Reference Manual Of Digital Competency, New Tools and Software for Efficient Computer Applications

Abstract

In light of the recent surge in digitization within agriculture, the scientific and technical personnel of the council require specialized training programs aimed at enhancing their digital competencies. This is essential to keep them abreast of the latest tools and software for efficient computer applications. Notably, software such as Microsoft Excel, R, Python, and DBMS plays a pivotal role in analyzing data derived from various agricultural experiments. To address this need, ICAR-IASRl conducted a 7-day HRM-approved training program titled "Digital Competency, New Tools, and Software for Efficient Computer Applications" for the scientific and technical staff of ICAR from January 03-09, 2024. The primary objective of the program was to furnish participants with a comprehensive understanding of tools widely employed in developing cutting-edge digital solutions for agriculture. Through hands-on practical sessions, participants were expected to enhance their proficiency in navigating and utilizing these tools and software. The program also featured demonstrations of popular e-governance initiatives of ICAR, IT applications for NARES, KRISHI (Agricultural Knowledge Resources and Information System Hub for Innovations), Al-DISC (Artificial Intelligence-based Disease Identification System for Crops), and NARES-BLP (Blended Learning Platform) commonly used by the Scientific and Technical staff associated with ICAR. This training manual serves as a handy reference for participants to review the topics covered in the course. These include the development of Google forms, basics of Python, techniques for data handling and visualization, and statistical data analysis using MS-Excel and R. The manual also covers planning and designing of agricultural experiments using R, development of web applications and mobile applications, database management systems, and cyber security, among other topics.​