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Open Access
Tribal labour migration of Wayanad district: an impact analysis
(Department of Agricultural Extension, College of Agriculture, Vellayani, 2021) Mano Sandesh, V V; KAU; Anilkumar, A
The study entitled “tribal labour migration of Wayanad district: an impact analysis” was undertaken during 2016-2020at College of Agriculture, Vellayani, with the major objectives of studying the impact of tribal labour migration on the livelihood of tribespeople and the agricultural situation of Wayanad district. Factors influencing the tribal labour migration and their migration proneness were also studied. The study was conducted in all the four blocks of Wayanad district viz., Mananthavady, Sulthan Bathery, Kalpetta and Panamaram. From each block 30 tribal migrants, 10 tribal non migrants and 10 non tribal significant other respondents were selected randomly making a total of 200 respondents. The data collected were statistically analysed using arithmetic mean, percentage, correlation analysis and non parametric test. The study revealed that half of the respondents had medium level of livelihood capital index before migration. Most of the tribal migrants possessed medium level of human capital, social capital, natural capital and financial capital before migration. A lion share (61.66%) of the respondents had low level of physical capital before migration. The analysis of livelihood after migration revealed that more than half (60.83%) of the tribal migrants had high livelihood capital index after migration. Immense increase (30.6%) in physical capital of tribespeople due to migration was obvious from study results and it was remarkable for tribes belonging to Kattunaikan and Paniya communities. This caused a temptation for migration among tribal non migrants. A substantial number (85.83%) of tribal migrants had medium social capital and 73.33 per cent had medium of human capital after migration. There was a decrease in the social capital of tribespeople due to migration and this was an indication that tribal migrants were not actively involving in the social activities. After migration 83.33 per cent of tribal migrants had only low natural capital. This tremendous decrease in natural capital indicate poor use of natural resources by tribespeople. Majority (70.83%) of the tribal migrants had a high financial capital after migration. The increase in the financial capital and physical capital was highly significant in uplifting the livelihood capital index of tribal migrants. Sixty five per cent of the tribal non migrants had high livelihood capital index. Globalisation has also affected the life style, food habits and education of tribespeople. Cultural changes were observed among the young tribespeople and many of them have turned to non agricultural labour activities. This also helped them to achieve higher financial capital and there by increased livelihood capital index. Analysis of the relationship between the dependent variable livelihood capital index and profile characteristics of tribespeople revealed that, viz. age, annual income, education, land holding, experience in agriculture, level of aspiration and economic motivation correlated significantly. Marital status and wage per day correlated significantly to livelihood capital index before migration while they were not significant after migration. Most of the tribal migrants had medium migration proneness. Young tribespeople were found to be more prone to migration than middle or old aged tribespeople. Majority of the tribal non migrants had lower migration proneness and they assumed that for a sustainable livelihood, migration is not a necessary factor. On correlation analysis it was found that education, wage per day, political orientation, type of house, level of aspiration and risk preference positively and significantly correlated with migration proneness whereas age, marital status, debt and experience in agriculture correlated negatively with migration proneness. Regarding the nature of migration of tribal migrants, majority of the migrants were daily and seasonal migrants and none of them migrated permanently. A higher percentage of tribal migration was interstate. They migrated mostly to Coorg area via Kutta region of Thirunelli Panchayath and Karnataka via Mysore road to work as agricultural labourers mainly for ginger cultivation. The entire tribal migrants moved in groups and the decision to migrate was induced rather than self chosen. Majority of tribal migrants went for agriculture labour work and were non registered migrants. Unemployment or loss of employment was the main push factor for migration. Low wages, poverty, malnutrition, small holding, landlessness, decline of natural resources, frustration, alienation from community and indebtedness were other major push factors of migration. Superior opportunity for employment was the main pull factor for migration. Better job security, superior opportunity to earn higher income, opportunity to obtain desired specialization, education, skill or training and better food were other major pull factors of migration. Scarcity of agricultural labourers was the major consequence of tribal labour migration, which in turn caused a decrease in agricultural land area. Change in the cropping pattern of Wayanad district, use of agricultural land for non agricultural purposes and immigration of agricultural labourers from other states to Wayanad were found to be other consequences of tribal labour migration. Shortage of skilled labourers, significant change in wage structure and decline of indigenous knowledge were also the results of tribal labour migration. In the light of the study some of the important policy prescriptions for the consideration of the government are (i) create better local job opportunities in the agriculture sector (ii) strengthen police patrolling in the tribal colonies to control illegal marketing of alcohol (iii) implement stringent registration procedures for tribal who are migrating (iv) evaluate the livelihood of tribal migrants periodically (v) formulate new programs and activities to conserve the traditional life style of tribespeople (vi) open and maintain rehabilitation centers in tribal areas to reduce alcohol addiction among tribal migrants (vii) initiate counseling and guidance centers for tribal migrants (viii) conduct regular inspections at migratory places to discourage exploitation of tribespeople (ix) ensure decent and indiscriminating wage structure for tribespeople in their native places.
Open Access
Exploratory study for resilient wheat farming in Nigeria
(Department of Agricultural Extension, College of Agriculture, Vellanikkara, 2022) Salisu, Ahmad Dambazau; KAU; Jayasree Krishnankutty, M
Wheat growing has been the most difficult aspect of Nigerian agriculture for decades. Certain issues remain unresolved, posing a threat to the country's goal of diversifying revenue and lowering its growing reliance on imported wheat. Low wheat production, insecurity in Nigeria's wheat region, a lack of mechanized and updated farming techniques, and uncompetitive pricing are among the issues. This study for resilient wheat farming in Nigeria was conducted with the specific objectives of exploring the sociopolitical situation affecting wheat farming, studying the perceived effects of climate change on production of wheat and livelihoods of wheat farmers, analysing the government policies and schemes on wheat production, examining the marketing behaviour of wheat farmers, and arriving at policy options for resilient wheat farming in Nigeria. In view of the key research objectives, an ex-post facto research design was employed. A multi-stage sampling technique was adopted where three states (Jigawa, Kano and Yobe) and six local government areas (Ajingi, Bade, Garun Malan, Kafin Hausa, Nguru and Ringim), two from each state, were selected for the study. Furthermore, forty respondents were randomly selected from each local government area, making the total sample size of 240. Personal interviews and focus group discussions were used to collect primary data. A pre-test was also conducted to ensure the validity of the instruments. Secondary data was gathered from policy documents, relevant literature, government reports, newspapers, and so on. The elicited data was tabulated, analyzed, and interpreted by the use of descriptive statistics, inferential statistics, likert scale of summated rating, content analysis techniques (MAXQDA 2022 statistical software), price spread analysis, compound growth rate analysis, Kruskal-Wallis test, discriminant function analysis, and the Kendell coefficient of concordance test. The study revealed that the farmers were within their active age, married, and living below the poverty line, have low levels of education, mostly explored additional sources of income, and have enough years of experience in wheat farming. The farmers have marginal land size and acquired it through one method, using mostly certified and non-certified seeds and sourcing it mostly from two places while in contact with an extension agent most of the time. The respondents also participated in other activities for livelihood earning and have a larger number of household members, mostly with one earning member. The study revealed that the most common biotic, abiotic, social and political stress affecting wheat crops and farmers differ with regard to location. The major stresses affecting wheat farmers in Nigeria were pests and diseases, wild birds, marketing of their produce, rodents and domestic animal attacks. The social and political situations affecting wheat production were identified as internal social factors, external social factors, and political factors. Lack of good cultivation practices and the knowledge level of the farmers were the major internal social factors. These, among others, prevented the farmer from fully adopting the recommended agronomic practices. While the major external social factors were consumer food habits, consumer demand for convenience, lower produce prices, and high input costs, The political factors identified were social security issues, inconsistent government policies, intricacies in implementation, the role of the media in publication, role-playing by the milling industries, international trade interests, and lack of political will. No doubt, wheat millers imported more than required in 1986. It may have been a means for them to sabotage AWPP's success. The present approach employed by the milling industry, if sustained, will surely boost the wheat crop production in the country. Further findings indicated that the overall growth rate during the study period was -1% for production and only a minimal growth rate of 2% for harvested area, while a 5% positive growth rate was recorded in imports. It was a clear indication of the low yield of the wheat crop in Nigeria. The findings affirmed that the respondents were aware of climate change, with the majority of them having a medium perception of its effects on wheat production in Nigeria. There was a significant difference among the respondents with regard to the climate change perception which was influenced by their age, educational level, secondary occupation, years of experience, contact with extension agents, and household size. Additionally, Nigeria’s climate has no or little effect on wheat crop production. However, it may be that wheat production in Nigeria has been affected largely by human action rather than climatic and environmental factors. The findings inferred that the wheat production policies were domiciled in Kano state and that there was no equal distribution and allocation of resources among the states. The Anchor Borrower Program (ABP) is the only program having participants across the study areas. This may be because there is advancement in policy handling among the implementing agencies. The ABP failed to capture sustainability in production as well as rural infrastructural development in the program statement. The Agricultural Promotion Policy (APP) document left no stone unturned, the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development is driving the implementation of the policy. The policy document gives priority to stakeholders’ roles and responsibilities and is more concerned about sustainability in the production of the priority crops as well as reliability in the marketing channels. The document considers modern day agricultural approaches through the involvement of private sectors in all areas of the agricultural commodity value chain. For the improvement of rural livelihoods, the policy considered the development of the farming communities’ infrastructure. However, the respondents have a medium perception of government policy and scheme on wheat production in Nigeria which influenced by their age, educational level, secondary occupation, years of experience, contact with extension agent, farm size, household size and monthly income, and there was no significant difference in their perception. The majority of the respondents sell their produce immediately after harvest if the price is favourable due to financial urgency for both wholesalers and retailers in the case of Jigawa and Yobe, and consumers in the case of Kano. The majority sell in the local market due to proximity and using trucks as their main transportation facility. The study also inferred that the majority of the respondents relied on informal sources of market information and utilized them regularly. This revealed the kind of trust the respondents gave to those sources and affirmed the weakness of the extension system in the study areas, especially in Yobe state. There were four marketing channels in Jigawa and Kano, while three were identified in Yobe. The producers received the highest percent of the marketing share in channel I (producer –consumer) and a higher amount in channel II (producer–retailer–consumer). The marketing margin was higher in channel III (producer–wholesaler–retailer–consumer) and the producers received a lower amount when compared with channels I and II. This indicates that the more the actors, the less the producers share. There was no additional information obtained from channel IV as it involved industrial processes. Moreover, the study shows that there was significant variation between the states with regard to the variables under study among the respondents between the states. The variable marketing behaviour had the most prominent effect in predicting membership in the group between Kano and other states, while farm size was the most prominent effect between Jigawa and Yobe. The variability in net income of a wheat farmer in Nigeria could be predicted with 99.3% accuracy using age, total output, selling price, straw price, quantity of pesticide used, frequency of irrigation, and total cost of production. The study confirmed that the major constraints affecting wheat farmers in Nigeria were a lack of government intervention, a weak extension system, high input and pest and disease costs, a low output price, insufficient credit facilities, a lack of high-yielding varieties, poor yield, and a lack of a regular market. There was strong agreement on the most important constraints among the respondents of different states. For Nigeria to achieve the desired outcome, focused commitments and the adoption of a multi-dimensional approach are required. Political factors were the major concerns surrounding the wheat production sector and would be overcome through a yearly stakeholders' round table meeting to review the situation. External social factor issues would be addressed by raising awareness and establishing a commodity board to ensure remunerative prices for farmers and reasonable prices for consumers, as well as a consistent supply of raw materials to milling industries. Extension should be intensified to enhance the knowledge level of the farmer for better understanding and increased adoption of new varieties. This could help to overcome internal social issues. More young people need to be persuaded to work in wheat farming in order to increase production and sustainability. Resilient wheat farming in Nigeria could be achieved through focused commitments across the stakeholders’ line. Legislation should be enacted to deal with saboteurs, and the adoption of a multi-dimensional approach toward solving any unforeseen circumstances, should be resorted to.
Open Access
Tribal labour migration of Wayanad district: an impact analysis
(Department of Agricultural Extension, College of Agriculture, Vellayani, 2021) Mano Sandesh, V V; KAU; Anilkumar, A
The study entitled “tribal labour migration of Wayanad district: an impact analysis” was undertaken during 2016-2020at College of Agriculture, Vellayani, with the major objectives of studying the impact of tribal labour migration on the livelihood of tribespeople and the agricultural situation of Wayanad district. Factors influencing the tribal labour migration and their migration proneness were also studied. The study was conducted in all the four blocks of Wayanad district viz., Mananthavady, Sulthan Bathery, Kalpetta and Panamaram. From each block 30 tribal migrants, 10 tribal non migrants and 10 non tribal significant other respondents were selected randomly making a total of 200 respondents. The data collected were statistically analysed using arithmetic mean, percentage, correlation analysis and non parametric test. The study revealed that half of the respondents had medium level of livelihood capital index before migration. Most of the tribal migrants possessed medium level of human capital, social capital, natural capital and financial capital before migration. A lion share (61.66%) of the respondents had low level of physical capital before migration. The analysis of livelihood after migration revealed that more than half (60.83%) of the tribal migrants had high livelihood capital index after migration. Immense increase (30.6%) in physical capital of tribespeople due to migration was obvious from study results and it was remarkable for tribes belonging to Kattunaikan and Paniya communities. This caused a temptation for migration among tribal non migrants. A substantial number (85.83%) of tribal migrants had medium social capital and 73.33 per cent had medium of human capital after migration. There was a decrease in the social capital of tribespeople due to migration and this was an indication that tribal migrants were not actively involving in the social activities. After migration 83.33 per cent of tribal migrants had only low natural capital. This tremendous decrease in natural capital indicate poor use of natural resources by tribespeople. Majority (70.83%) of the tribal migrants had a high financial capital after migration. The increase in the financial capital and physical capital was highly significant in uplifting the livelihood capital index of tribal migrants. Sixty five per cent of the tribal non migrants had high livelihood capital index. Globalisation has also affected the life style, food habits and education of tribespeople. Cultural changes were observed among the young tribespeople and many of them have turned to non agricultural labour activities. This also helped them to achieve higher financial capital and there by increased livelihood capital index. Analysis of the relationship between the dependent variable livelihood capital index and profile characteristics of tribespeople revealed that, viz. age, annual income, education, land holding, experience in agriculture, level of aspiration and economic motivation correlated significantly. Marital status and wage per day correlated significantly to livelihood capital index before migration while they were not significant after migration. Most of the tribal migrants had medium migration proneness. Young tribespeople were found to be more prone to migration than middle or old aged tribespeople. Majority of the tribal non migrants had lower migration proneness and they assumed that for a sustainable livelihood, migration is not a necessary factor. On correlation analysis it was found that education, wage per day, political orientation, type of house, level of aspiration and risk preference positively and significantly correlated with migration proneness whereas age, marital status, debt and experience in agriculture correlated negatively with migration proneness. Regarding the nature of migration of tribal migrants, majority of the migrants were daily and seasonal migrants and none of them migrated permanently. A higher percentage of tribal migration was interstate. They migrated mostly to Coorg area via Kutta region of Thirunelli Panchayath and Karnataka via Mysore road to work as agricultural labourers mainly for ginger cultivation. The entire tribal migrants moved in groups and the decision to migrate was induced rather than self chosen. Majority of tribal migrants went for agriculture labour work and were non registered migrants. Unemployment or loss of employment was the main push factor for migration. Low wages, poverty, malnutrition, small holding, landlessness, decline of natural resources, frustration, alienation from community and indebtedness were other major push factors of migration. Superior opportunity for employment was the main pull factor for migration. Better job security, superior opportunity to earn higher income, opportunity to obtain desired specialization, education, skill or training and better food were other major pull factors of migration. Scarcity of agricultural labourers was the major consequence of tribal labour migration, which in turn caused a decrease in agricultural land area. Change in the cropping pattern of Wayanad district, use of agricultural land for non agricultural purposes and immigration of agricultural labourers from other states to Wayanad were found to be other consequences of tribal labour migration. Shortage of skilled labourers, significant change in wage structure and decline of indigenous knowledge were also the results of tribal labour migration. In the light of the study some of the important policy prescriptions for the consideration of the government are (i) create better local job opportunities in the agriculture sector (ii) strengthen police patrolling in the tribal colonies to control illegal marketing of alcohol (iii) implement stringent registration procedures for tribal who are migrating (iv) evaluate the livelihood of tribal migrants periodically (v) formulate new programs and activities to conserve the traditional life style of tribespeople (vi) open and maintain rehabilitation centers in tribal areas to reduce alcohol addiction among tribal migrants (vii) initiate counseling and guidance centers for tribal migrants (viii) conduct regular inspections at migratory places to discourage exploitation of tribespeople (ix) ensure decent and indiscriminating wage structure for tribespeople in their native places.
Open Access
Farming among the Attappady tribes of Kerala: a livelihood analysis
(Department of Agriculture Extension, College of Horticulture, Vellanikkara, 2020) Sachana, P C; KAU; Binoo Bonny, B
Kerala has achieved remarkable improvement in the social sector, celebrated as ‘Kerala Model of Development’. But it is observed that the development process fell short to encompass tribal communities in the course. Majority of the tribes in Kerala continue to depend on agriculture and are struggling to compete with the current situational threats like climate change and wild animal menace. Moreover, the commercial exploitation of forest resources has resulted in extensive soil erosion and loss of soil fertility. Therefore, sustaining crop production and productivity without damaging the resources and environment are posing big challenge to the tribal farming. This threatened the livelihood of the tribal community which depended on agriculture and forest, forcing them to be bonded and migrant labour (Patidar et al. 2018). Attappady tribal development block of Palakkad district is one of the 43 tribal development blocks in India and is inhabited by three tribal communities viz., Irulas, Mudugas and Kurumbas. Delineation of the factors influencing the selection of farming techniques and strategies among tribal farmers were studied and data collected was analysed using factor analysis to delineate the factors. Agricultural technology and input services, policy, knowledge and information support, infrastructure, weather & technological constraints, farm management and market orientation and access to extension services were found to be the factors determining for the selection of farming strategy and agricultural technologies. Household Dietary Diversity Score (HDDS) was used to measure the dietary diversity and was found to be relatively very low compared to the Recommended Dietary Allowances (RDA). The tribal diets were found to be grossly deficient in calcium, vitamin A, vitamin C, riboflavin and animal protein. Community kitchen based on food aids that functioned in the respective tribal hamlets (ooru) played a significant role in maintaining the food security of the community. Simpson crop diversity index used to measure the cop diversity in areas where Millet village programme implemented. Majority of 68.3 and 16.7 per cent of the households belonged to categories with high and very high crop diversity indices. Food security status of Attappady tribes was measured using Food Security Index (FSI) based on the parameters of availability, accessibility, utilization and stability. Eight per cent of the tribes recorded very low food security (FSI 0.01-0.20), another 46.7 per cent of the tribes belonged to low food security status with FSI values between 0.21 and 0.40. However, there were 33.3 and 12 per cent of them respectively in medium and very high food security categories. Livelihood security assessment was done using Livelihood Asset Pentagon (FAO, 2008) based on the five core assets viz. natural, social, human, physical and financial capital. Livelihood status of tribes of Agali panchayath on the selected dimensions and also the overall score indicated low Financial Capital Index (FCI) scores of 35.91 for the region. It could also be observed that on all other dimensions, the panchayat had moderate scores with Social Capital Index (SCI) of 59.52, Human Capital Index (HCI) of 62.27, Physical Capital Index (PCI)of 65.00 and Natural Capital Index(NCI) of 66.35. Overall Livelihood Security Index for the Agali panchayat was at 57.81. Livelihood status of tribes of Pudur panchayath on the selected core dimensions indicated comparitively low scores on all the selected dimensions with lowest scores for social capital (16.88), Financial Capital Index (FCI) of 47.00, Human Capital Index (HCI) of 45.14, Physical Capital Index (PCI)of 57.75 and Natural Capital Index(NCI) of 50.96. The overall Livelihood Security Index (LSI) for the panchayat was only 43.55. In the case of Sholayur panchayat very low Social Capital Index (SCI) of 21.63, Financial Capital Index (FCI) of 40.57, Human Capital Index (HCI) of 48.45, Physical Capital Index (PCI) of 62.93 and Natural Capital Index (NCI) of 52.95. The overall Livelihood Security Index (LSI) for the area was 45.31. The livelihood status of tribes of Attappady tribal development block on the selected core dimensions indicated comparitively low scores on all the selected dimensions with lowest scores for social capital (32.68). The area also had very moderate scores on Financial Capital Index (FCI) of 41.16, Human Capital Index (HCI) of 51.95, Physical Capital Index (PCI)of 61.89 and Natural Capital Index(NCI) of 56.75. The overall Livelihood Security Index (LSI) for the block was only 48.89.
Open Access
Indicators of sustainable agricultural development: a multi-variable analysis among self help groups of "kudumbashree mission" in Thiruvananthapuram district.
(Department of Agricultural Extension, College of Agriculture, vellayani, 2016) Chinchu, V S; KAU; Padmanabhan, V B
The study entitled “Indicators of sustainable agricultural development: A multi-variate analysis among self-help groups of “Kudumbashree Mission” in Thiruvananthapuram district” was undertaken with the specific objective of critically analyzing the extent of attainment of the three pillars of sustainable development, namely, economic development, social develop¬ment and environmental protection by the agricultural activities of the self-help groups under Kudumbashree Mission in the study area and to identify the constraints and formulate a strategy for increasing the effectiveness of the programme. Exploratory or Formulative Research Design was employed for the study. The sustainability was studied among 40 agriculturally active SHGs. Profile characteristics of 200 women farmers were also studied. The study was undertaken in the Thiruvananthapuram district of Kerala state. Out of the 12 development blocks in the district, five blocks were randomly selected, namely, Parassala, Perumkadavila, Nemom, Nedumangad and Vellanad. From each of the blocks, one agriculturally active Community Development Society (CDS) was purposively selected, namely, Kunnathukal, Karode, Malayinkeezhu, Karakulam and Kattakkada. There were two categories of respondents for the study. Two hundred number of SHG-based farm women formed the first category of respondents and 40 number of agriculturally active SHGs formed the second category of respondents. From each of the Community Development Society, 40 number of agriculturally active and SHG-based farm women were randomly selected. These added upto 200 individual respondents. Eight agriculturally active SHGs were also randomly selected from each of the five Community Development Societies and these added upto 40 SHGs. Fourteen variables were used to study the individual SHG members. ANOVA was done where ever possible to find out if there existed any difference between each of the five sample CDSs for any particular variable. Seventeen independent variables related to SHGs were also studied. An index namely, Sustainable Agricultural Development Index (SADI) was developed as part of the study for exclusively measuring the sustainability of group farming by the women groups. The index covered eighteen variables related to the economic, social and environmental aspects of group farming. Principal Component Analysis (PCA) was also done using the software SAS 9.3 to find out the relative importance of each of the indicators and sub-indicators towards the sustainability of group farming. The strengths, weaknesses, potentials and challenges of SHG-based farming were also found out using SWPC analysis. The constraints faced by both individual SHG members as well as the groups as such were found out and ranked. Finally the suggestions for improvement of SHG-based farming and suggested lines of future research were also spelt out based on the results of the study and the on-field experiences of the researcher. The study could find out that majority of the sample SHG-based women were of middle aged and were having nuclear families and secondary education. They were engaged in some income generating activities other than agriculture. They had good experience in both SHG based activities and in agricultural activities. Krishibhavan was found to be the most prominent information source for those women. The SHG-based women were found to possess a good level of self confidence, innovativeness, scientific orientation, achievement motivation, economic motivation and risk orientation. It was observed that as they grew older, both SHG experience and farming experience increased but their level of innovativeness went on decreasing. Regarding the SHGs, the study revealed that their mean size was 4.33 and had a mixed population of BPL members, APL members, general category members, OBC members and SC/ST members. Invariably all the sample SHGs were cultivating banana and 70 per cent of the groups were cultivating two or more crops. Also 70 per cent of the groups had availed loans with a mean amount of Rs. 1,40,714. As high as 95 per cent of the groups used to hire external labour especially for initial land preparation. The mean area cultivated by a sample SHG was found to be 190.53 cents. On economic front, all the groups were found to have a high degree of economic motivation. The BC ratio of majority of the groups was found to be medium. Eighty per cent of the groups showed an increase in their income over the previous year and also could generate a good number of day’s employment in agricultural sector. As the area cultivated had increased, addition in the income and employment generation were also found to increase. The study elucidated area cultivated (AC) and benefit-cost ratio (BCR) as the most important sub-indicators of economic development. On social front, the study revealed that majority of the groups were possessing a high transparency, equity, leadership, cohesiveness, accountability, team spirit and co-operation with ‘team spirit’ followed by ‘equity’ as the most important sub-indicators of social sustainability of Kudumbashree SHGs. Regarding environmental protection, ‘adoption of soil conservation measures’ and ‘avoidance of chemical fertilizers’ were found to be the most important sub-indicators affecting environmental sustainability. A quarter of the Kudumbashree groups were found to follow organic farming, around 20 per cent followed strict chemical-based modern agriculture and the rest followed a middle path between organic farming and modern agriculture. The Sustainable Agricultural Development Index (SADI) for the studied sample was found to be 0.69. It could be concluded that though the agriculturally active Kudumbashree SHGs in the study area had reasonable economic sustainability and social sustainability, their performance in environmental protection was a bit lower and only if they strengthen this weak link, they can become truly sustainable. Crop loss due to pests, diseases, wild animals and other climatic factors was the foremost constraint expressed by the respondents of the study. The study recommends establishment of ‘Woman Farmer Producer Companies’ (WFPC) at taluk level under the direct control of the respective District Missions or adoption of ‘Anand Pattern Co-operative Method’ as two viable strategies for improving the sustainability of agricultural activities performed under Kudumbashree mission.
Open Access
Organic farming as a strategy for climate change adaptation - an exploratory study
(Department of Agricultural Extension, College of Agriculturture, Vellayani, 2018) Sangeetha, K G; KAU; Sheiref, A K
The study entitled “Organic farming as a strategy for climate change adaptation – An exploratory study” was carried out with the objectives to analyze the integrated adaptive capacity of organic farmers in comparison with conventional farmers through the development of a measurement tool, namely, Integrated Adaptive Capacity Index; to create a database of the certified organic farmers of Kerala and to explore the personal, socio-economic and psychological characteristics of the farmers and the agro-ecological characteristics of their farms for formulating a workable climate change adaptation strategy. The database of certified organic farmers in Kerala was prepared by collecting the information from the list of accredited certifying agencies in Kerala and PGS (Participatory Guarantee System) of India. The respondents were selected from the agro-ecological units having maximum number of certified organic farmers, namely, AEU9 - South central laterites and AEU11- Northern laterites and minimum number of certified organic farmers namely, AEU 1- Southern coastal plain and AEU13- Northern foot hills. Developing an index for measuring the Integrated Adaptive Capacity (IAC) of the farmers was one of the major achievements of the study. For that, the factors contributing to the Integrative Adaptive Capacity were identified as: socio- economic, technological, agricultural, managerial, bio-physical and ecological. Each factor of the adaptive capacity index was measured by summing up the scores of indicators delineated through pilot study, expert opinion and judges’ relevancy rating. The Integrated Adaptive Capacity (IAC) index was calculated as the composite measure of these six factors. The comparison of the mean scores of IAC index of organic (81.05) and conventional farmers (46.35) clearly indicated that there exists a significant difference between the two groups and the organic farmers were found to be more adaptive. The IAC index-based analysis revealed that majority (62%) of the organic farmers are of high adaptive capacity where as majority of the conventional farmers (56.1%) belonged to moderate adaptive capacity. The AE Unit wise comparison revealed that the farmers of South central laterites exhibited the highest IAC index, followed by the farmers of Southern coastal plain, Northern foothills and Northern laterites. Among the six IAC factors, socio- economic factor was found to be the most contributing followed by technological, agricultural, managerial, bio-physical and ecological. All these factors were found to be positively and significantly correlated with the IAC Index. The analysis of personal, socio-economic and psychological characteristics indicated that majority of the farmers of the survey area belonged to middle aged category, medium level of annual income and possessed an area of 1 to 5 acres of land. Majority of the farmers were studied up to high school level with high farming experience and farming commitment. Most of the respondents were having medium level of mass media exposure, closeness with agricultural support system and self confidence. Majority of the farmers were found to have a low level of socio-political participation. The results indicated a positive and significant correlation between the integrated adaptive capacity index and the profile characteristics of the farmers except age. The major constraints as perceived by the farmers were: marketing problems (72.17%), lack of timely weather forecasts and its access to farmers (71.5%), risk due to uncertain weather parameters (69.77), inadequate storage and transportation facilities (64.54%), high cost of inputs (57.85%), inadequate labour availability (55.18%), inadequate input supply (48.93%), non- availability of organic inputs (48.55), inadequate institutional support (43.7%), lack of timely dissemination of appropriate technology (40.77%), lack of need based training programmes (40.53%), inadequate infrastructural facilities (40.13%) and lack of farmer participatory research (34.24%). Based on the study a workable climate change adaptation strategy is proposed at different levels such as: Farmer, Extension delivery system, Research and Government. The major strategies at farmer level included: adopting locally- relevant climate-smart agricultural practices, changing cropping pattern according to seasonal/ climatic variability/changes, application of organic inputs, insitu- resource utilization etc. The major strategies at extension delivery system level included: encourage rain water harvesting and recharging measures, making the farmer aware about the bio-physical resources of the farm, support livelihood diversification, promoting crop insurance, etc. The major strategies at research level included: Identify technologies with mitigation and adaptation synergies, developing climate resilient varieties, development of technologies to improve water productivity and water use efficiency, innovative technologies for value addition of agricultural products, undertaking researches related to climate change and adaptation/mitigation, etc. The major strategies at government level included: providing additional access to credit and saving mechanisms, establishing efficient transporting and marketing facilities avoiding middle men for getting reasonable income to the farmers, encourage education on how to reduce their emissions, awareness programmes for reducing GHG emission, carbon sequestration etc., disaster risk reduction and climate change in schools and farmer/worker organisations, provide funding for climate adaptation activities and research, etc. A comparison of the agro ecological profile of the farmers with highest IAC index indicated that organic farmers had better adaptation capacity for coping up with climate change. Thus, from the study it is concluded that, organic farming can be considered as one of the climate change adaptation strategies, as it optimally combines different practices in a systematic manner using limited resources, along with additional benefits of biodiversity and environmental services, leading to safe food production and sustainable livelihood support.
Open Access
Agricultural information support service vis-a-vis kisan call centre: a performance auditing
(Department of Agricultural Extension, College of Agriculture, Vellayani, 2016) Shely Mary, Koshy; KAU; Kishore Kumar, N
The present study “Agricultural information support service vis-à-vis Kisan Call Centre: A Performance auditing” was undertaken with the objective to conduct a performance audit of Kisan Call Centre (KCC) aimed at suggesting performance improvement of agricultural advisory services, to delineate, categorize and document the constraints and solutions in imparting agricultural advisory service through KCC and to develop an efficiency index that can be used for the further analysis of KCC. Besides the study also aimed to find out the awareness of farmers on KCC and its service, and the utilization and satisfaction derived out of the KCC, which would throw light on the performance/ lacunae in the KCC service with the reasons thereof to stream line the KCC for improved effectiveness. There were two categories of respondents. One hundred and fifty farmers were selected from south, central and north zones of Kerala using random sampling for studying the awareness of farmers on KCC and 150 farmers were selected purposefully from the data base of KCC for studying the utilization of KCC. Total there were 300 respondents. The strength of KCC was found to be its free sixteen hour seven days a week service provided by the dedicated staff. The weakness in the functioning of KCC included its lack of agricultural graduates at the time of study, lack of field experience by the staff and lack of knowledge on other areas apart from agriculture. The opportunities that KCC could make use were the new social media platforms like Whats App and video conferencing facility. The challenges faced by KCC were the low call rates, providing solutions without actually seeing the problem and sending the crop messages to those farmers who do not need them. The benchmarking study to evaluate the performance of KCC revealed that KCC matched to the standards set by the International Finance Corporation (2010) except for the service level standard (where 80 per cent of calls needs to be answered within 20 seconds) which was 30 seconds for KCC and agent attrition standard (measure of staff turnover annually should only be 15 per cent) which was 80 per cent. The out-come oriented study that measured the satisfaction of the respondents showed that the respondents had fairly high level of satisfaction towards the KCC service. Sixty nine percent of the respondents opined that KCC had medium level of efficiency. The Efficiency index was calculated with nine indices such as understandability, completeness, knowledge gain, accuracy, reliability, timeliness, practicality, flexibility and connectivity. Understandability was rated as the most efficient quality (78 per cent) with regard to the working of KCC and connectivity was the least efficient quality (62.17 per cent) of KCC. The major constraint faced by the respondents was lack of connectivity of the calls and the least faced constraint by the respondents was the lack of mobile phone/ telephones. The call centre agent‟s constraints were the difficulty in understanding the local dialect, the names of the crops in different region and the difficulty to understand the queries when there was a connectivity problem. The constraints faced by the farmers as perceived by the agricultural officers were the illiteracy, the long wait to get connected to the call centre when the lines were busy and the lack of availability of suggested inputs in the nearby shops. The suggestions to improve the working of KCC by the farmers includes to initiate a call back facility (83 per cent), to transfer the calls to the second tier through call conferencing (77 per cent), to suggest organic way of fighting pest and diseases (75 per cent), to provide information on the shops where the suggested inputs were available in their respective area (70 per cent), to open their service branches in each district (70 per cent), to provide quickest, easiest and practical solutions to solve the farm problems (65 per cent) and to continue the messages through mobile phones (63 per cent). The agricultural officer‟s opinion to improve KCC services was to appoint Post graduates in agriculture who are having more knowledge in their respective field, to provide field level training to the call centre agents, to send Malayalam messages in a format that would be compatible in any type of mobile phones. A facility for sending the photos of pest and diseases by the farmers were also suggested by both agricultural officers and call centre agents for better agro advisory service. Among the three states Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Kerala, Karnataka received the maximum number of average calls (13854 calls) followed by Tamil Nadu (9632 calls) and Kerala (1219 calls). The average calls received were maximum during the month of November for Karnataka and Kerala and least during the month of May. Tamil Nadu received the maximum number of calls during the month of January and least during the month of September. In the study the independent variables temporal awareness on KCC, satisfaction towards KCC, utilization of KCC, adoption of advices and peer group contact were found to have positive correlation and extension agency contact, experience in internet use, information source utilization and constraints were found to have negative correlation with the dependent variable efficiency of KCC. The variables digital divide, temporal awareness on KCC, satisfaction and utilization of KCC were found to have positive correlation and constraint in using KCC was found to have negative correlation on the attitude of respondents towards KCC. Satisfaction was the variable that contributed maximum direct effect towards the efficiency as well as attitude towards KCC. The study revealed that in order to increase the utilization of KCC by the farming community there requires a parallel mode of communication along with the increased advertisements through various mass medias, that is the extension personnel should encourage and pursue the farmers to utilize the service by convincing them the benefits of using the service.
Open Access
Specifications of an integrated information system for micro level planning in agriculture: a user-centered analysis
(Department of agricultural extension, College of horticulture, Vellanikkara, 2015) Sulaja, O R; KAU; Jiju P Alex
Micro level planning is a dynamic process which involves planning at the grassroots level taking into consideration the individual, family and category of the community. Considering the diversity of crops and the geographical and socio- economic characteristics of agriculture, micro level planning has been suggested as the best way to plan agricultural development projects. Kerala has evolved a robust mechanism for micro level planning through democratic decentralization. Micro level planning is highly information intensive and it requires information flow from different hierarchical levels. This study appraised the current status of micro level planning in agriculture in Kerala with respect to use of databases and information. The study tried to characterize the legacy databases and types of information used for this purpose, with focus on availability and completeness of data. Along side, the study attempted to evolve a typology of information and development databases required for micro level planning. Specifications regarding the content and hierarchy of an ‘Integrated Information System for Micro Level Planning in Agriculture’ was also formulated. The study employed an ex-post facto design to suit the objectives. Sample included 132 respondents, with 66 officers of the Department of Agriculture working with the Grama Panchayat, Block Panchayat and District Panchayat selected and 66 People’s Representatives who were Chairmen of the working groups on agriculture at the rate of one from each local body. In order to find out the legacy databases available at the local level, details of various registers kept in Krishi Bhavans and Grama Panchayaths were compiled and classified. Krishi Bhavans maintained 140 registers under six major categories and Grama Panchayats were found to maintain171 registers under 23 categories. The registers were classified based on practical use, nature of data entry, mandatory nature and based on purpose. Registers were again categorized based on the frequency of updating, number of data fields, completeness, subsectors of agriculture and adequacy. The data support provided by legacy registers for different stages of micro level planning viz., resource appraisal, planning, beneficiary selection, implementation, monitoring, evaluation and follow up was also explored. Analysis of the socio economic and psychological profile of respondents and their perception on efficacy of micro level planning was also attempted. Comparison of the perception on efficacy of micro level planning, which included four dimensions such as planning, participation, implementation and impact, showed that ‘planning’ was perceived as the most important dimension by Extension Personnel and ‘participation’ was perceived as the most important by People’s Representatives. Analysis of the perception on efficacy of legacy databases which included four dimensions viz., completeness, adequacy, reliability and updatability showed that ‘reliability’ was perceived as the most important dimension by both Extension Personnel and People’s Representatives. Perception on the proposed Integrated Information System for Micro Level Planning in Agriculture was studied under four dimensions viz., comprehensiveness, usability, updatability and spatial and temporal orientation. Both the groups perceived ‘usability’ as the most important dimension. Scores on the awareness of stakeholders on rural databases and information systems showed that 75 per cent of the respondents were in medium category. The information items required for micro level planning were identified and grouped into 16 categories viz. land, water, soil, climate, demographic characteristics, socio-economic characteristics, crops, technology, infrastructure, mechanization, institutions, market, government policies, government programmes for agricultural development, project monitoring and existing perspective plans. The overall information requirement of stakeholders in micro level planning showed that information on government policies was the most needed and valuable data, followed by data on government programmes and data on project monitoring. The different stakeholder institutions involved in micro level planning mechanism were identified and the data support provided by them was explored. Soil Survey Department, Land Use Board and Village Office were found to provide pertinent data for micro level planning. With regards to constraints, Extension Personnel and People’s Representatives identified lack of proper mechanisms for regular updation of data as the most severe constraint. The study also proposed a conceptual model for an Integrated Information System for Micro Level Planning in Agriculture.
Open Access
User-centered design and testing of a bilingual website prototype for the Directorate of Extension, Kerala Agricultural University
(College of Horticulture, Vellanikkara, 2014) Mridula, N; KAU; Ahamed, P
In today's digital era websites offer a professional and credible image for any organization. Kerala Agricultural University (KAU) had a long felt need that the Directorate of Extension (DoE), KAU launched a need-based website as a part of strengthening its extension activities. The working group on remandating extension approaches of KAU had recommended it. The present KAU website, www.kau.edu, does not cater to the information needs of all the stakeholders. The present study was undertaken with the objectives of generating need based e-contents to develop the first level prototype of a bilingual (English and Malayalam) website for DoE, KAU and participatory assessment and refinement of the same before its final design by the host organization. Too often, websites are designed with a focus on the technological capabilities of hardware or software tools that this approach omits the most important part of the process – the end user. User-Centered Design (UCD) of a website is the process of designing it, from the perspective of how it will be understood and used by a human user. User-centered design (UCD) places users at the centre of the design process, starting from the stages of planning and designing the system requirements to implementation and testing of the product. A web prototype is a rudimentary working model of a website that allows to check for flaws and to make sure that the website will be easy to use. The methodology followed in this study for the web prototype design was based on the ISO 13407 guidelines for a UCD project following the steps of requirement specification, requirement gathering, design and evaluation. The pilot study identified agricultural scientists, agricultural extension officers and farmers as the major prospective stakeholders of the intended website along with the other potential clients like agripreneurs, researchers, school / college students, self-help groups, non-governmental organizations, banks, policy makers, other line departments, and private sector organizations. It also explored 15 main contents viz; ‘About DoE’, ‘Schemes & Projects’, ‘Showcase of Technologies’, ‘Locating Your Nearest KAU KVK’, ‘Crop Information’, ‘Agri Market Informant’, ‘Weather’, ‘Promising Agri-Enterprises’, ‘Forthcoming Events’, ‘News & Information’, ‘Publications from KAU’, ‘Media Gallery’, ‘Important Links’, ‘Links To Social Network Media’ and ‘Contact Us’ as well as their sub contents. The first phase of the main study assessed the information needs of the respondents regarding the main contents as well as their sub-contents. Out of the 15 main information needs, need indices significantly varied for ‘Schemes and Projects’, ‘Crop Information’, ‘Weather ‘Promising agri-enterprises’, ‘Links to social network media’, ‘Forthcoming events’, ‘News & Information’, ‘Publications from KAU’, ‘Media Gallery’ and ‘Important links’. Need indices for the sub contents of ‘About DoE, KAU’, ‘Showcase of technologies’, ‘Agri Market Informant’, ‘Promising agri-enterprises’, ‘News& Information’, ‘Publications from KAU’and ‘Important links’ also varied significantly. The respondents also suggested inclusion of 23 items in the website, as contents and links. The respondents welcomed the web prototype with great enthusiasm. In the online end-user assessment, the web prototype was evaluated with respect to eight main attributes- content and information management, site design and layout, linkage with relevant internet, provisions for scaling up and updating, information retrievability, interactivity, user-friendliness and perceived extent of use. ‘Perceived extent of use’ and ‘Provisions for scaling up and updating’ got the highest grand mean scores. The scores of the other features showed a fair performance, but ‘Interactivity’ warned of poor performance. The respondents’ suggestions were noted for the refinement of the website. Usability is one of the essential features of a website, and is a measure of the interactive user experience. A user-friendly interface design is easy-to-learn, supports users’ tasks and goals efficiently and effectively, and is satisfying and engaging to use. An interface’s level of usability can be measured by inviting intended users of the system to participate in a usability testing session. Testing of the web prototype was done online by giving specific exercise (task) to the respondents and self reported validation was used to assess the task performance. The task success rates were measured by attributes viz; ‘effectiveness of use’, ‘efficiency of use’ and ‘satisfaction of the users’. Constraints reported by the users were recorded. The present work has also rendered a methodical guidance to future researchers in the form of a protocol for developing a user-centered website. The prototype was refined incorporating all possible suggestions and solving the constraints. The user centered web prototype developed for DoE, KAU, can act as an efficient base for the final DoE website, which could be a prominent information dispersal tool in the coming days. The Directorate of Extension, KAU may take up further refinement, frequent updating and upgrading of the prototype to make it a fully functional website.

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