ICAR-NISA was established in 1924 as Indian Institute of Natural Resins and Gums, in Ranchi, Jharkhand. It was renamed in 2022 as ICAR-NISA and comes under Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare. 

Secondary Agriculture 

• Secondary agriculture includes the value addition of primary agricultural products as well as other agriculture-related activities like beekeeping, poultry farming, agricultural tourism etc. 
  • It refers to all practices/processes that convert agricultural produce, residues and by-products into high value commodities for pharmaceutical, industrial, medicinal and specified food uses. 
  • Secondary agriculture is a broad term including both food and non-food processing.
• Examples: Extraction of vitamins from grains and oil from rice bran, production of jaggery from sugarcane, cottage scale unit for making jams, pickles etc. 
• Growth Potential: 
  • Consumer demand for value-added products like ready-to-eat and functional foods. 
  • Requirement for use of unconventional renewable agro-bio resources. 
  • Large quantities of agricultural byproducts. 

Significance of Secondary Agriculture

• Environmentally sustainable: Crop residues and agricultural waste can be utilized properly instead of being burnt or dumped. 
• Farmer’s Income: Better economic returns from activities like beekeeping, lac culture, etc. 
• Value Addition: Enhances shelf life and increases total productivity. 
• Cottage Industry: Promotes agriculture/rural and cottage industries and usage of technology.