The College of Natural Resources (CNR) is a constituent college of the Royal University of Bhutan located at Lobesa in Punakha dzongkhag. Founded in 1992 as the Natural Resources Training Institute and reconstituted as a college in 2003, it offers degree and diploma programmes in agriculture, forestry, animal sciences and related fields.
The College of Natural Resources (CNR) is a constituent college of the Royal University of Bhutan located at Lobesa in Punakha dzongkhag, west-central Bhutan. The campus occupies about 98 acres on the eastern slope above Lobesa and is the country's principal training institution for agriculture, forestry, livestock and renewable natural resources management.[1]
The institution traces its origin to 1992, when the Ministry of Agriculture and Forests amalgamated three existing technical training centres — the National Agriculture Training Institute at Paro, the Royal Veterinary Institute at Serbithang and the Bhutan Forestry Institute at Taba — into a single Natural Resources Training Institute (NRTI) at Lobesa. The merger was supported by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation, Helvetas, and the Royal Government of Bhutan. NRTI joined the Royal University of Bhutan as a constituent college in 2003 and was renamed the College of Natural Resources.[2]
CNR plays a central role in Bhutanese agricultural extension. Most extension officers serving in the country's 205 gewogs and 20 dzongkhag agricultural offices have studied or trained at the college, and the institution is closely linked to the research and policy work of the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock.
Origins and the 1992 amalgamation
The three predecessor institutes had been established at different times. The National Agriculture Training Institute at Paro had operated from the 1960s; the Royal Veterinary Institute at Serbithang trained livestock and animal-health workers; and the Bhutan Forestry Institute at Taba, near Thimphu, prepared forest rangers and field officers. By the late 1980s the Royal Government had concluded that consolidating the three into a single residential institution at a central location would improve teaching quality, reduce duplication and allow integrated training in renewable natural resources.
The Lobesa site, on a south-facing terrace above the Punatsangchhu valley, was chosen for its mild climate, agricultural suitability, and proximity to Punakha and Wangdue Phodrang. The new institute was inaugurated in 1992 with combined intake from the three predecessor programmes, and Swiss-supported technical assistance underwrote much of the initial curriculum development and faculty training.
Transition to a Royal University college
When the Royal University of Bhutan was federated in 2003 by Royal Charter, NRTI was one of the colleges brought under its umbrella. Reconstituted as the College of Natural Resources, it was authorised to offer degree-level programmes in addition to its traditional diploma and certificate courses, and it began phasing in Bachelor of Science programmes in agriculture and forestry from the mid-2000s.
Programmes
CNR's academic structure is built around departments covering agriculture, forestry, animal sciences, sustainable development, food science, and rural development and communications. The college offers Bachelor of Science programmes in Agriculture, Forestry, Sustainable Development, Animal Science, and Organic Agriculture, together with a Bachelor of Science in Food Science and Technology. Postgraduate programmes include the Master of Science in Natural Resources Management.[3]
CNR also continues to offer diploma-level programmes for in-service extension officers. Research themes pursued at the college include high-altitude agriculture, organic farming, forest pathology, livestock genetics, agroforestry, soil science and climate-resilient agriculture.
Campus and student life
The Lobesa campus has classroom blocks, laboratories, demonstration farms, livestock units, a forestry nursery, library, hostels and a cafeteria. Hands-on fieldwork on the demonstration farm and at partner gewogs is integrated into most undergraduate programmes. Total student enrolment is typically around 600 to 800.
The college maintains research and exchange relationships with regional and international partners including the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD), various Indian agricultural universities, and a number of European agricultural and forestry institutions.[4]
Practical information
- Location: Lobesa, Punakha dzongkhag, Bhutan (approximately 140 km from Paro by road)
- Affiliation: Constituent college of the Royal University of Bhutan
- Established: 1992 as Natural Resources Training Institute; reconstituted as CNR in 2003
- Website: www.cnr.edu.bt
References
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