Donkeys are agile, firm and resilient animals with a great deal of tolerance. Donkeys are most predominantly used for transporting salt, farm manure and agricultural commodities in hilly areas not accessible by road transport. A total of 160 donkey rearers were selected as beneficiaries from eight districts of Tamil Nadu for the project on conservation of donkeys through empowerment of donkey rearers in Tamil Nadu. The adoption behaviour of donkey rearers on various donkey management practices was elicited through a pre-tested structured interview schedule before the implementation of the project. With regard to housing, majority of the donkey rearers (66 %) did not provide shelter for donkeys and were dwelling in open
places. Only 33 per cent of donkey farmers provided some form of shelter for donkeys in the form of thatched roof sheds, asbestos sheds to protect the donkeys from extreme weather conditions. With regard to feeding management, more than half of the respondents were feeding bran and ragi and oilcakes to their donkeys. It was observed that cent per cent of the respondents were allowing their donkeys for grazing for roughage intake and none of the donkey rearers fed mineral mixture to the donkeys. With regard to health management, majority of the donkey owners (58.75 %) preferred traditional practices for treating donkeys and only sixteen per cent of the respondents preferred allopathic treatment by veterinarians for
their donkeys. It was reported that incidence of Tetanus was high leading to considerable mortality in donkeys. The reason attributed was due to due to harness, saddle and other wounds leading to infection. It was observed that more than three fourth of donkey rearers were not vaccinating the donkeys against tetanus and rabies. It was clearly evident that donkey rearers in Tamil Nadu were not provided any training on various managemental practices Hence, knowledge and skill empowerment of donkey rearers is the need of the hour to reduce disease incidence and thereby in-situ conservation of donkeys.

The present study was conducted to find out the bio-efficacy of different new molecules and botanicals against Hadda beetle, Henosapilachna vigintioctopunctata on brinjal during Rabi, 2017-18 at Research Farm, College of Agriculture, Swami Keshwanand Rajasthan Agricultural University, Bikaner. The evaluation of bioefficacy of nine new molecules and botanicals against Henosapilachna vigintioctopunctata revealed that the treatment spinosad (0.02%) proved to be most effective in reducing the pest population followed by indoxacarb (0.001%), emamectin benzoate (0.002%) and quinalphos (0.05%). Cartap hydrochloride (0.1%) and malathion (0.1%) were in moderate in efficacy. Khimp extract (5%) proved least effective followed by garlic extract (5%) and NSKE (5%). The decreasing order of efficacy of the tested chemicals was spinosad, indoxacarb, emamectin benzoate, quinalphos, cartap hydrochloride, malathion, NSKE, garlic extract and khimp extract.

A farmer’s participatory field experiment was conducted during two consecutive kharif seasons of 2019–20 and 2020-21 at farmer’s fields in Bichhia village of Sehore district of Madhya Pradesh to assess the effect of pre emergence herbicide diclosulam on weeds and growth and yield of soybean. The application of preemergence diclosulam@26 g/ha gave 22.95 per cent higher seed yield as compared to farmer’s practice. Further, application of pre-emergence diclosulam @ 26 g /ha treatment gave significantly higher pods per plant, plant height and straw yield of soybean and significantly reduced the weed count and weed dry matter as compared to all other treatments tested.

The present study was carried out in six districts of South Gujarat. Paddy, Mung, Tomato and Banana crops were taken under the present study. Total 18 talukas and 18 villages which possessed the highest area under respective crops were selected purposively. A lottery method of randomization was adopted to get 5 growers of the village for each crop. In this way, 20 farmers from the village and 60 from the district were selected as respondents. In all, 360 crop growers were selected as respondents for the study. Further, 48 researchers were randomly selected from six districts. Thus, total sample size was 408 for study. Unavailability of quality seed at the time of sowing, high price and non-availability of chemical fertilizers, scarcity of labours during critical operations, high occurrence of pests and diseases in the crop and failure of crop due to heavy rainfall were the major constrains faced by the farmers and researchers. Therefore, improved and certified seed should be provided by Government at proper time, provide chemical fertilizer in subsidized rate and in required quantity, improved implements should be developed for the field operation, crop integration helps to mitigate pests and diseases problems and formulation of contingency plans well in advance to cope with the crisis situation were the major suggestions given by the respondents.

Pulses in India are considered as poor man’s protein. Pulses contain higher level of vegetable protein compared to any other grains and vegetables. The net availability of pulses has come down from 60 gm/ day/person in 1951 to 53 gm/day/person in 2017. Therefore, the present study was attempted to assess the constraints in adoption of yield maximising pulse technologies as perceived by the farmers of Tiruchirappalli district which would be essential for future planning by the policy makers to meet the farmer needs and enhance the production and productivity of pulses. A total of 200 farmers @ 50 farmers per category of pulse crop were surveyed for the study using simple random sampling technique and purposive sampling. Percentage analysis and Garrett ranking method were used to compute the data. It is evident from the study that more than 90 per cent of the farmers perceived lack of knowledge on pests and disease management, lack of guidance on marketing, non-cooperation among farmers, exploitation by input dealers /private agencies as prime constraints. By Garrett ranking method of analysis, the first five ranked factors of constraints faced by the pulse growers are pest and diseases (78.465) ranked first followed by poor marketing guidance (75.385), lack of technical know-how (75.05), low market price/price fluctuation (74.735), exploitation by input dealers /private agencies (71.255). Conducting a greater number of extension activities, training programmes, awareness programmes and the use of ICT tools along with mass media will certainly minimise these constraints thereby reducing the yield gap in pulse production.

The impact of climate change in agriculture depends on the level of vulnerability. This study shows the level of vulnerability in agriculture on rural farmers due to climate change and its variability in the Cooch Behar district of West Bengal. The approach estimates the vulnerabilities index in terms of exposure, sensitivity and adaptive capacity. The data are based on a survey of 200 farm households through a personal interview, complemented with secondary data on temperature, relative humidity and rainfall. Results of the study showed that relative exposure of the study area was 0.62; whereas the average sensitivity value was 0.33 and the aggregated adaptive capacity was 0.28. As a result, the study area showed a considerable subsistence level of vulnerability. Results show that Tufanganj block was the most exposed region to climate change vulnerability in respect of flood than Cooch Behar block.

This study was conducted to determine optimum stocking density of Pangasianodon hypophthalmus (Pangasius) for cage culture system installed in carp pond and evaluate its impact on carp pond productivity. Pangasius fingerlings (weight 5.90 ± 0.26 g; length 85.9 ± 0.45 mm) were stocked in PVC net cages of size 2 m x 2 m x 1 m using varying stocking density viz., T1- 80 fishes/ m2, T2- 100 fishes/ m2, T3- 120 fishes/ m2 and T4-140 fishes/ m2 in five replicates. After 180d of culture period significantly (p<0.05) higher final weight 613.06 ±5.684 g; length 374.8 ±3.26 mm; net gain in length 288.9±3.139 mm; ADG (Aggregate daily weight gain) 3.36 ±0.032 g was observed in T1-80 fishes/ m2. However higher net gain in weight of 607.16 ±5.602 and SGR (specific growth rate) 2.58 ±0.009 were observed in T1- 80 fishes/m2 but there was no significant difference (P>0.05) among T1, T2 and T3. Although higher FCE (Food conversion efficiency) 64.43 ±0.565 % and PER (Protein efficiency ratio) 2.15±0.019 and lower FCR (Food conversion ratio) of 1.55 ±0.014 were estimated in T1- 80 fishes/m2 but there was no significant difference among the treatments. No significant effect was observed on survival. Significantly higher (p<0.05) yield of 136.26 ±1.033 kg was obtained in T4 – 140 fishes/m2 but there was no significant difference with the yield (134.9 ±1.251) kg recorded in T3 (120 fishes m-2). Significantly higher B:C ratio 1.42 ±0.013 was recorded in T3. So, looking to the growth, yield and B:C ratio stocking density T3(120 fishes/m2) is an optimum density level for higher economic returns. As far as nutrients and primary productivity is concerned significantly higher NO3-N of 2.23 ± 0.288 mg/L, PO4-P of 0.26 ±0.032 mg/ L, GPP (Gross primary productivity) of 8.48 ±1.07 g C m2 /d, NPP (Net primary productivity) of 5.71 ±0.776 g C m2 /d and CR (Community respiration) of 2.76 ±0.353 g C m2/d were recorded in carp pond when pangasius culture through net cages was carried out. Consequently, carp fish production about 2480 kg /0.4 ha with lower FCR of 1.23 and higher B:C ratio of 2.06 was recorded which is about 30.60 per cent higher than the carp production of previous years when pangasius cultured were not accompanied.

The present study was undertaken to develop a nutrient-dense product (ladoo) using beet greens. It was prepared with the addition of other ingredients such as Whole wheat, Bengal gram, Finger millet, White soybean, Beet greens, and Groundnut. All ingredients were procured from the local market. Whole wheat (25%), Bengal gram (20%), Finger millet (15%), White soybean (15%), groundnut (2%), and Beet greens (5%) were taken for the development of ladoo. Sensory evaluation of the prepared product was done by ten panels of judges. The prepared product with five grams of beet greens powder was highly acceptable. Nutritional analysis of the developed product found that energy (344.4kcal), carbohydrate (58.91g), protein (13.50g), fat (6.90 g), crude fiber (3.80g), iron (11.61mg) and calcium (652.14 mg). It can be concluded that Nutrient dense ladoo being good sources of energy, protein, iron and calcium should be included in the daily diet of vulnerable sections of the population. As per the sensory parameters of the developed product, the overall product score was significantly high and acceptable for consumption.

Goat farming forms a vital enterprise among rural socio-economic weaker section. Training on goat farming imparts knowledge on improved practices and also aid in building new entrepreneurs. The study was conducted at department of Veterinary Extension Education in connection with the training organized under ICAR-SC sub-plan in the year 2021-2022 at Department of Animal Nutrition, College of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, Pookode, for the goat farmers and aspirant entrepreneur among scheduled caste people of Wayanad. The objective of the study was to find out the determinants of scientific knowledge gain on goat farming among schedule castes of Wayanad district. An ex-post facto research design was adopted for the study and altogether, 123 respondents who undergone training were selected for the study. The overall knowledge score were identified by using teacher-made knowledge test with specific questions on breeds, housing, breeding, common disease, health, feed and nutrition of goats. The findings were, more than one half of the respondents (53.66%) were in between the age of 36 yr to 50 yr, more than 60 per cent of the respondents were women, most of the respondents (42.28 %) were educated up to high school and majority (63.41%) of the respondents belonged to agricultural labourer category having up to 0.04 ha. of land. Large majority (94.31%) of the respondents were not attended any training so far and among them majority (76.42) of the respondents were inexperienced in goat farming. Among various socio-economic variables, age, education, flock size, experience, mass media exposure and cosmopolites were found to be significantly correlated with knowledge gain. These identified determinants must be given due consideration while conducting trainings for goat farmers in future.

All India co-ordinated research project on long term fertilizer experiment was set up at Regional Agricultural Research Station, Pattambi, Kerala during 1997. Research finding on yield and yield attributes as well as soil nutrient concentration as affected by the continuous application of manures and fertilizers on rice-rice cropping system was given in the paper. T10 (100% NPK + in-situ green manuring) recorded the maximum number of tillers per hill (12.37). The number of panicles per hill was highest in T10 and T3 (150% NPK) with 11.37 and 11.07, respectively. Treatment, T8 (100% NPK+FYM) recorded the highest number of seeds per hill (1149.3) and yield (4650 kg/ha). The available nutrient concentration in the soil varies depending on the individual nutrients. Organic carbon (1.96%) and available nitrogen (246.54 kg/ha) was found to be higher in T8. Available phosphorus was highest in T3 (19.39 kg/ha) followed by T8 (19.34 kg/ha) and T4, 100% NPK+lime (18.92 kg/ha). Highest available potassium was recorded in T3 (84.83 kg/ha) where super optimal dose (150%) of NPK was applied.

Drying is one of the dehydration methods used for preservation of fruits and vegetables from ancient time. In the recent years osmotic dehydration has been gaining popularity due to its effectiveness in enhancing the quality of the product and consumer acceptability. The main aim of the present study was to assess the effect of different dehydration methods on organoleptic attributes and shelf life of osmotic dehydrated pineapple candy. After soaking the 1.5 cm thickness pineapple slices in the 600brix sugar syrup for 24 hr. the slices were dried by following 2 treatments namely T1- solar dehydration under solar dryer and T2- sun drying. The Hedonic rating scale was administered to 30 panellists to assess the sensory attributes of dehydrated pineapple slices. The results indicated that dehydrated pineapple slices under solar dryer scored high in all six organoleptic attributes i.e., colour, flavour, taste, texture, appearance and overall acceptability. From the study it was found that T1 have longer shelf life than T2.

The experiment was carried out in the wet lab at the College of Fisheries, G.B.P.U.A. & T, Pantnagar, India, to compare the effectiveness of 17 ? -methyl testosterone on Swordtail (Xiphophorus helleri) fry administered at various dose rates by oral feed administration. Fish fry was fed at 5% of body weight twice a day. In addition, the commercial feed was added with various doses of 17?-methyl testosterone i.e., 30 mg/kg, 60 mg/kg, and 90 mg/kg, and one control aquarium tank (T0) was installed for the comparative study with treatment aquarium tanks like H1, H2, and H3, respectively. The effectiveness of 17?-methyl testosterone on the growth and survival of swordtail fish fry was observed after 90 days of this experiment. In 90 mg/kg (H3) feed minimum growth (weight and length) was observed as compared to H2, H1 and T0 respectively. Mortality of 16.67 % was also observed with 90 mg/kg (H3) feed as compared to H2, H1 and T0 respectively. The results showed that 17?-methyl testosterone has significantly negative effects on swordtail than the control experimental aquarium tank.

The study, entitled A study to assess the effect of parental involvement on children’s adjustment was conducted in Bilari, a town near Moradabad district in Uttar Pradesh to assess the level of parental involvement in children home based and school based activities, find out the adjustment of children at home and in school, the effect of parental involvement on children adjustment. The sample of 90 students of class VI from two schools was selected randomly. A standardized children’s adjustment scale was used to find out the level of adjustment, and a self-prepared questionnaire was used to assess the level of parental involvement in home and school based activities. It was found that the majority of parents showed a high level of involvement in home and school-based activities of their children. It was found that the children of highly-involved parents had good adjustment in home. The children of low involved parents had very poor adjustment. The positive significant correlation was found between highly and medium involved parents with the adjustment of children. It was found that the parents’ active involvement in children activities affect their children adjustment in home and in school.

An experiment was conducted to examine the effect of potassium salt and active phosphorus on growth, yield and quality contributing parameters in soybean crop during two consecutive yearskharif2018-19 and 2019-20. The experiment comprises of 9 treatments i.e., RDF+plant protection measure(T1) ; T1+ PSAP @ 4g/l (T2) ; RDF+50 % PPM (T3) ; T3 + PSAP @ 4g/l (T4) ; RDN+50 % P & K + PPM (T5) ; T5 + PSAP @4g/l(T6) ; RDN +50 % P, K + 50 % PPM (T7) ; T7 + PASP @4 g/l (T8) and RDN+PASP @ 4g/l (T9) . The experiment was carried out in alkaline nature of vertisols with soybean variety JS-2034 in randomized block design and replicated thrice. The plant protection measures includes quinolphos 25 EC @ 1L/h , Trizophos @ 0.8 L/h and propenophos @ 1.25 L/h during the crop period. The RDF of N: P: K: S @ 25: 60: 40: 40 kg/ha were applied as basal dose at the time of sowing through straight fertilizers like urea, SSP, and MOP .The product potassium salt and active phosphorous (PSAP) was applied as a 1stsprayof PSAP @ 4g/l, 40 DAS at Pre-flowering stage,2ndspray at 55 DAS and 3rdSpray 70 DAS, simultaneously. The recorded data showed the maximum plant height (70.3cm) was observed in T2 (RDF+PPM+PSAP) while minimum (66.9 cm) in T9 (RDN and PSAP). The similar trends were also observed for number of pods per plant, number of grain per plant, weight of grain per plant, yield per plot, respectively. The maximum yield 11.44 q/ha was recorded with application of PSAP along with RDF and plant protection measures while the minimum yield was noticed in case of PSAP application with RDN only. Data of experiment revealed that application of potassium salt of active phosphorus on trypsin inhibitor activity was higher (8.34 mg/g) in T 2, the minimum White flies (2.97 leaf /plant)was recorded in T1(RDF+PPM) while maximum (4.63 leaf / plant) in T9. The lower infestation of Girdle beetle (0.92 mrl) and semilooper (0.69 mrl) were found in T2 while higher in T9, may be due to vegetative foliage. It was observed that the RDF +PPM and PSAP have slight significant impact on insect pest control in soybean crop.

A field experiment was conducted during the winter Rabi season of 2021 at Dr. Rajendra Prasad Central Agricultural University, Pusa, Bihar, in order to study the possibility of improving the growth and yield of wheat under the effect of rice stubble and irrigation scheduling. The experiment was laid out in split-plot design, having 5 main-plot treatment, viz., I1, one irrigation at crown-root-initiation(CRI) stage; I2, two irrigation at the CRI +booting stage; I3, two irrigation at the CRI + milk stage; I4, three irrigation at the CRI + late jointing +milk stage; I5, four irrigation at the CRI + maximum tillering + flowering + dough stage and 3 subplot treatment, viz., R1 (rice stubbles cut at a height of 5 cm); R2 (rice stubbles cut at a height of 20 cm) and R3 (rice stubbles cut at a height of 35 cm)with 3 replication. Resulted indicated that, the growth parameters and yield attributes viz., of plant height, number of tillers/mrl, no. of tillers/m2, spike length, number of grains/ear, crop emergence (number of plants/m2), dry matter accumulation (g/m2) and crop growth rate (g/m2/day) were found to be maximum with I5 irrigation level, which was significantly superior to I 1, I2, and I3 but statistically at par with I4. 4 irrigations (I5) and rice stubbles cut at a height of 20 cm (R2) resulted in the highest growth and yield-attributing characters. The grain yield and straw yield were increased up to 4 irrigations (I5). Treatment R2 gave the highest grain and straw yields which was at par with R 1 treatment. The highest grain and straw yields were recorded with I5R2 treatment combination.

An experiment on the effect of dates of transplanting on growth and yield of broccoli (Brassica oleracea var. italica) was carried out at three different locations of Seraj valley, Mandi, Himachal Pradesh. The treatment combinations comprised of three dates of transplanting viz., 15th April, 30th April and 15th May and three locations viz., Bajwas, Mayadhar and Jarol villages in a factorial randomized block design (FRBD) with three replications. The broccoli transplanted on 30th April recorded significantly maximum yield (214.81 q/ha) over the other dates of transplanting. Third location viz., village Jarol showed significantly maximum number of non wrapper leaves, head diameter, head weight and yield. Interaction between dates of transplanting and location was significant in respect of yield per hectare. Maximum yield per hectare (215.55 q/ha) was obtained in treatment combinationL3T2 i.e. transplanting on 30th Aprilat village Jarol.

Effective communication strategy is the need of the hour to enable research results to reach the farmers’ fields without much time lag. Krishi Vigyan Kendra, Amadalavalasa has started sending mobile based SMS through WAY2SMS to the KVK registered farmers to transfer the agricultural technology since June 2010. Ex post facto research design was followed for the study. Randomly 60 farmers were selected as respondents for the study by simple random sampling method. 90 per cent of the farmers perceived that the mobile based SMS were useful to disseminate the agricultural technology with cheaper cost even to remote areas. Around 77 per cent of the farmers watching the messages immediately after receiving the messages. The mobile service authorities need to take extra care to streamline the system so as to prepare relevant content for maximum utility by the end users.

A non-farm trial was conducted at farmer’s field to diminish Fusarium wilt of chickpea. The assessed practice of seed treatment with Trichoderma virideat @ 5 g/kg seed plus incorporation of T. viride at 5 kg/ ha multiplied on decomposed FYM at 100 kg/ha at the time of sowing recorded minimum disease incidence (7.85%) with maximum efficacy of disease control (76.13) as compared to farmers’ practices. There was 37.41 per cent more yield in assessed practices plots than farmers’ practices and highest net return and benefit cost ratio was also obtained.

The present study was undertaken to investigate the various activities performed by the gardeners and assessing the risk factors faced by gardeners on environmental and ergonomic aspects. The study was conducted on 150 sample size of male gardeners in Ludhiana city by using purposive sampling technique to ensure that the respondents, have worked for the last 5 years in gardening as their main occupation. Primary data were collected with the help of structured interview schedule. Findings of the study unveils that weeding activity absorb most of the time (on average 6.26 hr/day) performing activity in squatting/ sitting/bending posture with frequent twisting and turning. Gardeners work most of the time in unshaded outdoor areas which eventually make them susceptible to environmental risk and the extreme environmental risk perceived by workers during gardening was heat stress (mean score=3.79). Indeed, heat stress has a straight effect on workers output because of poor performance and work-related illness/injuries. Other than that, the ergonomic risk also contributes in physical fatigue and discomfort during task performance, awkward working posture (mean score=4.56) was perceived to be high ergonomic risk among gardeners which may led to musculoskeletal disorders in the body.

The present study was carried out at Research Farm, Krishi Vigyan Kendra (RVSKVV), Manawar (Dhar), during kharif season 2020. Total 7 treatments were used in Randomized Block Design (RBD) with three replications to study the effect of calcium based fertilizer on yield attributes and yield of cucumber. All the treatments significantly improved growth, attributed and yield of cucumber as compared RDF alone treatments. Among the various treatments the maximum plan height and flower setting was recorded with the application of RDF + Turbocalcio Plus @ 2 kg at 25 DAT and 40 DAT (T5) in comparison to other treatments. However, the less number of days (31.50) to flower appearance was recorded with the application of RDF + Turbocalcio Plus @ 2 kg at 25 DAT and 40 DAT. Significantly higher yield parameters viz., length of fruit (15.85 cm), girth of fruits (12.06 cm), weight of fruits (146.83 g/fruit) and number of fruit/plant (16.50) and fruit yield (324.67 q/ha) were RDF + Turbocalcio Plus @ 2 kg at 25 DAT and 40 DAT (T5) which was statistically similar with RDF + Turbocalcio Plus @ 2 kg at 25 DAT and 60 DAT (T6) and RDF + Turbocalcio Plus @ 1 kg at 25 DAT 2 kg at 40 DAT and 2 kg at 60 DAT (T7).

The study was conducted to know the purchase and post purchase behavior of the respondents with respect to green consumerism. The sample comprised of 500 respondents which included 250 from working viz. doctors, engineers, IT professional and bank employees and 250 non-working women based on their education level viz. illiterate, up to metric, graduate, diploma holder, post graduate. Age range between 30-40 yr was taken into consideration for the study. Purchase practices for selected food items included self-life, quality marks, ingredients used, packaging material used. The study encompassed clothing items, household appliances, type of cleansing agents, shopping bags, eco-friendly vehicle as well as disposing off practices. It was noticed that 40.80 percent working women show high level of buying green behaviour as compared to 19.20 percent of non-working women. It was also noticed that 34.80 percent of working women used green practices for disposing off discarded household items whereas only 8.40 per cent of nonworking women used this method. Thus, Awareness about the green practices needs to be created.

Banana is one of the tropical fruits that is exported in large quantities. Banana is an integral fruit component of most farming systems in Kerala and also an important commercial fruit crop of the country. Crown rot of dehanded banana is one of the most important and predominant postharvest diseases of banana which can lead to heavy losses for farmers as well as the wholesalers. A survey was conducted in five major banana growing districts of Kerala to identify the major pathogens associated with crown rot of banana in Kerala. Lasiodiplodia theobromae was found to be the major and most virulent pathogen associated with postharvest crown rot of Robusta variety banana in Kerala. Fructosphere microflora was isolated from healthy banana fruits to evaluate the antagonistic potential. 22 fungal isolates and 7 bacterial isolates were obtained from different locations of Kerala. Among the fructosphere isolates, the fungal isolates, W3B-BC and A3B-BC, showed highest inhibition on growth of the major pathogen with 44.44 and 40.00 per cent of inhibitions respectively. Based on the molecular studies, the best two effective biocontrol agents were identified as W3B-BC and A3B-BC as Aspergillus aculeatus (MN046330) and Aspergillus niger (MN04 6326) respectively using the universal inter transcriptional sequencing (ITS) primers.

The experiment was carried out at Krishi Vigyan Kendra, Jaunpur of eastern Uttar Pradesh. during 2019. Oyster mushrooms draw their nutritional requirement from a host substrate or the agricultural wastes rich in lignin, cellulose and hemicellulose used for its cultivation. Nutrient content varied with the substrate which lead to varied mushroom yield. An experiment was conducted to evaluate commonly available agro-wastes viz., wheat straw, paddy straw, sugarcane leaves, sugarcane bagasse, stalks of maize, stalk of pearl millet for the cultivation of oyster mushroom (Pleurotus ostreatus). Among tested substrates wheat straw was found to yield more yield (710.50 g/ kg dry substrate), biological efficiency, net returns and benefit cost ratio than other treatments.

Uttarakhand is known for its natural scenic beauty rendered by Himalayas, Tarai and Bhabar region and it has attracted everyone from all over the world. Aipan is a folk art of Kumaun region of Uttarakhand which is related to Hindu myths and rituals drawn on the floor. In the present study, Aipan designs were incorporated into borders woven through extra weft figuring technique using woollen yarn. These were then applied on products namely, lady’s shirt, waist coat for male, waist coat for female, cap and stole. These finished articles were assessed by the two groups of respondents comprising of 30 Kumauni women and 30 females from of the College of Home Science on the parameters namely, workmanship of woven border, suitability of the border colour combination to that of fabric colour of the article, suitability of the border to the articles, placement of border on article, neat finishing of the article with applied border, overall appearance of the article. The waist coat for males and females finished with the borders, were widely accepted by the two groups of respondents and most of the respondents were satisfied with cost of articles. Thus, woven borders can be used effectively for the product diversification and could be promoted as means for conservation of Aipan craft in form of textile items.

A total of 839 rural unemployed youth between 18 and 35 years of age were selected for the study and provided a skill development training on four enterprises viz., beekeeping (230), value addition and processing (150), mushroom production (215) and poultry farming (244). About 392 rural youths established their entrepreneurial units after training. The output and outcome of the study over five years (2017-2021) revealed that various enterprises successfully generating a handsome income ranged between Rs 93,298/- to Rs.421,775/- and provided the employment opportunity of 110 to414 men-days in the villages. Poultry enterprise emerged as a most profitable enterprise as compared to others followed by beekeeping, mushroom cultivation and value addition and processing.

The present study was carried out at KVK in Mau district of Uttar Pradesh to know the yield gaps between improved package of practices (IP) under Cluster Font Line Demonstrations (CFLD) and farmers practices (FP) of rapeseed mustard. It was revealed from the study that the yield of rapeseed mustard in IP under irrigated condition ranged from 20.89 to 21.55 q/ha, where as in FP it ranges between 16.94 to 17.25 q/ha. The percent increase in yield IP over FP was recorded in the range of 24.05 to 26.37. The extension gap and technological index were range between 4.70 – 5.36 q/ha and 20.42 percent respectively. The trend of technological gap reflected to farmer cooperation in carrying out the demonstrations in subsequent years. The cost benefit ratio was 3.57 and 3.42 under demonstration, while it was 3.24 to 3.47 under control plots. By conducting Cluster Front Line Demonstrations (CFLD) of proven technologies, yield potential of rapeseed mustard crop enhanced to a great extent with increase in the income level of farming community.

The present investigation involves evaluation of biozyme application through granules and liquid formulation on yield and related characters of potato. It was observed that due to imbalanced nutrition and non-judicious use of fertilizers potato production is lower than potential one which further led to poor tuber size and number of tubers per plant which greatly hampers tuber yield and quality. To overcome this problem, an On Farm Trial (OFT) was conducted by K.V.K. S.A.S. Nagar (Mohali) in farmers’ field during 2020-21 to evaluate the influence of application of biozyme granule and liquid formulation on tuber yield and related characters in Potato Var. Kufri Pukhraj. The treatment combinations comprised T1 – FP: Farmers Practice (No treatment), T2 -Application of 20 Kg biozyme granule at the time of planting and 20 kg at the time of earthing up along with application of biozyme liquid formulation @500 ml/ha at the time of tuber formation. T 3- Application of 40Kg biozyme granule at the time of planting and application of biozyme liquid formulation @500 ml/ha at the time of tuber formation. The results of the study revealed that yield of T 2 was found best performing (315 q/ha) followed by T3 (295 q/ha) and T1 (255 q/ha). It was noted that T2 was earliest for first harvest (76 d) followed by T3 (82 d) and T1 (90 d). Yield increase of T2 over control was found 23.53 per cent higher while it was higher by 15.69 per cent with T3 over control. Benefit cost ratio for T 1, T2 and T3 was found to be 4.04, 4.58 and 4.33, respectively. The results led to a conclusion that for better growth and yield of potato, the crop may be supplemented with different formulations of biozyme in combination with the recommended dose of fertilizers

An experiment was conducted in the Department of Floriculture and Landscape Architecture, CoA, IGKV, Raipur from 2019-20 to 2020-21. The experiment was laid out in RBD with three replications and 20 cultivars with a view to find out the overall evaluation of different cultivars of dahlia. Result showed that the tuber yield parameters were observed i.e. number of tubers/plant (7.96), number of tuber/ plot (113.70), weight of single tuber (86.29 g), tuber yield/plant (86.95 g), tuber yield/plot (1.78 kg) and tuber yield (2.52 t/ ha) was observed in cv. T4 (Blackout Black).

The present investigation was conducted at Department of Vegetable Science, College of Agriculture, Vellayani, Kerala Agricultural University, during 2020-2021 to study the performance of watermelon genotypes for growth, yield and quality. Thirteen genotypes were evaluated with three replications in randomized block design. Significant variation was recorded among the genotypes for all the vegetative, flowering, yield and quality characters. Among the genotypes used, CL11 had the longest vine length, CL3 was the earliest to produce male flower (29.90 d) and CL3 was the earliest with 35.80 d for first female flower anthesis. CL8 exhibited the highest fruit equatorial diameter (24.05 cm) and CL10 recorded highest fruit polar diameter. The highest fruit weight was observed in CL7 (4.76 kg). The genotype CL3 produced the highest yield (9.82 kg) and number of fruits per plant. The lowest number of seeds was observed in CL3 (219.50). The highest TSS content was observed in CL3. Based on the performance, genotypes CL3, CL6, CL2 and CL1 were noted as good performers for yield and quality parameters.

In India extension activities are important tools for dissemination of agricultural based technologies for increase the production productivity of a piece of land. This investigation was an attempt to study the impact of agricultural extension activities applied for transfer of technologies among farming community of Lucknow district of Uttar Pradesh. This study was conducted in five adopted villages of four blocks i.e. Gosaiganj, Mohanlalganj, Mall and Malihabad of Lucknow district. Total two hundred respondents were randomly selected @ ten respondents from each village. On the basis of their responses relative credibility index were calculated. In this study maximum respondents were in the age of 30-45 yr with approximately equal participation of male and female having land holding marginal to small with low income. The frequency of visit or contact at different agricultural agencies like KVK,FPOs, SHGs, input dealers, district agriculture officials, NGOs, block level agriculture department and village panchayat members were evaluated and ranked. The maximum visits 93.5 per cent was at KVK which denotes that the respondents ranked it first among different agricultural agencies, those were working for knowledge up-gradation. Majority of farmers participated in farmers fair (80.5%) albeit relative credibility index was found highest for demonstration activity i.e., 1.14. It means demonstrations were most effective method of transfer of technologies.

Persistent nutrient depletion is posing a greater threat to organic farming. Therefore, it becomes imperative to explore the most effective organic nutrient sources for sustaining soil fertility and producing quality products. Hence, the present investigation was carried out to promote organic farming through TNAU released liquid biofertilizers viz., Azospirillum, Phosphate solubilizing bacteria, K Solubilizer, Zn solubilizers, PPFM application in traditional rice under organic farming. The knowledge level of the traditional rice growers in improved technologies was medium (36.0 %) to low (42.0 %) in before implement of the demonstration. The knowledge level was increased from medium (36.0 %) to high (56.0 %) after implementation of the programme. More than 68 per cent of the traditional rice growers practice panchagavya seedling dip, liquid biofertilizer seedling dip, liquid biofertilizer foliar application, foliar application of humic acid, foliar application of panchagavya in four critical stages etc. The results show that the applications of liquid biofertilizers positively increased more productive tillers (17.1 numbers), additional grain yield (18%) and straw yield (22%) compared to farmers’ practice. It was observed wide variations in grain yield (3950 kg/ ha) and durations (180 d duration) according to varieties. The majority of the respondents indicated that organic farming grants effective utilization of natural resources for income generation (95%) followed by nutritional security (88%). The appropriate reason for a medium to higher level of knowledge about improved production technologies of traditional rice growers might be due to KVK interventions such as awareness programme, demonstrations, training and field days.

There is a huge scope for tapping rice potential in Kashmir valley owing to congenial environment and abundant natural resources. Productivity of rice crop is however very low compared to the potential, particularly in the mid belts. With an aim to narrow down the yield gaps, Krishi Vigyan Kendra Kulgam –SKUAST, Kashmir conducted 550 frontline demonstrations on rice technologies under various rice ecologies from year 2011-2020. Results of these demonstrations revealed a significant improvement in yield with introduction of new varieties, over those existing at farmers field. The yield superiority over farmers’ practice ranged from 9.2 per cent to 15.8 per cent. On an average the yield was 12.7per cent higher with the improved varieties compared to the old ones. An extension gap of 7.1 q/ ha hectare was also recorded. Net returns were ?99306/ha in improved practice against ? 89034/ha in the farmers practice, indicating an additional income of ? 10272/ha with improved varieties. B:C ratio was 2.5 and 2.6 for farmers’ and improved practice, respectively. Over the decade rice production in district Kulgam increased by 34 % despite 2.5per cent decrease in area under rice.

A woman is said to be psychologically empowered when she has the power to increase her own self-reliance, self confidence, self esteem and self-strength. The means of achieving psychological empowerment are economic freedom, freedom of action, ability and involvement in decision-making, self-esteem, gender equality, improvement in health and knowledge etc. The present investigation was carried out in Amreli district of Gujarat State. Five talukas of Amreli district selected purposively where self help groups were formed under the Integrated Watershed Management Programme (IWMP). Ten villages were randomly selected from five selected talukas. From each village 9 SHG members and 9 Non SHG members were selected. The results showed that there was highly significant difference in the mean values of SHG members and Non SHG members in case of self confidence, self esteem and decision making.

The study was to investigate the possible impact of climate change on crop water requirement of rice in central zone of Kerala during different time period and future climates 2030, 2050 and 2080. Climate data for the years 2030, 2050, 2080 were collected from MarkSim DSSAT weather file generator under Representative Concentration Pathways (RCP) 4.5 scenarios. The crop water requirement of rice for different seasons during these periods was predicted using CROPWAT 8.0 model by assuming same crop management practices for all these years. It was found out that evapotranspiration, effective rainfall and irrigation requirement showed different trends in different seasons during 2030, 2050, and 2080. In virippu season percentage deviation of irrigation requirement from that of 2021 value was found to be 180. 7, 179.0, 181.0 for the years 2030, 2050, 2080, respectively. In mundakan season percentage deviation of irrigation requirement from that of 2021 was found to be -40. 4, -41.1, -29.8, respectively. In puncha season percentage deviation of irrigation requirement from that of 2021 was found to be -5.4,-5.3,-3.6 for the years 2030, 2050, 2080, respectively. The increase in irrigation requirement during virippu season in future compared to 2021 might be due to decrease in effective rain fall during this period and the decrease in irrigation requirement in future compared to 2021 during puncha and mundakan season might be due to increase in effective rainfall during this period. Considering the probability of increase irrigation requirement during virippu season in future, proper water management strategies should be adopted to sustain farmer’s income in addition to current irrigation management practices.

Eight commercially available fungicides were evaluated in-vitro for their efficacy to inhibit radial growth of Alternaria brassicae using poison food technique. All the fungicides evaluated were found to be significantly effective at all their tested concentrations, however, Propiconazole and Hexaconazole were the most effective to exhibit cent percent inhibition in radial growth of A. brassicae, even at their lowest tested concentration (50 ppm). Complete inhibition of mycelial growth of test pathogen was also recorded in case of Vitavax and Flusilazole but at their relatively higher concentration (150 ppm). Azoxystrobin + Difenoconazole and Propineb were the next best fungicides in terms of mycelial inhibition at all the tested concentrations i.e., 50, 100, 150 and 200 ppm. Efficacy of fungicides like Propiconazole, Hexaconazole, Azoxystrobin + Difenoconazole and Propineb remained constant with 100% inhibition at their higher concentrations, i.e., 200 ppm. Mancozeb was found to be least effective with maximum mycelial inhibition of 86.08% at 200 ppm, however, the lower concentrations like 50, 100 and 150 ppm exhibited 53.33%, 54.74% and 64.61% radial growth inhibitions, respectively.

Goat husbandry is one of the important enterprises that enhance the income of rural households by providing gainful employment. To measure the farmer’s knowledge towards goat farming study was conducted in Bundi District of Rajasthan. Seventy-two trainees of goat farming were selected for pre and post training evaluation test. All the goat farmers were imparted 10 day’s trainings on different aspects of goat farming. The study revealed that before training, only 2.94 per cent of the trainees were having high level of knowledge and 79.41 per cent low level of knowledge on goat farming. After acquiring training 70.58 per cent of farmers possessed high level of knowledge and 23.52 per cent moderate level of knowledge towards improved goat husbandry practices. The awareness perceived by farmers about breeding, feeding, health, marketing and housing management was significantly (P<0.05) higher after training. The study suggested that such training programme proved beneficial to farmers for improving their knowledge and attitude towards goat farming in the district.

The present study is based on economically deprived community of the Bhanjdas of Bargodam, Kalka and Bowana villages, who usually depends on bamboos growing in the surrounding forest areas for sustenance. These communities were traditionally practicing the bamboo basketry from three generations. Their earning depends upon the growth of the bamboos in the forest areas. The earning could be enhanced further if they market the produce themselves instead of entrusting the job to money lenders, who charge exorbitant commission. The present study was conducted on 60 households in Kalka region, Panchkula (Haryana) selecting twenty respondents from each village. The monthly earnings from making baskets of different sizes ranged from Rs.2500-3000/- for baskets of the largest size to Rs.1500-1800/-for baskets of the smallest size. The study also indicated that direct selling of baskets by villagers could increase the monthly earnings of the community.

The field experiment was conducted during rabi 2020-2021 at experimental farm of Krishi Vigyan Kendra, Rohru district Shimla to study the effects of Rhizobium application in pea crop on its yield, yield attributes and soil nutrient status. The experiment comprised of five treatments i.e., Farmers’ practice (T1), recommended dose of fertilizers (T2), 100 % NPK (T3), 75% N+ 100% PK+ Rhizobium (T4) and 60% N+100% PK+ Rhizobium (T5). The experiment was laid out in a randomized block design with three replications. The highest number of pods per plant, pod length, pod weight and yield were recorded in T2 whereas highest number of seeds per pod was found in T4. Results revealed that 25per cent reduction in chemical nitrogenous fertilizer in combination with biofertilizers (T4) give significantly similar yield, number of pods per plant, pod length, seed per pod and pod weight in comparison to T2.

An explorative research design was selected for the study. The study was conducted among 60 respondents of 3 block-panchayats purposively using a multi-stage sampling technique viz., Ollukkara, Chalakkudy and Wadakkanchery of Thrissur district in Kerala. The respondents of the study were farmers who cultivated and sold fodder for livelihood at the time of data collection. An institutional support system refers to any organizational or institutional agency working in the study area having a direct or indirect influence on the process of entrepreneurship among fodder cultivators. A semi-structured interview schedule was developed for the purpose and the data thus collected were analysed using SPSS 21.0. The majority (55%) of respondents received moderate institutional support (with a mean score of 11.5 – 17.7). The results indicated that the institutional support of various agencies was moderate and that the entrepreneurs expected a higher level of support. Organizational-level changes are needed to sort this out. On the other hand, appropriate extension efforts have to be taken to disseminate such information to the entrepreneurs.

Indian poultry sector is a profitable industry with enormous growth potential. Poultry farming is regarded as a crucial self-employment tool since it provides a wide range of opportunities for generating income among socio-economically weaker section. During and after COVID -19 pandemic, many extension services provided through technology enabled webinars to the farmers. The Department of Veterinary and Animal Husbandry Extension Education, College of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, Pookode organized webinars for poultry farmers in July 2021. The present study was aimed to measure the farmer’s knowledge about scientific poultry farming practices. The data were collected from 70 farmers by using semi-structured interview schedule through google form. The overall knowledge index was 66.86 per cent. Most of the farmers possessed medium level of knowledge about scientific poultry farming practices (60.0%). Further, 80.57 per cent of the farmers were having knowledge about breed and breeding management in poultry farming.

The present study was conducted in Thanjavur and Coimbatore districts of Tamil Nadu, which was purposively selected considering the highest incidence of crop losses due to peacock and parakeet, respectively. In these districts, two villages per district were selected. A total number of 150 farmers (120 HAC affected farmers and 30 HAC unaffected farmers) were identified for the present research work to collect the primary data. Nearly one-half of the farmers possessed medium level of knowledge with regard to various Human Avian Conflict (HAC). It was observed that the mean knowledge scores for human-peafowl conflict, humanparakeet conflict and HAC unaffected farmers were 23.20, 17.75 and 12.75 respectively. Human-peafowl conflict farmers had high knowledge on HAC.

The study was conducted in Punjab state during the agricultural year 2018-19. It was found that about 39 per cent of total seed produced was sold at the village level followed by self-retainment (35.35%), sale in nearby market (22.41%) and distinct market (3.45%). The market channel-I (Seed producer – seed user, was the most efficient with marketing efficiency (ME) of 84.17 followed by channel-V i.e. Seed producer- Milkfed- seed user (13.28), channel-II i.e. Seed producer- seed dealer- seed user (7.75) and channel-III i.e. Seed producer- wholesaler- seed dealer- seed user (5.32). The seed producers were getting a substantial margin through contract farming with Milkfed (channel-V).. Concept of village-based fodder seed bank may be introduced through establishment of fodder seed villages/farmers, fodder seed producer organizations/groups with facilities for seed processing and storage. On marketing front, fluctuation of price emerged as the most important hindrance to the seed producers followed lack of market information, variability in production, etc., Generating awareness about new varieties, incentives and assured market can play an important role in creating demand and consequently seed production of berseem.

Osmodehydration process for G. gummi-gutta (Malabar tamarind) fruit was optimized for the osmotic variables viz., osmotic solution concentration and immersion time. The fruit slices of 2 cm3 size were osmosed in two different concentrations of sucrose (50?Brix and 700Brix) for 24, 36 and 48 hr immersion time. The effect of osmodehydration on mass transfer characters, biochemical and sensory parameters of the fruits were studied. The results showed that mass transfer characters were increased with osmotic concentration and immersion time. The osmotic pre-treatment of G. gummi-gutta with 700 Brix sucrose for 48 hr recorded superior quality dehydrated fruits in terms of biochemical and sensory parameters with consumer acceptability. The osmodehydrated fruits exhibited a storage stability of three months with better retention of nutritional and sensory qualities.

An experiment was conducted to evaluate the efficacy of aqueous extracts of certain plants with reported antiviral activity and biocontrol agents for the management of Chilli leaf curl virus (ChiLCV) disease naturally infecting chilli. It was observed that seed treatment followed by foliar sprays at 15 days interval using 10% Azadirachta indica and Mirabilis jalapa extracts significantly reduced the disease incidence as well as severity. Also, three treatments, namely A. indica, Pseudomonas flourescens and Bacillus subtilis were found to efficiently check the number of whiteflies. Plant height was also found to be significantly higher in plants treated with A.indica and M.jalapa. Bougainvillea spectabilis and PGPR mix II treated plants. The presence of ChiLCV in the diseased plants was confirmed by performing PCR with virus specific primers.

A participatory field study on nutrient management of Bubalus bubalis (L.) by farmers was carried out in Bichhia Block of Mandla District in Central India with forty one buffalo owners. A fifteen point questionnaire was developed to gather information of the feeding management and milk production of buffaloes. The body weight of the buffaloes was calculated by the Schaeffer’s formula. The average body weight of buffaloes was 508 ± 7.5 kg. The average milk production and 4% FCM yield was 4.08 and 6.06 kg, respectively. The total nutrient fed (DCP, TDN) was compared with nutrient requirement and found that DCP, TDN and phosphorus was deficit by 13.53, 6.09, 22.75 percent, respectively. It was concluded that the low milk production in buffaloes was due to nutrient deficit ration fed to the lactating buffaloes.

Establishment of Custom Hiring Centre (CHC) in farm mechanization is a boon for farmers especially for the small and marginal farmers to combat the labour scarcity. Thus, an extension study was taken up with an objective to know the opportunities and threats in CHC in farm mechanization. About 30 Custom hiring centres located in five sub divisions of the district were selected purposefully for the study. The respondents selected for the study were 30 each from CHC owned farmers, hired farmers and non-hired farmers, thus total sample size was 90. An exploratory research design used for the study. Results revealed that cent per cent of the respondent farmers perceived labour scarcity and high wage rates as the opportunity to establish custom hiring centers. About ninty five per cent farmers perceived the disappearance of cattle for field operations as an opportunity for CHCs. Govt. schemes and subsidy on farm machinery for farmers perceived as opportunity by the 93.33 per cent of the respondent farmers . Cent per cent of the respondent farmers perceived small land holdings as a threat for establish CHCs, high initial investment perceived as threat by the 97.78 per cent farmers, 94.44 per cent farmers perceived the farmers migration to other sectors as a threat and lack of trained personnel for repairs as threat by 91.11 per cent. Farmers suggested that at least one CHC should be established by the Government at mandal level so the price of custom hiring of agricultural machinery is fixed and low as compared to that offered by private CHCs. Policy makers may consider the weaknesses to formulate solutions for these problems and consider the strengths for further improvement in promotion and establishment of CHCs.

Food enrichment is thought to be a highly effective solution and among the most cost effective public health interventions currently available. Yoghurt is a favorite dairy product for billions of people around the world and the producers constantly seek out ways of bringing new varieties for new eating occasions to be enjoyed anywhere and anytime. An attempt was made to incorporate the carotene in yoghurt. Milk was supplemented with carrot juice at 10, 15 and 20 per cent levels. The enriched yoghurt samples were subjected to sensory evaluation for its acceptance, using the 9-point hedonic scale. There was no significant difference observed in acidity and overall acceptability. It was concluded that the yoghurt fortified with natural beta carotene@15% in one litre of milk revealed better sensory acceptability during storage up to 14 days at 5?C.The daily requirement of vitamin A is 5000 IU. Hence, by consuming 100 ml of yoghurt enriched with carotene at 15 per cent level, about 10 per cent of the vitamin A daily requirement can be fulfilled.

Papaya slices were osmosed using jaggery instead of sucrose to lessen the deteriorating health effect of refined sugar. The Box-Behnken design was used to optimize time (1-4 hr), temperature (35-45ºC) and jaggery concentration (45 to 55ºBrix) to achieve maximum water loss (WL) and optimum solute gain (SG) in papaya slices. The optimized conditions for osmotic dehydration of papaya slices were immersion time (4.0 hr), temperature (44ºC) and jaggery concentration (55ºBrix) for a water loss of 34.35 (g/100g) and solute gain of 9.61 (g/100g). Further, the sample prepared using optimized conditions was dried by convective drying for making papaya candy. Proximate and mineral analysis of the samples suggested an improvement in the nutritional quality of jaggery-based papaya candy by significantly increasing the ash and mineral content of jaggery-based candy compared to sucrose-based candy. In addition, sensory attributes suggested higher acceptability of jaggery-based papaya candy, which was comparable with the control.

Krishi Vigyan Kendra, Porba District of Nagaland in collaboration with AICRP Soybean, SASRD, Medziphema conducted front line demonstrations with 20 beneficiaries of Thipuzu village during the Kharif season of 2020-21 and 2021-22. Soybean variety JS 335 was selected for demonstration with all improved practices along with a control plot where farmer’s practices were carried out. The results showed higher yield in demonstration plots (2215 and 2325 kg/ha) indicating the existence of technology gap and extension gap. The technology index ranged from 11 to 7 per cent showing a minor gap between technology evolved and technology adopted at farmer’s field. Lower technology index signifies the feasibility of the technology. The average net return (Rs.62800/-) and B.C. ratio (3.24) were also highest with improved technology as compared to farmers’ practice.

To create awareness for use of bio fertilizers and the adoption of new input in mango var. Kesar and sapota var. Kalipatti, demonstrations were conducted during the year 2021-22 in different blocks of Navsari district viz., Navsari, Jalalpore and Gandevi. Use of bio fertilizer in soil resulted in higher yield (93.5 and 128.0 q/ ha) compared to control plots (85.0 and 112.0 q/ha) in mango and sapota fruit crops, respectively. The yield increase compared to check field plots was 10.0 and 14.3 per cent in mango and sapota crops, respectively. The extension gap was recorded in mango and sapota was 8.5 q/ha and 16.0 q/ha. Similarly, the technical gap was recorded 11.5 q/ha in mango and 22.0 q/ha in sapota. The technology index recorded 10.95 per cent in mango and 14.67 per cent in sapota. The benefit-cost ratio was recorded higher in the demonstrated plot of mango (3.59) and sapota (3.47) fruit crops compared to the check plot. Moreover, net return in mango was also recorded 11.99 per cent and 19.19 per cent in sapota.

A field experiment was conducted at the certified organic farm of Navsari Agricultural University, Navsari Gujarat, during rabi 2018-19 years to study the effect of different levels of NADEP manures on nutrient content and quality of different crops. NADEP is the method of organic composting uses a wide range of organic materials such as crop residues, weeds, forest litter and kitchen waste with an end product of a fertilizer that serves as a good alternative to farmyard manure. The experiment was conducted with five different crops (C1: Maize, C2: Indian bean, C3: Cauliflower, C4: Garlic, C5: Carrot) and three levels of NADEP manures (M1: 100 % RDN, M2: 50 % RDN, M3: 4/ha) in FRBD with three replications. Results indicated that the interaction effect of M 1C4 recorded significantly maximum P (%) as well as M1C3 recorded significantly maximum K (%). Indian bean recorded significantly higher protein and N which was found at par with Garlic. Cauliflower recorded significantly higher nutrients like K, Mn, Zn and Cu whereas Carrot recorded significantly higher Fe and reducing sugar. Maize recorded higher total sugar and non-reducing sugar in economic parts of different crops. Economic produce of crops was found nutritionally rich under the treatment of 100 % RDN applied through NADEP compost. In the case of different crop residue parts, significantly higher content of P, Fe, Mn, and Cu was recorded in Cauliflower whereas significantly maximum Zn was recorded in Maize. Significantly maximum K and maximum N were recorded in the Indian bean which was observed at par with Cauliflower. The interaction effect was found non-significant for different crop residue parts.

In India, gender equality is a fundamental human right and a necessary foundation for a peaceful, prosperous and sustainable society. Within nation and development strategies, gender disparity is critical because it disables women to make decisions that impact their overall health and families. This paper is an attempt to analyse the determinants which are accountable for measuring gender disparity in health and survival. The present study has focused on different determinants of women health and survival viz., nutritional status, reproductive health, women’s empowerment and gender-based violence etc. that ensure gender equality. Study relied on secondary data obtained from various international and national reports viz., Global Gender Gap Reports (GGI), National Family Health Survey III, IV and V, NSSO (National Sample Survey Organization), Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MSPM) and National Crime Record Bureau (NCRB). The study found that as per latest NFHS-V findings sex ratio (1020), institutional births (88.6%), adoption of family planning methods (66.7%), total fertility rate (TFR) (2.0), has improved but other indicators of health like sex ratio at birth (929) (SRB), anaemia among pregnant and all women (57%) and obesity among women (24%) and men (22.9%) has not improved compared to previous rounds (NFHSIV&III).The NCRB report findings revealed that crime against women in India increased from 56.5 per cent in year 2020 to 64.5 per cent in year 2021.

The study was carried out during Rabi 2017-18 to 2019-20 at farmer’s fields in the Bundi district of Rajasthan. Frontline demonstrations were conducted with the objectives to analyse the productivity and profitability of late sown wheat under paddy-wheat cropping system. The results revealed that frontline demonstrations recorded higher grain yield of wheat as compared to farmer’s practices over the years of study. Improved variety (Raj 4238) of wheat resulted in progressively increased grain yield from 43.44 to 51.46 q/ha with a range of 6.41 to 12.97 per cent higher over farmer’s practices during three years of study. In addition to increase in grain yield of wheat, mean of extension gap, technology gap and technology index were found 3.94, 5.92 q/ha and 10.76 per cent, respectively. The extension gap may be reduced by popularization of improved packages and practices of wheat in late sown condition under paddy-wheat cropping system. Improved variety (Raj 4238) of wheat under late sown condition also gave higher gross and net return with more benefit cost ratio as compare to farmer’s practices over the years of study. The study also revealed that variety Raj 4238 was found feasible in late sown conditions under paddy-wheat cropping system in Bundi district of Rajasthan.

Empowering women through developing skill in various income generating activities of agriculture and allied sector would play a significant role in uplifting the rural economy. An enterprise involved in vermicompost production with locally available material is now emerging as an income generating avenue for farm women. Vermicompost is produced by the earthworms on partially decomposed organic material. The compost is rich in essential plant nutrients, beneficial to soil microorganisms, plant growth promoting substances, vitamins and enzymes. Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK) Morigaon conducted front line demonstration (FLD) on low cost vermicompost production involving ten numbers of farm women with an aim to wide scale adoption of the technology among others for upliftment of socio-economic standard of the rural people. In the FLD programme, the technology demonstrated was pit method of vermicompost preparation in a tank of size 2.5 m(L) X 0.91 m (B) X 0.91 m(D) using locally available materials such as bamboo and polythene sheet. Vermi wash was collected in an earthen pit of size 0.31 m (L) x 0.31 m (B) x 0.31 m (D) by connecting the pit with vermicomposting unit by a PVC pipe. The result of the demonstration programme was satisfactory and spread by the members of the NGO trained by KVK, Morigaon to fifteen operational villages under them leading to the formation of a Farmers’ Producer Company named Yangli.

An investigation was undertaken to study the profile and information sources used by fisheries officials involved in shrimp farming system of Maharashtra. Information was collected randomly from 55 fisheries officials from the Department of Fisheries, Maharashtra using interview schedule. Personal profile was also studied to have a broader understanding of the extension organization per se. Different sources from where they access information included internet/social media, fisheries institutions, literature from research institutions and development departments. A 3-point scale viz. always, very often and often was developed to record the information sources used by fisheries officials. Results indicated that majority of fisheries officials were post graduates (83.64%) with Master’s Degree in Fisheries Science or Zoology. Majority of fisheries officials (58.18%) had not attended any formal training in scientific shrimp farming and extension management (72.73%). Higher percentages of fisheries officials (58.18%) were using mobile phones as a preferred mode for contacting farmers. The study indicated that internet / social media was the main source of information for majority of fisheries officials (74.25%) followed by fisheries Institutions (16.36%). It is necessary to integrate and institutionalize use of internet in extension advisories and trainings. Based on the results of the study, integration and convergence of different aquaculture extension system service providers is suggested.

The present study was conducted in the state of Andhra Pradesh with an objective to find out the relationship between socio-demographic and communication characteristics of the farmers about All India Radio Vyavasaya Patasala programme. All 13 districts in the state of Andhra Pradesh were selected for the study. A purposive sampling procedure was employed to select the sample who had an exposure to the Vyvasaya patasala programme. A sample of 150 farmers who were the members of Scientific Advisory Committee of KVKs and District Level Coordinating Committee of DAATTCs selected for the study. Results of the study revealed that half of them (49.33 %) had listened Vyvasaya patasala programme frequently and rest of them listened the programme at occasionally (32.00 %) and rarely (18.67 %). The study showed that majority of the farmers had medium to high levels of socio-demographic and communication characteristics. It was inferred that communication characteristics such as frequency of listening of Vyvasaya patasala programme and extension contact had a positive and highly significant relationship at 0.01% level of significance. Whereas socio-demographic characteristics viz., age, education, land holding farming experience had a positive and significant relationship with their perception about Vyavasaya patasala programme at 0.05% level of significance. This indicated that as the extent of these characteristics increased, the perception of farmers towards Vyvasaya patasala programme also increased.

The study was conducted in the hill district of Assam to collect information on existing management practices of Assam hill (AH) goat and assess their productive and reproductive performances under field conditions. The data were collected through field survey, PRA, focus group discussion, pre-tested interview schedule and records obtained through individual farm visits. The study showed that 94 per cent of the goat farmers didn’t have knowledge on availability of different goat breeds. Most of the tribal farmers didn’t maintain breeding buck (75.5%) and used natural service method (100%). A large share of the farmers reared their goat in open grazing/tethering under semi intensive system (89%) followed by semi stall feeding (11%) with provision of temporary house (84%) made of locally available materials (81%). The study on feeding practices showed that 94.5 per cent farmers didn’t cultivate green fodder and 65.5 per cent farmers didn’t provide concentrate feed. The study revealed that 92.5 per cent of the farmers don’t vaccinate their goats and while only 10.0, 7.0 and 11.0 per cent used antibiotics, deworming and ectoparasitic drugs, respectively. Tick/mange/mite infestation, diarrhoea, PPR, or goat pox and mastitis were reported by 71, 78, 61.5, 47, 30 and 13 per cent of the goat farmers, respectively. Most of the farmers had flock size of 5-10 (66%) with average litter size of 1.69. The mean body weight gain of Assam Hill goat at birth, 3, 6, 9 and 12 months were 1.61±0.03, 4.62±0.09, 8.48±0.08, 11.75±0.08 and 15.24±0.14 kg, respectively. The mean age at puberty, sexual maturity, length of estrus cycle, first kidding, post-partum estrus period, gestation length were 276.19±1.19,298.39±0.94, 20.97±0.03, 449.56±0.85, 64.78±0.71, 247.73±0.95 and 147.91±0.16 days, respectively. No significant differences were observed in productive and reproductive performances (p>0.05) among the districts.

Punjab Agricultural University is regularly organizing kisan mela since 1967 and a large number of farmers visits these melas in order to acquaint themselves with the recent technologies developed by the university. Further, in order to disseminate latest technologies amongst farming community, it is essential to assess the training needs and availability of existing resources with the farmers. The present study was thus conducted to assess the status of dairy animals kept by those farmers who visited kisan mela during September,2022 in order to plan various extension activities to be undertaken in near future for the benefit of dairy farmers in the state of Punjab. The study was conducted on 85 farmers who visited PAU exhibition stall to get themselves registered for future extension activities of the university. A total of 85 were interviewed through questionnaire specially designed in order to know the status of dairy farmers in the state. It was found that maximum number of farmers were from district Moga (17.64%) followed by Ferozepur (16.47%) and Sangrur (12.94%), Ludhiana (8.23%) , Barnala (7.05%) and Mukatsar (5.88%)

Jagiroad, located in Morigaon district of Assam is known for the Asia’s largest dry fish market. The market is currently dealing with 300 different types of dried fish product with more than 100 species of freshwater and remaining from marine water fish. Among the freshwater fishes only 10-15 species (Puntius spp, Notopterus Notopterus, Amblypharyngodon mola and Labeo spp etc and from marine sardinella, Mackeral spp and Harpodon neherus) are highly in demand in market. Freshwater dry fish species are mostly procured from West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Tripura and marine water dry fish species are received from Gujarat, Kerala and Andhra Pradesh. Dried fish products are available only for wholesale and the price of the product depends on several factors like type of dried fish product, transportation cost, cost of storage etc. In the present study protein content of dried fish was found higher than the fresh fish. It was also observed that women were actively participating in dry fish market as wholesaler, business dealer and as day labour etc. The major constraints observed in dry fish market were contaminated with faecal matter, blow flies, lack of infrastructure and proper storage facility.

The natural resources are at stack and creating very alarming situation for the future under irrigated and rain fed conditions. The adoption of rice-wheat system in Indo-Gangetic plains greatly contributed to India’s food self-sufficiency and livelihood of millions of people. However, deterioration of soil health and its quality, ground water depletion and climate change are jeopardising the sustainability of rice-wheat cropping system. Traditional agronomic practices had various negative implications on the agricultural sustainability. The naturally available resources are now under threat because of their irrational use. A perspective strategic plan is delineated to efficiently utilize these resources so that the agricultural production can be made sustainable for long time. Some technologies for efficient management of water, soil and air resources have been suggested which can be helpful in saving irrigation water, maintain soil productivity and decrease climate change.

Protected cultivation practice is a cropping technique wherein the microclimate surrounding the plant body is controlled partially or fully as per the requirement of vegetables. The study regarding status of protected cultivation technology was conducted by selecting various farmers who were adopting this technique in district Amritsar and Tarn Taran and the data were collected by personal field visit and interview schedule with farmers. In Amritsar district of Punjab, total area under protected cultivation was 158.70 ha with a production of 806.88 Mt of vegetables and 2 lakh seedlings of vegetables while in Tarn Taran district of Punjab the area was 23.4 ha with production of 476 Mt of vegetables. The low cost technology of vegetable cultivation was helpful for cultivation of vegetables like Brinjal, Tomato, Pumpkin, Cucumber, Capsicum, Summer Squash, Chilli, Squash Melon, Summer Squash + Cucumber and Capsicum + Cucumber in both of districts. By growing these crops in poly houses, shade nets and under low tunnels farmers were getting early yield of 9 to 46.6 q/ha, total yield of 115 to 650 q/ha and net income of Rs38,000/- to Rs.1,12,000/-ha by advancing the crop to about 30-40 days. Crops like Capsicum + Cucumber, Summer Squash + Cucumber and Capsicum were more responsive under protected cultivation of vegetables.

Rice is the most important food crop in the world and is the staple food for more than half of the world population. Transplanting of rice seedlings, being a high labour-intensive and expensive operation needs to be substituted by direct seeding which could reduce labour needs and drudgeries with comparable yields. At present manually operated pre germinated paddy seeder is being used in certain rice tracts of Kollam district. Rice Research Station, Moncombu, Kerala Agricultural University developed a self-propelled paddy drum seeder by attaching the pre germinated drum seeder to a 8 row Yanji-Sakthi paddy transplanter. Therefore, a study was undertaken to evaluate the existing self-propelled pre germinated paddy drum seeder in rice growing tracts of Kollam district. Nine female subjects were selected, those having anthropometric dimensions conforming to statistical requirements based on the anthropometric survey. There was significant difference in heart rate in the operation of selected rice farming equipment. Minimum heart rate was observed in self-propelled pre germinated paddy seeder with a value of 120 beats/ min. Studies showed that operation of self propelled paddy drum seeder resulted in higher rice yield (34.43 q/ha) followed by manually operated paddy drum seeder (33.96 q/ha) and sowing in lines manually (32.49q/ha). The maximum discomfort was experienced by the subjects in the manual line sowing of paddy with a value of 6.1 and scaled as More than moderate discomfort. Lowest overall discomfort rating was observed in self-propelled pre germinated paddy drum seeder operation with a value of 5.0. The B:C ratio was higher for self-propelled paddy drum seeder (1.43), followed by manually operated paddy drum seeder (1.32) and sowing in lines ( (1.23).The rest time, for achieving functional effectiveness during operation of self-propelled paddy drum seeder was found to be 10 minutes followed by 1 hour of work.

Jasmine, is a rising crop in Kerala with lot of commercial value with limited knowledge regarding their natural enemies. This study aims to document important spider predators of jasmine and evaluate effect of various biopesticides on them to develop an eco-friendly management. Nine spiders of four families were documented from Thiruvananthapuram, Kollam and Alappuzha districts of Kerala. Oxyopes shweta Tikader, Camaricus sp., Plexippus paykulli (Audonin), Hyllus semicupreus (Simon), Telamonia dimidiate (Simon), Thomisus lobosus Tikader, Argiope catenulate (Doleschall), Tetragnatha maxillosa Thorell and Phintella vittata (C. L Koch) were documented out of which Camaricus sp., A. catenulate and T. maxillosa were reported for first time from jasmine. In field experiment conducted at College of Agriculture, Vellayani microbials, oil based Beauveria bassiana, Metarzhiium anisopliae and talc based Lecanicillium lecanii and botanical formulations used were found safe to spiders.

In India, there are about 2.82 lakh practicing agri-input dealers, who are the prime source of farm information to the farming community. The first contact point for majority of farmers is the agri-input dealer. During purchasing different inputs required for farming operations, the farmer naturally tries to find out from the input dealer about the usage of inputs, both in terms of quality and quantity. However, most of these input dealers do not have formal agricultural education. If these input dealers can be shaped as para-extension professionals by providing requisite knowledge then they can professionalize extension services and contribute to bring a paradigm shift in Indian Agriculture. It is in this context, one-year diploma course entitled Diploma in Agricultural Extension Services for Input Dealers (DAESI) imparts relevant and location-specific agricultural education to equip input dealers with knowledge to transform them into paraextension professionals enabling them to address the day-to-day problems being faced by the farmers at field level. In rainfed faming state of Chhattisgarh, agro input dealers play vital role in farm production. Input dealers can contribute towards strengthening agriculture extension system through creation sound technological linkage with farmers. So, it is very essential to know the knowledge level of input dealers with modern crop production technologies including agro machinery. Present study was conducted during 2016-18 in Surguja district of Northern hill region of Chhattisgarh to prioritize need for training of agroinput dealers. Through personnel interview of 40 retailers, 47.5 % were young (36-45 yr), and 35 % were graduates. Training in computer and its application with record keeping software was another preferred area. For dealers the major problems faced is the lack of knowledge of new product (90 %), Lack of knowledge of maintenance of stock (87.5 %), Non availability of bank loan (82.5 %), fluctuation of selling season (80 %) followed by lack of capital and need based training (77.5 %) .

Animal husbandry is an integral component of rural farmers in India. It is established that women always participated in animal husbandry activities in addition to the daily household chores. Training is one of the important aspects, which can enhance knowledge, improve skills and change the attitude of farm women. Keeping this in view, the present attempt has been made to analyze the training needs of dairy farm women and their multiple regression analysis in animal husbandry practices. The study was carried out in the Chhotaudepur district of Gujarat State. Data were collected with the help of a pre-tested semi-structured interview schedule on 90 farm women. The study revealed that training was most needed in feeding, breeding, health care and management practices. Further, out of 11 variables, only 2 variables i.e., education and mass media exposure had significant contributions to the training needs of farm women. However, all the 11 variables fitted in the model show a 66.30 per cent contribution to the training needs of farm women.

Mithun (Bos frontalis) is considered as a majestic Gold of Arunachal Pradesh because of its economic, socio-cultural, and religious importance. Three systems of rearing are practiced, free-range, tethering and lura systems. Free range system is the most prevalent method of rearing, followed by tethering system during treatment or introduction into new environment/ place or to tame the mithun. Lura system synchronizes agriculture cultivation system, where mithun are kept inside community-based enclosure to prevent crops raid. No extra shed is constructed for mithun, no provision of health care like vaccination or deworming, except few farmer vaccinated their mithun for FMD, no extra feeds are offered except for common salt. Breeding is done by natural mating under favorable condition in forest. Identification mark is done by ear notching. Fallow jhum is good source of 14 different kind of fodder for mithun, while some farmers practice of rejuvenation of fodder by burning dry biomass of hillock during dry season (November-December). Tenant system of caring mithun is followed, as a dual owner of mithun, the tenants get one calf after every two calves born for absolute owner of mithun. Due to tenants system of caring and exchange of mithun during bridal gift within inter village to inter district practices may reduce inbreeding depression along with conducive, vast grazing forest area. These three factors are the reason for continuous increasing in mithun population in Arunachal, in contrast to decline mithun population in other state. 90.6 per cent of mithun population of India is found in Arunachal. There is need to inculcate the scientific ways to improve production potential of certain Research Centre or Sub Centre on Mithun may be established in Arunachal Pradesh for livelihood improvement of tribal society of Arunachal Pradesh.

Bypass fat improves the energy balance of cattle during advance pregnancy and early lactation and aids in improvement of milk production and reproduction. The present study was conducted at farmers’ dairy farm by KVK Ropar. Twelve cross bred cattle in their late pregnancy (lactation number 2 to 4) and having an average 10-20 l/day peak milk yield were selected for the study. The animals were divided into two treatments groups with six animals in each group. T1 group was fed without bypass fat according to farmer’s feeding schedule and T2 was fed bypass fat @ 150g/d along with farmer’s feeding schedule. Feeding of bypass fat was started 30 d prepartum (expected date of parturition) and continued till 30 d postpartum. Weight of neonates, dam milk production, fat and SNF content were the parameters under study. The results indicated that initial (7-18 d postpartum) and final milk yield (19-30d postpartum) in group T2 were significantly higher by 11.48% and 17.75% in comparison to T1 group. The milk fat percent in T2 was also significantly higher by 8.7% as compared to that in T1 group. SNF percentage in T2 group was non significantly higher by 0.4%. Average birth weights of the calves were 25.17±1.94 Kg and 28.67±1.75 kg in T 1 and T2, respectively. At the end of 30 d trial period body weight of calves improved to 35.67±3.56 and 42.33±2.34 in T 1 and T2 groups, respectively making it significantly higher by 18.69% in T2 group (P<0.05).

Red hairy caterpillar (Amsacta albistriga) is a major pest in kharif groundnut causing 25-100 per cent damage in endemic villages in Chittoor and YSR Kadapa districts of Andhra Pradesh. Pheromone lures, which is a novel pest control method, were not available for this pest till 2016. The Department of Entomology, Regional Agricultural Research Station, Tirupati under Acharya N G Ranga Agricultural University, Guntur in collaboration with CSIR-IICT, Hyderabad developed pheromone lures and these lures were tested by Krishi Vigyan Kendra, Kalikiri in endemic villages of the pest during kharif, 2018 and kharif, 2019. Field evaluation during kharif, 2018 revealed that silica septa lure was effective over plastic septa lure in attracting male moths of Red hairy caterpillar. Silica septa lures were evaluated against solar light traps during kharif, 2019. Pheromone traps were superior over solar light trap which attracted more number of male moths. During kharif, 2018 adult catches were high during 1st week of August and 1st week of September whereas during kharif, 2019 catches were high during the last week of July, 2019 and thereafter, catches gradually declined. Larval population reached economic threshold level during kharif, 2019 and poison bait was applied to manage the pest.

A study on value chain mapping of standardized milk has been carried out in Chittoor and Vishakhapatnam districts of Andhra Pradesh. A predetermined sample of 80 dairy farmers were drawn randomly from selected four villages of Chittoor and Vishakhapatnam districts of Andhra Pradesh. Two collection centres each from Vishakhapatnam cooperative and Chittoor private processing plants were selected for mapping of formal value chain. Study revealed that the procurement cost of milk for Chittoor private dairy processing plant (Rs. 1.40/l) was found to be higher than Vishakhapatnam cooperative dairy processing plant (Rs. 1.37/l). This was mainly due to handling of less quantity of milk by the private dairy plant. However, 14.60 per cent higher processing cost of standardized milk was witnessed in case of cooperative dairy pant. Higher marketing efficiency of private dairy plant (2.02) than cooperative dairy plant (1.78) was mainly due to lower marketing cost, which reveals better management of private diary plant.

The present study was conducted to know the water activity in the behaviour of treated and untreated traditional grain storage. The freshly harvested maize grains (DKC 9082; 12.0% w. b.) were stored under five different types of storage i.e., in Hermetic bags (super bags), Polyethylene bags, Plastic bags and Jute bags, Metal bin and Mud bin with and without treatment at ambient condition (30± 5oc) for study. Out of fifteen, three treatments viz.,T1: Jute bag with Hermetic bag; T2- Plastic with Hermetic Bag; T3- Metal bin with Hermetic bags grouped under untreated whereas, twelve treatment viz., T4- Jute bag with polythene treatment of neem; T5- Jute bag with treatment of neem, T6- Plastic bag with Polythene treatment of neem; T 7- Plastic with treatment of neem, T8- Metal Bin with polythene Bag treatment of neem; T9- Metal Bin with treatment of neem; T10- Jute bag with polythene treatment of chemical; T11- Jute bag with treatment of chemical; T12- Plastic with polythene treatment of chemical; T13- Plastic bag with treatment of chemical; T14- Metal bin with polythene Bag treatment of chemical and T15 Metal Bin with treatment of chemical storage modes were placed under treatment. The variation in temperature and relative humidity were recorded on a daily basis and the physical properties such as grain moisture content, water activity was recorded monthly. The result revealed that the water activity was found as 0.55 during the initial storage days. In untreated group, the values of water activity were observed slightly increased 0.58 in T1 while T2 and T3 showed similar increased values 0.61 and 0.62 as compared to initial values. In neem leave treated storage water activity was T4 in 0.63, while T5 and T7 similar values were 0. 67, T6 in 0.64, and T8 in 0.66, the highest value increased were T 9 in 0.69. In chemical treatment, the highest value was 0.70 in T15, while the lowest value was 0.63 in T 10 at the 6th month of storage period in the different storage mode bag. It was concluded that the untreated group exhibited slightly increased values of the water activity in comparison to values recorded at initial stage but less than treated group

The on farm trial (OFT) was conducted to find out the cost-effective weed management practices for pigeonpea during Kharif season of 2021-22 with four replication one at in crop cafeteria (Technical Park) of Krishi Vigyan Kendra and remaining three conducted at farmers’ field of village Bharauli block Sohaon, district Ballia Uttar Pradesh. Seven treatments were viz., T1-weedy check, T2-Hand weeding, T3- Pendimethalin @ 750g a.i. ha-1 as PE, T4 -Imazethapyr @ 100g a.i. ha-1 at 30 DAS, T5 – quizalofop-ethyl @ 50g. a.i. ha-1 at 30 DAS , T6 – Pendimethalin @ 750g a.i. ha-1 as PE fb Imazethapyr @ 100 g a.i.ha-1 at 30 DAS [POE], T7 – Pendimethalin @ 750g a.i. ha-1 as PE fb quizalofop-ethyl @ 50g. a.i. ha-1 at 30 DAS [POE]. The pre-emergent herbicide i.e., Pendimethalin was sprayed within 24 hr of sowing and post emergence herbicides i.e., Imazethapyr and Quizalofop-ethyl were sprayed 30 DAS between the crop rows (directed sprays). Among all the treatments, pre-emergence application of Pendimethalin followed by Imazethapyr at 30 days after sowing (DAS) was significantly recorded lowest weed growth and weed dry weight with WCE of 82.64 per cent at 60 DAS and 76.80 percent at 90 DAS, respectively.

Yellowing, foot rot disease and reduced spike length are the major limiting factors in production and productivity of Black Pepper. An assessment experiment to evaluate the performance of various plant growth promoting microbes for management of yellowing and foot rot disease in black pepper was carried out in Kodagu district of Karnataka. Four different microbial consortia were assessed during the year 2020-21 and 2021-22 in a randomized block design, replicated five times comprising of four treatments. The results revealed that drenching of Arka Microbial Consortium (20 g/l) applied at the rate of 4 l/ vine during June and September was found to be the best among treatment. It resulted reduced yellowing (6.25%), higher spike length (14.25 cm) and also resulted in early initiation of spikes as compared to other treatments. Hence, the technological package comprising of drenching with AMC was found to be highly effective for harnessing higher dry pepper yields (8.75 q/ha) and for maintaining good plant health in black pepper.