Everything You Need to Know About the Agricultural Technology Management Agency Scheme

Agricultural Technology Management Agency Scheme

ATMA aims to make extension systems more farmer-driven and accountable by establishing new institutional arrangements for technology and farm machinery dissemination in the form of an Agricultural Technology Management Agency (ATMA) at the district level to operationalize extension reforms.

 ATMA is actively supported by farmers/farmer groups, NGOs, Krishi Vigyan Kendras (KVKs), Panchayati Raj Institutions, and other stakeholders at the district and sub-district levels. The ATMA scheme releases funds based on State Extension Work Plans prepared by state governments.

The goal of the Agricultural Technology Management Agency

The ATMA seeks to achieve the following goals:

• Creating new, well-structured, and centralized institutions at the state, district, and village levels.
• Using innovative and effective operational procedures to strengthen the already existing extension system.
• Decision-making should be simplified and decentralized to the district and block levels.
• Moving closer to the viability of extension services.
• Encourage farmers to participate in programme planning, coordination, and resource sharing to increase their responsibility.
• Strengthening the connections between key government departments, research organizations, and stakeholders.
• Providing a structural mechanism for the coordination and supervision of various institutions involved in technology modification and distribution at the district and village levels.
• Improving the type and quality of technology distributed.
• Collaboration with third-party institutions such as NGOs and Panchayat Raj Institutions, among others.
• Implementing farming system innovations and farmer organization to overcome technological differences and poor natural resource management.
• Addressing gender issues by forming groups of women farmers and providing them with advanced training.
• The availability of technical advice on new practices and technologies to farmers under ATMA has resulted in greater/rational use of new practices and technologies.
• ATMA provides an institutional mechanism for the coordination and management of the district's Agricultural Extension System.

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Activities of ATMA

ATMA began in seven states: Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Himachal Pradesh, Orissa, Punjab, Jharkhand, and Maharashtra. Following its successful implementation, the scheme is now being implemented in 676 districts across 29 states and three union territories in the country. It carries out the following activities to achieve its goals of benefiting farmers.

• Creating a dependable Farmer Advisory Committee to collect and improve feedback from farmers to State Agricultural Universities (SAUs) and the National Agricultural Research System (NARS).
• All Non-Governmental Organizations operating in UTs, States, Districts, or Villages are grouped.
• Educating and training farmers on technological advancements through the involvement and encouragement of private institutions.
• Certifying and improving technologies at the district and block levels through research units.
• Improving the planning process to increase productivity.
• Providing additional training to stakeholders and assisting them in achieving global competence.
• forming more farmer's groups and reinforcing them with new ideas and methods
• Creating new collaborations between the public and private sectors.

Allotment of Funds

• The Central Government provides 90% of the fund as a grant-in-aid to all States/UTs, while the State Governments provide 10%. The State Government's 10% share is made up of cash contributions from the state as well as contributions from other beneficiaries and non-governmental organizations.
• The scheme has been sanctioned for a total of Rs.226.07 crores. The funds are allocated and distributed in an agreed-upon ratio among the Centre, State, and District.
• The District level programmes are funded with a 77.53% allocation, which amounts to 167.56 crores.
• A total of 22.15 crores, or a sharing ratio of 10.25%, is distributed to carry out state-level programmes.
• The Central Government has set aside 12.22% of the total budget, which amounts to 26.41 crores, for other operational activities.

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