Dr. Panjabrao Deshmukh Krishi Vidyapeeth

Dr. Panjabrao Deshmukh Krishi Vidyapeeth (PDKV or PKV) is an agricultural university located at Akola, in Maharashtra, India, in the Vidarbha region. The university is entrusted with the responsibility of agricultural education, research and extensio y of agricultural education, research and extension education along with breeder and foundation seed programmes. Its jurisdiction includes all eleven districts of Vidarbha namely Akola, Amravati, Bhandara, Buldhana, Chandrapur, Gadchiroli, Gondia, Nagpur, Washim, Wardha and Yavatmal. The Central Campus is at Akola while another major campus is at Nagpur and a new campus has been established at Garchiroli.In the mid-1960s, Maharashtra government decided to establish agricultural universities. One such location was at Akola in Vidarbha, where there was already a functioning agriculture college since 1905. However, leaders from Western Maharashtra prevailed on the Maharashtra government to shift it Rahuri in Western Maharashtra. As a result, Government of Maharashtra shifted the State Agril. University to Rahuri in Western Maharashtra by end of 1966. This led to an unprecedented student protest in Akola, and provoked an angry response from citizens of Vidarbha, who viewed it as one more act of discrimination against them. It may be remembered that on 1 November 1956, a part of Madhya Pradesh consisting of eight districts of Vidarbha had been merged against the local people's wishes and the recommendations of the States Reorganisation Commission into the erstwhile State of Bombay, which was later transformed in the State of Maharashtra on 1 May 1960. The people of Vidarbha resented this merger, and saw the shifting of the Agriculture University from Akola to Rahuri as an act of deliberate discrimination and favouritism. On 17 August 1967 in Akola, thousands of people demonstrated against this government's decision finally resulting in of the massive violent agitation of the Students in which 9 students were shot dead by the police.[citation needed] The agitation ended after the government of Maharashtra relented not to shift the Agricultural University to Rahuri. The agitation also marked the beginning of Jambuvantrao Dhote's period in Vidarbha's statehood struggle. Finally the Agricultural University at Akola was started on 20 October 1969. It was named after the illustrious son of Vidarbha Dr. Panjabrao (alias Bhausaheb) Deshmukh, who was the Minister for Agriculture, Government of India, as Panjabrao Krishi Vidyapeeth. It was renamed as Dr. Panjabrao Deshmukh Krishi Vidyapeeth from 15 November 1995. ...view more