Department of BioChemistry - St. Joseph's College for Women, Vizag: March 2024

Thursday, March 21, 2024

Field trip to RARS

Field trip to RARS

Date- 21^st March, 2024

Faculty Coordinators- Dr P. Mary Anupama, Head, Dept of Biochemistry and Dr Mousami Shankar Addala , Assistant Professor, Department of Biochemistry

Target group: 3^rd BBC and 2^nd BBC

REPORT

The Regional Agricultural Research Station is located on Anakapalli – Chodavaram road 40 Km from Visakhapatnam. It has a total of 103 acres land. This Research station does contribute to sugarcane cultivation, sun hemp (green manure), Biofertilizers, Biopesticides and soil analysis. The field trip started with introduction to the cultivation methods adopted at RARS, and how the crops are maintained. As it was a harvest time for sugarcane, the scientist took the team to sugarcane crushers. Sun hemp was cultivated and it was also in its harvest time. In general, the sun hemp after it is grown to certain height it is crushed into soil as it is green manure. At RARS, it is grown and seeds are harvested for distribution.

Then visited biofertilizer manufacturing unit. They grow Rhizobium, Anabaena and Azotobacter species. The equipment shown were autoclaves, laminar airflow and Bioreactors of upto 1000L capacity. Biopesticides introduction was given to the students and emphasis was on encouraging natural pesticides.

Jaggery manufacturing process was shown to the students. Crushing and pans used for concentrating cane juice and moulds were exhibited. Advanced automated machines were shown and another boiler which runs by gas was also shown.

In the soil testing unit various equipment used for soil analysis like Flame photometer, calorimeter, water distillation units, Atomic Absorption spectrophotometer etc were shown.

Total duration of stay was from 10.15am to 2.0 PM.

The students were later were taken to a tourist spot Bojjannakonda which has Buddha status carved on stones for 30 minutes and the team returned back to college campus by 4.30 PM.