आईसीएआर–सीसीएआरआई, गोवा ने किसानों में कार्बन बाजारों के प्रति जागरूकता बढ़ाने के लिए ‘कार्बन पाठशाला’ का आयोजन किया
ICAR-CCARI, Goa organizes Carbon Pathshalato create awareness among farmers on carbon markets
The ICAR–Central Coastal Agricultural Research Institute (ICAR–CCARI), Goa, in collaboration with Core CarbonX Solutions Pvt. Ltd., Hyderabad,and GIZ’s Climate Adaptation, Resilience and Climate Finance in Rural India (CAFRI II) Project, organised a one-day “Carbon Pathshala: Voluntary Carbon Market (VCM) for Farmers” and stakeholder consultation on 21 August 2026 at ICAR–KVK, Old Goa. The programme was organised under the project “Potential of Plantation-Based Systems in Generating Carbon Credit through Biochar Production in the West Coast Region of India”. Addressing the farmers, Dr. Parveen Kumar, Director, ICAR-CCARI, encouraged them to explore emerging carbon-credit opportunities, highlighting their potential to provide additional income while protecting the environment and benefiting future generations.Dr. A. R. Uthappa, Senior Scientist (Agroforestry), ICAR-CCARI, explained the ongoing pilot project in Kulagar systems and the potential to convert farm and plantation residues into biochar. He highlighted that biochar can improve soil health while generating carbon-credit opportunities for farmers.The major attraction was a hands-on demonstration of biochar production using a portable biochar unit, conducted by Dr. Sandip Mandal, Senior Scientist, ICAR–CIAE, Bhopal, enabling farmers to learn practical methods of converting agricultural residues into biochar.Mr. Sandeep Kanda, Agriculture Carbon Market Expert, Core CarbonX Solutions Pvt. Ltd., delivered a session on “From Farm to Carbon Credit: Understanding the Carbon Markets, Carbon Project Cycle, and Agriculture’s Potential.”Around 100 farmers from Keri, Priol, Madkai, Cumbarjua and Karmali villages participated in the programme. The initiative aimed to build capacity and provide technical support for integrating women and smallholder farmers into agricultural VCM pilots, while creating awareness on carbon markets, carbon sequestration, sustainable soil management and biochar-based carbon credits.The programme was coordinated by Dr. A. R. Uthappa, Dr. Sujeet Desai, Dr.Bommayasamy N. and Dr. Gopal Ramdas Mahajan. The initiative marks an important step towards promoting farmer-centred carbon projects, sustainable residue management and biochar-based carbon opportunities in Goa and the West Coast region.