The present study was undertaken on the yearlings of female specimens in C. punctatus (Bloch) from two different resources i.e. natural and captive environments. It consisted of the assessment of gonadal development and maturity in the specimens from reservoir and field ponds. Parameters studied were Gonadosomatic indices (GSI) and Hepato-somatic indices (HSI), condition factor (CF) and Somato-condition factor (SCF). The main objective of the study was to compare the gonadal development and associated changes in natural as well as captive conditions. In present study, spawning season in C. punctatus in captive condition and nature varied from April to September possibly due to different ecological as well as food available in different condition might be the most possible reason. GSI in female specimens from both the sources followed an increasing trend and reached at peak during June –August (highest in the month of June i.e. 3.4463 in captive and 3.8393in natural conditions while it was lowest in the month of January i.e. 0.1365 in captive and0.3877 in natural conditions) and has significant difference between spawning and pre spawning
phase. The level of higher spawning activity exhibited in nature during March to late June, while in captive condition during June to August. The difference in periods for peak spawning/ maturity/ GSI in nature seem
to be correlated with the difference in natural (genuine) food available and physicochemical as well as environmental parameters in both the conditions. HSI values in female sex have negative/inverse relationship (lowest HSI in June 0.7984 in captive conditions and 0.7631in nature while highest during December 1.5925±0.091in captive condition and 2.5103±0.22 in nature) with GSI simultaneously. The condition factor in female specimens from nature and captive conditions was recorded in higher range during pre-spawning to spawning phase while it was observed at its lowest during post spawning phase in both the conditions.

The rainfall data for 40 yr from 1978 to 2017 of the rainfed tropical islands of South Andaman district of Andaman and Nicobar group of islands were analyzed to find out the weekly effective rainfall. Weekly and monthly effective runoff was calculated by following the US Soil Conservation Service – Curve Number (SCS-CN) method. The value of weekly effective rainfall and monthly effective runoff at different level of probabilities was obtained with the help of ‘FLOOD’ software. The sum of effective rainfalls of standard meteorological weeks from 18th to 48th gives the value of fresh water resource availability during kharif season and the same value at 80 percent level of probability was estimated to be 2.07 X105 ha.m. The sum of expected runoff of every month resulted due to the effective rainfall gives the water resource availability during rabi season and its value at 80 percent level of probability was found to be 4.8 X 103 ha.m. All these information will immensely help the farmers, policy makers, planners and researchers to prepare a comprehensive crop action plan for the South Andaman district to make the agriculture profitable and sustainable.

Zanaskar is famous for its traditional way of Churpy making. Farmers are not using any kind of machine in the entire process of Churpy making nor any preservative for its packaging. Women plays a vital role in the whole process of Churpy making. This residue free Churpy is now a days in huge demand especially in the Buddhist dominated areas of Leh and fetches handsome money in the local market. Tribal people of Ladakh prepare various types of indigenous milk products using their traditional knowledge. Among them Cheese (Churpy) is one of the important by product of female Yak milk (omha), and one of the important nutritional foods of Ladakh. Farmers usually remain busy with processing of various traditional milk products, such as butter, cheese (churpy), curd etc. in traditional ways and preserve them for winter.

Fruit processing industry produces large quantities of fruit peels as waste material which causes environmental
pollution if not recycled carefully. There is a vast scope for using fruit peels in animal feed industry, as it contains antioxidants i.e. phenolics and flavonoids compounds that may be used for producing functional feed for animal in improving their health. The main aim of present investigation is analyze the phenolic and flavonoid profile of two fruit peels- litchi and pomelo. For this purpose, Shed dried peels were grounded and dissolved in 80% methanol (v/v) for extraction and were subsequently analysed by HPLC-DAD to estimate their antioxidant capacity. Results revealed that litchi peel contains significantly (P<0.05) high level of total phenolic content than pomelo peel. Detailed report was obtained from the phenolic and flavonoid finger printing. It was observed that syringic acid and kaempferol were the principal phenolic component in litchi peel, where as pomelo peel predominantly contains naringin, kaempferoland myricetin. The study clearly indicate that both litchi and pomelo peels contain various antioxidant molecules that could be strategically used in feed designed for better growth promotion, disease prevention and overall wellbeing of animals.

Tomato is one the most important cash crops of Chatra district of Jharkhand which is grown round the year. However, the improved tomato production technologies have not reached at the farmers’ field. Therefore, A study was conducted to identify the constraints faced by farmers in adoption of the improved tomato production technologies in four purposively selected blocks of Chatra district where tomato was grown round the year. In each block, two villages and 20 tomato growers from each village were selected as respondents, thus making a total of 160 respondents for the study. Constraints identified were grouped into four categories i.e. input, financial, technical and marketing constraints. Results indicated that financial constraints and marketing constraints were most perceived by the tomato growers followed by technical constraints, where the input constraints were perceive least by the tomato growers.

The present investigation was undertaken to study the source from which vegetable growers seek market information and their marketing problems in the khammam district of Telangana. Hundred and twenty farmers were interviewed after following random sampling techniques. The data was interpreted by using statistical tools like frequency, percentage, mean and rank order. Majority of the vegetable growers had low information source consultancy pattern (95.83%) followed by 4.16 per cent medium consultancy. It is inferred that Horticultural Officer (HO) /Agricultural Officer (AO) were mostly consulted by the farmers from formal sources and relatives in the informal sources. Television, newspaper, relatives, friends, input agencies were most preferred sources of information by the vegetable growers.

A study was conducted in the district Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar to evaluate the economic viability of pea based cropping system being followed by the farmers in the area on a large scale. Sample consisted of randomly selected 25 farmers who were following pea based cropping system viz, Paddy- Pea-Wheat, Maize-Pea-Wheat and Bajra (Fodder)-Pea-Wheat. The results showed that highest pea equivalent yield and net income was recorded in pea-wheat-paddy cropping system followed by maize-pea-wheat whereas, lowest pea equivalent yield and net income was obtained where bajra crop was included for fodder production by replacing paddy and maize grain crops. Cultivation of paddy, pea and wheat crops in system led to highest B:C (4.75) followed by maize (4.34) and bajra (fodder) (4.22). From the results, it can be concluded that paddy-pea-wheat cropping system was more economically viable as compared to maize-pea-wheat and bajra (fodder)-pea-wheat cropping systems.

A field experiment was conducted to investigate the effect of integrated nutrient management in maize (Var. RCM-76) and wheat (Var. DBW-14) during the Kharif and Rabi season of 2015-16 and 2016-17 at three villages i.e. Louding, Shakti and Changprong in Tawang district of Arunachal Pradesh. Continuous application of farmyard manure (FYM) and cut paddy straw along with chemical fertilizers improved grain yield and fertility status. Substitution of 50 percent N through FYM and 50 percent recommended dose of fertilizer (RDF) in maize and 100% RDF through inorganic fertilizer in wheat recorded the highest grain yield of maize (3.5 t/ha) and wheat (4.0 t/ha), net return of maize (Rs. 26,250/ha) and wheat (Rs. 36,000/ha) and nutrient uptake (209.2, 30.4 and 196.0 kg N, P and K/ha) in maize – wheat cropping system, respectively. Soil fertility status in terms of pH organic carbon, available N, P and K after two cycles of cropping, fertilizer and manure application were also affected by nutrient management practices. Continuous cropping with combined application of organic manure along with chemical fertilizers was found to be effective not only, for increasing grain yield of crops in maize-wheat cropping system, but also, for higher benefit: cost ratio, nutrient uptake and maintenance of soil fertility status.

Significant differences in raw yield were obtained with the sprinkling of water once a day (525 g) and twice a day (1008 g) on the full grown mycelium bag when no fresh air was supplied, whereas the values were 755 g and 2560g, respectively when fresh air was supplied. The study revealed that majority of trainees (80%) compressed the spawn inoculated wheat straw slightly, 12 per cent of trainees filled spawn inoculated wheat straw too hard and also did not apply water, which resulted in no yield at all. It was evident from the study that filling up of the material, watering and maintaining an optimum temperature seems to be very important for obtaining good yields.

The value addition of fruits and vegetables helps in improving the diet quality by supplying essential nutrient (vitamins, minerals, flavonoids, antioxidants) needed for healthy life style. India is processing only 2-3 per cent of fruits and vegetables for value addition of seasonal food items in the form of jam, pickles, beverages, marmalades, squashes etc. on a commercial scale. Therefore, a vocational training was conducted for the self help group members of rural women (18-45 yr) of Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar, Punjab for a period of 10d at the Krishi Vigyan Kendra campus. The skills regarding the food preservation were imparted to a group of 18 farm women through lectures, demonstration and hand on training for different food products namely mixed fruit jam, pickle, chutney, marmalades, nuggets, papad and squash etc. After completion of the training course, the outcome was evaluated through a questionnaire using appropriate statistical tools like frequency and percentage. The study revealed that 50 per cent of the trainees of self help group adopted value addition of fruits and vegetables on a commercial scale.

The study was conducted to note down the efficacy of preservatives on the shelf life and quality of green chilli pickle. Observation was recorded for a period of one year in order to see the change in colour, flavor, texture and appearance of fungus. Sensory evaluation was done in order to see the acceptability of the product. In the first treatment, chilli pickle was prepared with 5 per cent salt, spices and 10 per cent mustard oil and stored in sterilized bottle. In the second treatment, chilli pickle was prepared with 8 per cent salt, spices and 20 per cent mustard oil and stored in sterilized bottle. In the third treatment, it was prepared with 9 per cent salt, spices and 25 per cent mustard oil and vinegar (10%) and stored in sterilized bottle. In the fourth treatment, chilli pickle was prepared with 10 per cent salt, spices, 30 per cent mustard oil and 0.15 per cent acetic acid and in the fifth treatment; it was prepared with vinegarcured chilli, 10 per cent salt, spices, 35 per cent mustard oil. The result showed that 5th treatment was the best method for extending the shelf life and also for improving the quality of the product.

A field experiment was conducted at Krishi Vigyan Kendra, Sri Muktsar Sahib to find out the suitable cropping system of the district. Twelve different cropping systems were evaluated for their yield and economics. During kharif season three crops namely rice, basmati, cotton were grown including direct seeded rice and basmati. In rabi season three crops namely wheat, barley and rapeseed mustard were grown. Among all cropping system, direct seeded basmati-wheat cropping system gave the higher average rice equivalent yield during the period of study and recorded 137.23 q/ha average rice equivalent yield, followed by basmati-gobhi sarson (133.23 q/ha) as compared to all other cropping system. The lower rice equivalent yield was obtained in desi cotton-barley (98.47 q/ha) and American cotton-wheat (100.47 q/ha) cropping systems. Net return was also higher in direct seeded basmati-wheat and basmati-sarson cropping system whereas lower net return was recorded from Bt cotton-transplanted gobhi sarson and Bt cotton-barley cropping systems. Whereas, B:C ratio was also higher under direct seeded basmatiwheat (1.78:1), Basmati- barley (1.71:1) and Basmati-gobhi sarson (1.60:1) cropping system as compared to other different cropping systems. B:C ratio among direct seeded basmati was higher due to low cost of cultivation and higher value of basmati crop. Direct seeded basmati-wheat performed better among all other cropping systems in sandy loam soil, having less availability of good quality underground irrigated water. Cropping systems with cotton crop in kharif recorded lower rice equivalent yield and net return due to less grain yield obtained with this crop in 2015, as the crop faced very severe attack of incidence of white fly to cotton crop in the area. So, direct seeded basmati based cropping system are resource conservative, highly profitable crop, best suited to the area and fetched more returns.

Present study was conducted to assess the effectiveness of granular and liquid formulation of Chlorantraniliprole i.e. Chlorantraniliprole 0.4% GR (Ferterra) and Chlorantraniliprole 18.5% SC (Coragen) at farmers’ field. Chlorantraniliprole in both granular and liquid formulation for the management of stem borer in basmati rice gave better results than the recommended insecticides as well as the control where no insecticide was applied. The experiment was conducted in three districts of Punjab viz, Patiala, Jalandhar and Ludhiana at three locations each. Crop sown during the month of June and transplanted in the month of July following all the recommended practices was selected for the study. The dead hearts incidence and white earheads were significantly low in Ferterra and Coragen at all the locations. Number of dead hearts recorded before spray was above the economic threshold level of 2 per cent at all the locations, while after five days and ten days of spray, a significant reduction was recorded. Similar trend was observed in the per cent white ear produced (0.29-1.11 % as compared to 3.59 % in Patiala, 2.32- 3.13 % as compared to 6.30 % in Jalandhar and 1.83-2.15 as compared to 4.23% in Ludhiana). Paddy yield under both the formulation of chlorantraniliprole was significantly higher than that of the control.

The papaya cultivation in the country has recorded a continuous increase; however its productivity is decreasing. This is due to the losses from different diseases caused by fungi, bacteria, phytoplasma and viruses. The most important among them is a papaya ring spot (PRS) disease caused by aphid transmitting papaya ring spot virus (PRSV). In order to develop a PRSV resistant papaya type, an hybridization programme was conducted between cultivated papaya cv Washington (Carica papaya L) and wild type Vasconcellea cauliflora at NARP, Ganeshkhind, Pune. The genotype GKPS-2-7 developed through this breeding programme was found resistant against this disease in very effective manner. This genotype recorded lowest per cent disease index (PDI) as 5.22, 11.74, 20.91, 21.50 22.01, 22.16, 29.73, 40.00, 49.73 and 50.27 at 6th, 7th 8th, 9th, 10th, 11th, 12th 13th, 14th and 15th month after planting. This genotype also recorded significantly maximum fruit yield (43.05 kg / plant and 76.54 Mt / ha) where as commercial check cultivars viz. Red Lady, Coorg Honey Dew were susceptible to PRSV and recorded 100 per cent PDI at early age i.e. at 5th months after planting.

Increasing use of fertilizer has led to a phenomenal growth in the food grain production over the last four decades. However, the pattern of fertilizer use varies widely from state to state. Cotton is the major fibre crop of India and occupied an area of 8.5 m ha and accounted for 6.0 per cent of total fertilizer consumption. The study investigated Bt. cotton growers’ knowledge towards the use of chemical fertilizers. Simple random sampling was used to select 180 cotton growers from 3 blocks of Rajkot district of Gujarat state. Data were collected with the aid of structured questionnaire through interview schedule and were analysed statistically. The results showed that the respondents perceived their general knowledge level on fertilizers use low; in the following order: method of application of chemical fertilizer (MS=1.98), time of application of different chemical fertilizer (MS=1.94), recommended dose of chemical fertilizer in Bt. cotton (MS=1.86), different type of chemical fertilizer (MS=1.85). The overall mean of knowledge domain was 1.82, indicated that the knowledge level of the farmers was low about use of chemical fertilizer in Bt. cotton. Over all adoption was 58.88 per cent of chemical fertilizer used in Bt. cotton, which is higher than knowledge level of the growers.

Papaya is one of the most widely cultivated tropical fruit tree. Pusa Nanha x Solo, Pusa Dwarf x Coorg Honeydew, Pusa Nanha x Coorg Honeydew and Solo x Coorg Honeydew were the hybrids selected for the study. Characterization of papaya hybrids was done using Random Amplified Polymorphic DNA technique, which is quick, reliable and widely applicable. Genomic DNA was successfully isolated from four papaya hybrids using CTAB (Cetyl trimethyl ammonium bromide) method. All the 10 primers yielded amplification products with the DNA of Pusa Nanha x Coorg Honeydew. Primers OPA-03, OPA- 04, OPA-12, OPB-04 and OPB-17 gave 40 scorable bands, with an average of 8.0 bands per primer. A genetic similarity matrix was constructed using the Jaccard’s Coefficient Method. The pair wise similarity coefficient values varied from 0.389 to 0.714. The least similarity coefficient value (0.389) was that of Pusa Dwarf x Coorg Honeydew with Solo x Coorg Honeydew. The highest value (0.714) for similarity index was obtained for Pusa Nanha x Coorg Honeydew with Pusa Dwarf x Coorg Honeydew followed by Pusa Nanha x Coorg Honeydew – Pusa Nanha x Solo pair (0.658). Results of the trial revealed that the largest cluster in dendrogram was formed by three hybrids namely Pusa Nanha x Coorg Honeydew, Pusa Dwarf x Coorg Honeydew and Pusa Nanha x Solo. The second cluster contained only one hybrid – Solo x Coorg Honeydew. The pair wise similarity coefficient values varied from 0.389 to 0.714. The minimum similarity coefficient detected in the present study was 0.389, suggesting a genetic differentiation among the papaya hybrids.

The spatial statistical method has been found favorable among agricultural scientists who seek to map yield estimates or soil properties of an area from a small number of samples of known location scattered throughout the area. Spatial statistics is concerned with the analysis of spatially referenced data and the study of associated spatial statistical models and processes. The agricultural benefits of accurate interpolation of spatial distribution patterns of nitrogen content (N) are well recognized. For the study different interpolation techniques in a geographical information system (GIS) were analyzed and compared for estimating the spatial variation of N at four different blocks of Raipur. Number of sample was selected by Stratified random samples with PPS (probability proportional to sample) sampling method. Different interpolation methods such as inverse distance weighting (IDW), ordinary kriging (OK) and lognormal kriging were used to generate spatial distribution of N. The cross validation is applied to evaluate the accuracy of interpolation methods through coefficient of determination (R2) and root mean square error (RMSE). After comparison it has been observed that inverse distance weighting (IDW) did not perform well due to its higher values of RMSE in comparison to ordinary kriging and lognormal kriging Interpolation techniques. The values of R2 show the strength of relationship among the nitrogen content at different locations. Results showed that after transforming the data for skewed distribution gave the précised result; it means that lognormal kriging provides best result as compared to ordinary kriging interpolation technique.

Panchmahal district of Gujarat is having 44.05 per cent population of tribal farmers namely Nayak, Rathva, Baria etc. Male members of the family migrate in the urban areas for their livelihood. Women and old persons remain at home. Therefore, in other seasons, the land remains unutilized. Many institutions aware and motivate them for growing fruit crops with intercropping but costly planting material is the main reason for not getting desired level of popularity of horticultural crops among the tribal farmers which are in-habitant of interior villages those away from KVK, Horticulture Centers or other fruit plant nurseries. Transportation and labour are costly factors in the remote areas of tribal farming community. Therefore, KVK-Panchmahal conducted training, advisory services, demonstrations at the farmers’ field since the year 2014-15 to 2016-17 to standardize the in-situ propagation technique through soft wood grafting in mango (Mangifera indica L.) at farmers field and analysis of input cost and technology adoption ratio. Kesar, Alphonso, Mallika and Rajapuri varieties in mango were selected. In situ soft wood grafting was performed in the month of September. The highest success per cent was noted in Mallika (86.0) followed by Kesar (84.0). Similar trend was recorded in respect of number of leaves per plant; which was recorded highest in Mallika. This technology ascertains the purity of the variety and gives certainty of quality planting material and also minimizes other problems like transportation, wastage of time and mental stress of the farmers. It has become an effective means to confine the migration of the tribal farmer in other areas. As a result, in-situ propagation technique is doing well and adoption rate is satisfactorily among the tribal farmer for enhancing livelihood security in interior tribal areas of Panchmahal.

The study was conducted in Banka district of Bihar during 2016 to study the extent of knowledge gain of rural youth about propagation of horticultural crops. The sample size of 47 respondents before and after training constituted. The findings revealed that most of the respondents had complete knowledge about scientific method of nursery raising, high towards knowledge of plant per sq m area, maintenance of net house, marketing of grafted plants, use of balance dose of fertilizers, method of plant propagation, use of weedicide and moderate knowledge about plant propagation. The major contributing factors for knowledge gaps were selection of scion and root stock, scientific methods of nursery raising, disease management and their control, plant per sq m area. Significant difference obtained in between respondent before and after training.

The present study was conducted to evaluate the production performance and economics of “CARI PRIYA” poultry in the backyard production system through an On Farm Trial (OFT) by Krishi Vigyan Kendra, Parwaha, Auraiya. Five Farm women who were rearing local breed were selected from villages i.e. Parwaha, Kutubpur, Fateh Singh ka Purwa, Bhagyanagar, and Auraiya were provided with 20 Chicks (CARI PRIYA) to each farm women and rest five having desi poultry (non-beneficiaries) were selected thus making a sample of 10 respondents. It was found that the CARI PRIYA breed started lying of egg after 140-145d of age regularly whereas local Breed lying after 180d of age at 15 -18d intervals. Hence, it was concluded that the performance of CARI PRIYA was better than local colored poultry birds reared by non-beneficiary respondents.

The small-scale mushroom production represents an opportunity for farming community interested in an additional income and is an ideal option specifically for those without much land. In Uttar Dinajpur district of West Bengal, mushroom cultivation is becoming more popular these days, among farmers and farmwomen as an easy and reliable method to increase their family income. Farmers initiated their cultivation on a small scale, in each one’s homestead and after gaining confidence many of them expanded their cultivation by making investments for constructing separate sheds. Now five of them had grown to an entrepreneurial level of making around 50-70kg of mushroom per day and were selling at price of Rs.80/ to Rs.100/kg. Moreover, they had also converted their produce to value added products like dried mushroom, pickles and cutlets which fetches additional revenue for them. On an average, they were earning an additional income of Rs.25,000/- to 30,000/- month. Initially the SHGs, Farmers’ Clubs and individual farmers started producing fresh mushrooms and sell it in the local markets as well as in big markets through middlemen. Later on all the SHGs, Farmers’ Clubs and individual farmers were brought under single umbrella to form one Producers Organization with joint initiative of NABARD and KVK by this process total daily production of mushroom from each group picked up and channelized to bigger market at Siliguri, Nepal, Bhutan etc. resulting better price thereby ensuring more net return to the individual groups. The spent substrate along with cow dung and other agri-waste materials converted into compost and applied directly back to the soil.

The present study has identified three prominent marketing channels such as Producer– Retailer–Consumer (PRC), Producer–Vendor–Consumer (PVC) and Producer–Consumer (PC) through which fishes reach to the ultimate consumers. The producer’s share in consumer rupee was the highest (100%) for the zero member channels, i.e. direct sale to consumer. It was observed that producers received higher share in the consumer rupee when wholesaler was not involved in fish trading. This indicates a very normal situation with greater marketing efficiency. It was found that no proper market shed was the major constraint identified with a quotient value of 93.40. The other constraints were lack of water supply, lack of storage facility, lack of toilet facilities, unhygienic condition of market, huge competition, high perishability, inconsistent supply of fish and high bargaining and lack of purchasing power with a quotient of 84.80, 79.20, 74.00, 70.00, 69.40, 67.80, 54.20 and 52.60, respectively. The demand for fish in rural areas of Manipur is increasing over time with the increase in purchasing power and standard of living. The present work concludes that though domestic fish marketing holds a huge potential, it is still highly unorganized and unregulated in Manipur.

The World Health Organization (WHO) defines an adolescent as any person between age 10 and 19 yr. Adolescent girls are backbone of healthy and progressive family and thus future builders of positive health of community. The present study was conducted to know the nutritional awareness of adolescent girls of Mahabubnagar district in Telangana state. The results showed that majority of rural adolescent girls (73%) have moderate nutritional awareness and in urban areas, majority (57%) of the respondents have high nutritional awareness. The nutritional awareness of adolescent girls depends on their education, their father’s occupation and mass media exposure. They need school-based nutrition education and thus, interventions should be undertaken to improve the nutritional awareness of adolescent girls in rural areas.

The present study was conducted to assess nutritional status of primary school children. Three primary schools of block Pabou were purposely selected. All the students i.e. 138 (63 girls and 75 boys) present on day of survey were enrolled for the study. Height and weight measurements were recorded and Body Mass Index was calculated (BMI). Nutritional status was assessed using different indices based on height and weight of children. Results revealed that about 61.96 per cent of school children (57.14% boys and 67.44% girls) in the age group of 6-8 yr were underweight. About 55.43 per cent children (55.10% boys and 55.81 % girls) were stunted in the age group of 6-8 yr. In the age group of 9 – 10 yr, about 47.83 per cent of children (42.31% boys and 55.00% girls) were stunted. Prevalence of thinness was 36.96 per cent (42.31 % boys and 30.00 % girls). Findings indicate that undernourishment i.e. underweight, stunting and thinness was high and required immediate intervention.

The present study was undertaken to know the extent of participation of elected women members in Panchayati Raj institutions. A total of seventy five women representative randomly selected from all the panchayats of Pusa and Kalyanpur block of Samastipur district in Bihar from forty villages selected randomly from two blocks. An interview schedule was used to collect the necessary data. In order to determine the conditions governing the participation of women, the data were subjected to multiple correlation, regression and path analysis. Participation was taken as dependent variable. The findings revealed that maximum 8.0 per cent of these elected women village members “Always” participated in “Construction, repair and maintenance” of public property. More than ninety per cent respondents spoke positively with respect to different life situation as a consequence of their association with Gram Panchayats. The results of correlations and multiple regression analysis between participation and socio-economic and psychological variables of elected village panchayat was positively and significantly correlated with caste (r = 0.668) and interaction style (r = 0.353) at 1 present level of probability and value of social linkage was negative but significant at 5 present level of probability.

Live-in relationship is an arrangement of living in which the couples are unmarried live together under a same roof to conduct a long-going relationship similarly as in marriage without getting married legally. This form of relationship does not thrust the typical responsibilities of a married life on the individuals living together. The foundation of live in relationship is individual freedom. The study was conducted in Guntur city of Andhra Pradesh using the survey type of research design. The sample consisted of 60 young adults having the age of 20-25 yr. Now a days, many people preferring to go for live-in relationship due to less responsibilities, less commitments, financial problems or benefits, no belief in institution of marriage etc. Perceptions of youth to go for live-in relationship are slowly increasing in India. Female sample had more negative perceptions about live-in relationship than males. Males had more positive perceptions than females about live-in relationship.

Physical properties of grains are necessary for the designing the facility of storage, handling and processing of agricultural products. Physical and mechanical properties of maize grains were determined as a function of moisture content in the range of 10-30 per cent using standard techniques. The average size, sphericity and density ranged from 8.08 to 8.46 mm, 0.654 to 0.717 and 1219 to 886.47 km/m3 as the moisture content increased from 10-30 per cent. With increase in moisture content the size of maize grains increased from 8.08 to 8.46 mm and sphericity from 0.654 to 0.717. The density increased from 634.85 to 650.81 km/m3 respectively.

An experiment was carried out during kharif 2018 to evaluate the effect of imazethapyr and pendimethalin on the growth and productivity of greengram at the instructional farm of Krishi Vigyan Kendra Langroya, district Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar. The experiment was laid out in Randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD) consisting of 6 treatments viz, T1- pendimethalin @ 750 g a.i.//ha as pre-emergence; T2- pendimethalin @ 750 g a.i.//ha as pre-emergence followed by imazethapyr @ 37.5 g a.i.//ha at 25-30 DAS; T3- pendimethalin @ 750 g a.i.//ha as pre-emergence followed by imazethapyr @ 50 g a.i.//ha at 25-30 DAS; T4-pendimethalin @ 750 g a.i.//ha as pre-emergence followed by imazethapyr @ 62.5 g a.i.//ha at 25-30 DAS; T5-pendimethalin @ 750 g a.i.//ha as pre-emergence followed by imazethapyr @ 75 g a.i.//ha at 25-30DAS; T6-weed free (manual weeding) with four replications. Post-emergence application of imazethapyr @ 75 g a.i./ha after pre-emergence application of pendimethalin @ 750 g a.i./ha resulted in significant decrease in weed density, weed dry matter, highest weed control efficiency and weed control index relative to other herbicide treatments. Post-emergence application of imazethapyr @ 62.5g a.i./ha resulted in significantly higher number of pods/plant followed by of imazethapyr @ 75 g a.i./ha. A non-significant difference between pod length, 100 seed weight and seeds/pod were observed. Form the study it can be concluded that farmers can go for pre-emergence application of pendimethalin @ 750g a.i./ha followed by post-emergence application of imazethapyr @ 62.5g a.i./ha at 25-30 DAS for better weed management and higher seed yield.

The studies on rheological properties of custard apple pulp-flakes is important for determining the different processing conditions and unit operations related to extraction of pulp-flakes. Separation of flakes of custard apple from seeds need to study the force required for the separation. In the present study, the rheological properties such as stickiness, cohesiveness, viscosity were determined along with the shear force required to separate the pulp-flakes from seeds. The maximum shear force required to separate seeds from flakes was found to be 2.53 N. The minimum, maximum and average measured values of stickiness of custard apple pulp were 22.80 g, 414.05 g and 184.40 g, respectively. The measured values of viscosity and torque were 50.9 cP and 33.07 Nm, respectively

The present investigation was carried out to investigate Tribal farm women’s profile and its relationship towards involvement in agriculture practices in chhotaudepur district of Gujarat state. For the study total 90 tribal farm women were selected randomly. The personal interview technique was used for collecting information from respondents. The results revealed that majority of the farm women were in middle aged group, educated up to primary level, had 6 to 10 yr experience in agriculture practices, animal husbandry plus farming as their occupation, small size of land holding, annual income up to Rs. 50,000/-, belonged to joint family, having membership in one organization, medium mass media exposure, medium extension contact and medium cosmopolitans. Significant correlate was observed with education, experience in agriculture practices, occupation, land holding, annual income, family type, social participation, mass media exposure, extension contact and cosmopolitans in agriculture practices.

A multi objective mathematical programming models has been used to obtain a comprehensive development plan for the minor irrigation command area subject to limited availability of resources with base as Linear Programming model. The study was undertaken in Gunduraposi Minor Irrigation Project located in Dhenkanal district of Odisha. It was conducted with the objectives of maximising profit, production and minimising investment subject to constraints of land, water, fertilizer, labour, water requirement, nutritional and farmers affinity. The vegetable production of STEP model was increased by 25.16 and 21.23 per cent compared to production maximization and Net return maximization LP model, respectively. The suggested cropping pattern yielded maximum net contribution and minimum investment. It also ensured availability of crops to meet the minimum nutrient requirements of the population. In the recommended plan, the total net return increased from Rs.18.69 million to Rs.46.4 million.

The experiment was conducted at the Krishi Vigyan Kendra, Palamu farm and tribal dominated Murma and Dulshulma villages of Satbarwa block. The analysis was done to see how the system of rice intensification method has helped in giving incremental food security for the marginal and sub marginal farmers. The analysis of yield attributes was done using pooled data of all the three land types (upland, midland and low land), irrespective of variety transplanted. For each land holding class, the average projected grain yield was worked out, using the average landholding pattern and multiplying this using average yield data for each land type. The grain yield for all the land types in each size class was added up and converted into a food security measure in terms of the number of days. The increase in average number of effective tillers per hill showed 233.3, 190.9 and 164.5 per cent more in upland, midland and lowland, respectively in SRI than traditional method. The average number of grains per panicle was 164.5, 56.1 and 50.3 per cent more in upland, midland and lowland, respectively in SRI than traditional method. Grain yield showed 79.9, 86.1 and 80.3 per cent increasing trends in upland, midland and lowland respectively, in SRI compared with traditional method whereas straw yield was 47.9, 50.6 and 72.7 per cent more over traditional method. Additional food security days found 125d extra under 0-0.4 ha land holding class while 415d extra under more than 0.8 ha area class.

The study was conducted over 93 beneficiaries in Lucknow Mandal of Uttar Pradesh under Mini Kamdhenu Dairy Scheme (MKDS) to find out willingness of beneficiaries concerned to training in the areas of dairy farming. In order to identify perceived willingness of beneficiaries, the responses of individual beneficiary were recorded on four point continuum as most preferred, preferred, least preferred and not preferred with respective scores 4, 3, 2 and 1 by pre tested structured interview schedule of MKDS beneficiaries. Total weighted mean was calculated for each aspect by adding up frequencies and multiplied with respective continuum scores and ranked accordingly. The study revealed that majority of MKDS beneficiaries (73.1%) perceived most preferred off-campus training, lecture followed by question- answer and practical (59.1%), frequency of training (one to three month) by (61.30%), duration of training (1-3 d) by (60.4%) and organization of training in rainy session by 61.3 per cent.

An experiment was carried out on low-cost solar cabinet dryer as a part of the on-farm trial (OFT) for local area suitability and extension of the technology to the rural areas of Manipur. Due to the lack of awareness of appropriate technology for storage and post-harvest management in Manipur, the considerable amount of fruits and vegetables are spoiled after harvest. There is also a lack of sufficient storage and processing facilities in Manipur. These make the losses occur in both ways i.e. qualitative and quantitative of the farm produces. In this study, the use of solar energy in the agricultural area to preserve fruits and vegetables were shown to be practical, economical and the environmentally friendly technology. The solar cabinet dryer could save drying duration for different fruits, vegetables, and spices by 2-4d over the traditional open sundry. This technology could be successfully extended in many parts of far-flung areas of Manipur.

Mango anthracnose caused by Colletotrichum gloeosporioides Penz. with its perfect stage as Glomerella cingulata is one of the most important and serious disease in all the mango growing regions of India including Himachal Pradesh. It causes 40 to 50 per cent post- harvest losses that sometimes increased up to 100 per cent under wet or very humid conditions. Efficacy of plant water extract and bio-control agents was tested against development of anthracnose on mango fruit cv. Dashehari. Fruit dip in leaf water extract of Azadiracta indica (15%) and solution of Trichoderma harzianum (1.2x104cfu/ ml) for five minutes was found most effective and controlled the disease upto 70 to 80 per cent.

On farm testing was conducted at farmer field to study the effect of different technology options like Di-Ammonium Phosphate and Naphthalene Acetic Acid spray at berry set and fruit development stage, respectively and Naphthalene Acetic Acid at berry set and fruit development stage to prevent berry drop in black pepper. The results indicated that spraying of Di-Ammonium Phosphate 1.5 per cent and 25 ppm Naphthalene Acetic Acid at berry set and fruit development stage has improved many commercially desirable parameters like number of berries per spike, higher per cent reduction in berry drop and yield in black pepper (Piper nigrum L.). Benefit cost ratio, however, was also highest in the treatment compromising Di-Ammonium Phosphate and Naphthalene Acetic Acid.

Lac is a commercial crop produced by lac insect, Kerria lacca (Kerr) (Homoptera: Tachardiidae) as a protective covering on its body and is exploited mainly for resin, dye and wax. Lac cultivation is mainly concentrated in Jharkhand, Chattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh,West Bengal states of India. Karnataka being non-traditional area, efforts were initiated in collaboration with ICAR-Indian Institute of Natural Resins and Gums, Ranchi, to introduce kusmi strain lac. KVK Uttara Kannada, Sirsi studied the performance of lac cultivation on Kusum tree, Schleichera oleosa for a period of three years. Results showed that yield levels were slightly higher in rainy season crop compared to winter season.