.