Loading...
Assam Agricultural University, Jorhat
Assam Agricultural University is the first institution of its kind in the whole of North-Eastern Region of India. The main goal of this institution is to produce globally competitive human resources in farm sectorand to carry out research in both conventional and frontier areas for production optimization as well as to disseminate the generated technologies as public good for benefitting the food growers/produces and traders involved in the sector while emphasizing on sustainability, equity and overall food security at household level.
Genesis of AAU -
The embryo of the agricultural research in the state of Assam was formed as early as 1897 with the establishment of the Upper Shillong Experimental Farm (now in Meghalaya) just after about a decade of creation of the agricultural department in 1882. However, the seeds of agricultural research in today’s Assam were sown in the dawn of the twentieth century with the establishment of two Rice Experimental Stations, one at Karimganj in Barak valley in 1913 and the other at Titabor in Brahmaputra valley in 1923. Subsequent to these research stations, a number of research stations were established to conduct research on important crops, more specifically, jute, pulses, oilseeds etc. The Assam Agricultural University was established on April 1, 1969 under The Assam Agricultural University Act, 1968’ with the mandate of imparting farm education, conduct research in agriculture and allied sciences and to effectively disseminate technologies so generated. Before establishment of the University, there were altogether 17 research schemes/projects in the state under the Department of Agriculture. By July 1973, all the research projects and 10 experimental farms were transferred by the Government of Assam to the AAU which already inherited the College of Agriculture and its farm at Barbheta, Jorhat and College of Veterinary Sciences at Khanapara, Guwahati.
Subsequently, College of Community Science at Jorhat (1969), College of Fisheries at Raha (1988), Biswanath College of Agriculture at Biswanath Chariali (1988) and Lakhimpur College of Veterinary Science at Joyhing, North Lakhimpur (1988) were established. Presently, the University has three more colleges under its jurisdiction, viz., Sarat Chandra Singha College of Agriculture, Chapar, College of Horticulture, Nalbari & College of Sericulture, Titabar. Similarly, few more regional research stations at Shillongani, Diphu, Gossaigaon, Lakhimpur; and commodity research stations at Kahikuchi, Buralikson, Tinsukia, Kharua, Burnihat and Mandira were added to generate location and crop specific agricultural production packages.
Browse
11 results
Search Results
ThesisItem Open Access PRODUCTION AND MARKETING OF ASSAM LEMON IN NALBARI DISTRICT OF ASSAM(2021) BARUAH, DEBASMITA; Deka, NiveditaAssam lemon, which is most popularly known as Kaji Nemu in Assamese is indigenously cultivated and found in the state of Assam. In Assam cuisine of these lemons constitute an integral part and are used for preparing fresh drinks or beverages and can be dried or pickled which can be preserved for years.Assam lemon is a native dwarf cultivar of the state of Assam suitable for high density planting.The scientific name of Assam Lemon is Citrus limon and it belongs to the Rutaceae family. Assam lemon is enriched in aromatic oil and vitamin C and also a good source of iron, fiber, copper and calcium. Assam lemon is the highest grown citrus fruit in the state; it was observed that in the year 2018-19 the total cultivated area under Assam Lemon was 13802 hectares with a production of 1.19 lakh metric tonnes and the average yield per annum was 8645 kg/hectare. In this study an attempt was made to get a clear view on production and marketing aspects of Assam lemon by analyzing the growth rate of area, production and productivity of Assam lemon in the state, examine the economic feasibility of Assam lemon cultivation, study the marketing pattern of Assam lemon and to identify the constraints faced by the farmers.The study examined the trends and variation of area, production and productivity of Assam lemon in Assam as well as in Nalbari (undivided) district from 2009-10 to 2018-19.The compound growth rate of area (1.25*, 9.65***), production (2.53*, 10.82***) and productivity (1.26*, 1.06*) of Assam lemon showed positive behavior in Assam and Nalbari (undivided) district respectively. Considerable variability was also observed in case of area (5.75, 27.98), production (10.85, 30.09) and productivity (5.37, 10.3) of Assam lemon in Assam and Nalbari (undivided) district respectively. The change in total production was examined by additive decomposition and it was revealed from the study that yield effect contributed more to the change in production of Assam lemon in Assam whereas area effect relatively had stronger stimulus and contributed more to the change in production of Assam lemon in Nalbari (undivided) district. The study found that farm-category wise the expenditure on establishment of the crop was highest on medium farms and lowest on marginal farms thus implying that the total establishment cost incurred increased with increase in farm size.It was also observed that the total maintenance cost increased with increase in farm size. The total maintenance cost incurred was highest on medium farms followed by semi-medium farms, small farms and marginal farms.For overall farms the establishment cost amortized over 15 years at the rate of 6 per cent per year, average maintenance cost per year, total cost per year, average gross return per year and net return per year was estimated to be Rs. 4,502.96 per hectare, Rs. 60,075.27 per hectare, Rs. 64,578.23 per hectare, Rs. 2, 27,762 per hectare and Rs. 1, 63,183.77 per hectare respectively.The benefit cost ratio at 6 per discount rate, NPV at 6 per cent discount rate and IRR for overall farms worked out to be 3.8, Rs. 12,01,425 and 66.95 per cent respectively thus indicating that Assam lemon cultivation is economically viable and profitable and has the potential to generate additional revenue. Three marketing channels were identified in the study area viz, Producer- Pre-harvest contractor- Wholesaler- Retailer- Consumer, Producer- Wholesaler- Retailer- Consumer and Producer- Consumer. Through the first marketing channel products were transacted to distant places and through the second and third channel the products were sold in nearby markets.It was revealed that marketing channel III (Producer - Consumer) was found to be more efficient whereas the marketing channel that involved more number of market intermediaries i.e., channel I (Producer - Pre-harvest contractor – Wholesaler – Retailer - Consumer) was found to be the most effective in the study area because 65.16 q constituting 55 per cent of the marketed surplus moved through that channel to the distant markets.The study also revealed that lack of technical know- how, high cost of establishment in the initial stage, high fluctuation in market prices and small land holding in technical, economical, storage and marketing and general constraints respectively were the major constraints faced by the farmers in Assam lemon cultivation. Regular monthly training programmes by KVKs regarding new technology, development of regulated markets, formation of FPCs, cooperatives, provision of Government subsidy on essential agricultural inputs, etc., would help to overcome the obstacles in production and marketing aspects of Assam Lemon cultivation.ThesisItem Open Access ECONOMIC ANALYSIS OF HOMEGARDEN BIODIVERSITY IN ASSAM(2021) Hussain, Zafrina; Deka, NiveditaHome garden as the name says is usually a small area of land surrounding a household, where members of the family grows varieties of vegetables, medicinal crops, fruits trees and trees which can be ornamental and so on and is commonly known by the name baari in Assam, in rural household apart from growing vegetables and fruits in their home garden they rear live stocks, cattle’s and fishes as well hence there exist a noticeable biodiversity in a baari, however in urban residents misses this opportunity and is limited to fruits and vegetables for meet the family food requirements . Home gardening is also known by the name homestead gardening as it surrounds the home of the household. Almost every household may it be a rural household or an urban dwelling household both has a garden either their vegetable garden or kitchen garden which is a miniature form of farm plots growing vegetables and herbs in small area and so in small scale. Household grows vegetables, herbs and also fruits in pots and containers to meet their day to day culinary needs. It is often a structured space having a visual appeal all the year round. In today’s human civilization when there are constant threat to the climate and environment home garden is a boon as it serves the environment with greeneries which provides fresh air, bears with the pollution by reducing carbon emission, provides fresh vegetables grown all organically, usually using compost manures, because it is practiced in small scale so the use of chemical fertilizers are negligible. It is also a source of rare and extinct varieties of fruits and herbs which have established medicinal properties. Therefore, to cope up with environmental issues urban civilization practices roof top gardening unlike their rural counterparts as small step to a big environmental issue and also to meet with their nutrition requirement. The present study is an attempt to assess the existing status of biodiversity in the home gardens of few randomly selected villages in five Agro climatic zones of Assam. All the five Agro climatic zones have different characteristics in terms of rainfall pattern, terrain and soil, so does the biodiversity, however the most commonly found biodiversity component have been studied and assessed in terms of economical analysis where in the species richness, its abundance, and its density is studied, the economics of resources used in the home gardens, the role of gender in management of the home gardens, and assessing the contribution of homegarden biodiversity in livelihood. This study was conducted in randomly selected homegardens of Jorhat (Upper Brahmaputra Valley Zone), Morigaon (Central Assam Zone), Karbi Anlong (Hill Zone), Sonitpur (North Bank Plain Zone), and kamrup district (Lowe Brahmaputra Valley Zone) of Assam. An inventory of crop species and livestock diversity component in home gardens was prepared and a comparative study using Shannon- wiener index the diversity of species was evaluated and the relative importance value, density and abundance was calculated for the selected home gardens from five different Agro climatic zones. The study categorised the composition of species as components into trees, vegetables, fruits, spices, medicinal plants, and livestock for biodiversity inventory. Thus excluding for example ornamental species, which do not relate immediately to livelihood. A total of 144 plants species belonging to 64 families were recorded from the survey of 290 gardens across the five selected Agro climatic zones of Assam. An average of 34 plant species were found in each homegardens surveyed for the study which included vegetable species, tree species, medicinal plant species, and spices and condiments. The smallest homegardens in the present study had a Shannon index with 1.30, but they were not significantly different from the indices reported for the medium and large (1.21, 1.24, respectively), while the total of 144 species recorded in the study. When the production and consumption ratio was studied across the Agro climatic zones, it is seen that the production and consumption ratio was found to be the highest in the homegardens of the North Bank Plain Zone which was 0.76, followed by the homegardens of the Lower Brahmaputra Valley Zone which was 0.72, respectively. Usually incomes from smaller homegardens is less as compared to the larger homegarden because larger garden have profit motive with higher composition of commercial plant species while in smaller gardens composition of commercial crops is less. The percentage contribution of homegardens towards household’s average annual gross income was 43.33 per cent. Female headed homegardens were significantly higher in size than male headed homegargens in the small sized homegardens and medium sized homegardens in this study. Among the three homegarden size categories 53.00 per cent were female headed in small sized homegardens 59.00 per cent female headed in medium sized homegardens and 57.00 per cent in large sized homegardens.ThesisItem Open Access Inter zonal variation of farm Mechanization in Assam(2021) Gogoi, Horindra; Halim, R. A.Farm mechanisation plays vital roles in reduction of drudgery of the human labour and drought animals, enhancement of the cropping intensity, precision and timeliness of efficiency of utilisation of various crop inputs and reduction of the losses at different stages of crop production through the use of the use of various power sources and improved farm tools and equipments. With growing of pace of farm mechanisation, questions arise on the issues such as degree of adoption and regional variation in the extent adoption of those modern farm machineries and equipments, resource and energy use efficiency, agricultural technology adoption and comparative economic advantage as a result of adoption of different types of farm mechineries. With this point of views, the present study was undertaken in Assam with the specific objectives viz., 1) Examine the extent of adoption of farm mechanisation across different agro climatic zones of Assam, 2) Study the impact of farm mechanisation on technology adoption and energy use, 3) Analyze the resource use efficiency and comparative economics of farm mechanisation and 4) Identify the constraints of farm mechanisation. The study was conducted in five agro climatic zones in Assam (viz., Upper Brahmaputra Valley Zone (UBVZ), North Bank Plain Zone (NBPZ), Central Brahmaputra Valley Zone (CBVZ), Lower Brahmaputra Valley Zone (LBVZ) and Barak Valley (BVZ). The sampling design adopted in the study was multistage stratified random sampling design .A sample of 100 farmers was collected for each of the five agroclimatic zones in the ratio of 4 marginal: 3 small:2 medium :1 large so as to make the total sample size 600. The results of the study revealed that the overall mechanization farm was 86 per cent in selected agroclimatic zones of Assam, while 14.00 per cent farms were operating with traditional practices of farm operations by using bullock and manual labour. The highest percentage of mechanization was observed in NBPZ (89.17 per cent) followed by CBVZ, UBVZ, BVZ and LBVZ accounting for 86.67 per cent, 85.83 per cent, 85.00 per cent and 83.33 per cent, respectively. Among the different categories of farm mechanization, on an average, tractor hired farms (THF) occupied the highest percentage (50.97 per cent) followed by power tiller hired farms (PTHF), power tiller owned farms (PTOF) and tractor owned farms (TOF) with the percentage of 37.02, 7.95and 4.07 respectively. operation wise extent of farm mechanization showed that on an average, the primary tillage/ ploughing, threshing and transportation were the major operations mechanised by 86.00 per cent,79.83 per cent and 53.39 per cent farmers respectively, while interculture operation, irrigation, harvesting and winnowing and bagging were mechanised by 10.83 per cent, 27.00 per cent , 7.12 per cent and 31.83 per cent farmers respectively. Adoption of HYV of Sali paddy (in terms of number of farmers) was found to be highest in CBVZ (96.15 per cent) and lowest in UBVZ (81.55 per cent) among the mechanized farm, while in non mechanized farm 33.33 per cent farmers adopted HYV Sali rice, In mechanized farm, HYV Sali rice was adopted in 77.06 per cent area as against only 39.31 per cent for non mechanized farms. HYV seed of mustard, black gram, potato, boro rice and jute in mechanised farm was adopted by 53.62 per cent,40.74 per cent,37.93 per cent,65.69 per cent and 76.47 per cent farmers respectively, while for non mechanised farm, it was observed 16.95 per cent and 40.00 per cent for mustard and jute respectively. On the other hand , HYV seed of Sali rice, mustard, black gram, potato, boro rice and jute in mechanised farm was adopted in 77.96 per cent,66.61 per cent,46.53 per cent,45.74 per cent 62.24 and 66.82 per cent area respectively, as against 39.31 per cent, 16.51 per cent and 44.83 per cent for Sali rice ,mustard and jute respectively in non mechanised farm. Line transplanting practices in Sali rice, was followed only in 6.19 per cent area in mechanised farm as against 4.37 per cent for non –mechanized farms. Among the various agroclimatic zones, line transplanting in Sali rice in mechanised farm was adopted in 2.51 per cent,6.17 per cent ,10.11 per cent,11.12 per cent and 2.44 per cent area respectively in UBVZ, NBPZ, CBVZ,LBVZ and BVZ. On the other hand, line transplanting in Boro rice was adopted in 30.46 per cent , 57.09 per cent ,69.61 per cent,67.01 per cent and 65.17 per cent area respectively in UBVZ, NBPZ, CBVZ,LBVZ and BVZ with the overall adoption of 57.43 per cent. Adoption of chemical fertilizer in Sali rice, mustard, black gram, potato, boro rice and jute in mechanised farm was found in 44.74 per cent, 64.19 per cent, 21.33 per cent, 39.05 per cent ,68.30 per cent and 63.45 per cent area respectively as against 15.15 per cent,16.43 per cent and 13.71 per cent area for Sali rice ,mustard and jute respectively in non mechanised farm. Chemical methods of plant protection measure was adopted in Sali rice, mustard, black gram, potato, boro rice and jute under mechanised farm in 47.37 per cent, 21.65 per cent, 18.99 per cent, 64.98 per cent, 62.25 per cent and 69.52 per cent area respectively as against 22.91 per cent,6.78 per cent and 4.29 per cent area for Sali rice ,mustard and jute respectively in non mechanised farm. The average energy utilised for cultivation of Sali rice, mustard, blackgram, potato, boro rice and jute was 5217.27 MJ/ha , 4488.17 MJ/ha , 2612.70 MJ/ha , 13293.43 MJ/ha , 11204.74 MJ/ha , and 7082.61 MJ/ha respectively in mechanised farm as against 5050.65 MJ/ha3846.70MJ/ha and 6352.25 MJ/ha for Sali rice, mustard and jute respectively in non-mechanised. Various energy efficiciency ratios revealed that energy was efficiently utilised in cultivation of all the crops both in mechanised and non-mechanised farm. Of course, mechanized farms were observed to be more efficient than non mechanized farms from the point of energy utilization. Average human labour and seed utilisation was less in mechanised farm as compared to non mechanised farm for crops under study, whereas per hectare utilisation of fertilizer, manure, plant protection chemicals and micro nutrients was found less in non-mechanised farm than the mechanised farm. Utilisation of human labour in Sali rice, mustard, black gram, potato, boro rice and jute in mechanised farm was found in 86.26 Man days, 42.55 Man days,53.56 Man days, 99.34 Man days ,96.87 Man days and 172.57 Man days respectively as against 117.75 Man days,80.41 per cent and 190.30 Man days for Sali rice, mustard and jute respectively in non mechanised farm. The results of regression analysis for factors affecting crop production revealed that in mechanised farm in UBVZ, seed, fertilizer and machine labour significantly and positively affected the farm income, whereas in non-mechanised farm, FYM and fertilizer were found to be positive and statistically significant. In NBPZ, fertilizer, irrigation and machine labour in mechanised farm, and seed and human labour in non-mechanised farm were found statistically significant. For CBVZ, seed, FYM, irrigation and machine labour affected farm income significantly in mechanised farm, as against fertilizer and bullock labour in non-mechanised farms. In case of LBVZ, fertilizer, irrigation and machine labour were found significant in mechanised farms, while seed and fertilizer were significant in non-mechanised farms. Area, seed, FYM and machine labour significantly contributed to farm income in mechanised farm in BVZ as against seed and fertilizer in non-mechanised farms. Study on the comparative economics of crop production in mechanised and non mechanised farm revealed that the average cost of cultivation per hectare at Cost C2 in Sali rice, mustard, black gram ,potato ,Boro rice and jute under mechanised farm was Rs.46349.32, Rs.28745.28, Rs.25287.79, Rs.98827.93 , Rs.55439.25 and 88580.06 respectively, as against Rs.48386.80, Rs.30540.22 and 92675.21 respectively for Sali rice, mustard and jute in non mechanised farm. .Gross return per hectare was estimated at Rs. 63913.25, Rs.31771.69, Rs 35613.16, Rs.147107.39, Rs.69403.90 and Rs.118218.18 respectively for Sali rice, mustard, black gram ,potato ,Boro rice and jute under mechanised farm, while it was Rs 54817.88,Rs.29059.80 and Rs.110363.54 respectively for Sali rice ,mustard and jute in non –mechanised farm .Per hectare net return in Sali rice, mustard, black gram ,potato ,Boro rice and jute under mechanised farm was Rs.12928.40, Rs.151.88, Rs.7796.59, Rs.38396.66 , Rs.6420.41 and 20780.11 respectively, as against Rs.1592.40, Rs.4534.44 and 8420.81 respectively for Sali rice, mustard and jute in non mechanised farm. Lack of sufficient own funds to meet initial high costs of farm machinery , and lack of adequate credit facilities and rigid repayment norms were the common major problems faced by farmers in all the selected agro-climatic zones. Among all problems, lack of sufficient own funds to meet initial high costs of farm machinery occupied the 1st rank as faced by 90.83 per cent farmersThesisItem Open Access HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT IN TEA ESTATES OF ASSAM(AAU, Jorhat, 2021) Dowerah, Uttam; Saikia, R STea production plays an important role in the Indian economy. It is a key source of foreign exchange earnings and is the largest provider of formal employment in the country. It is a major industry of Assam. It is one of the most work serious enterprises on the planet keeping up an enormous number of work powers in the whole procedure of tea production i.e. from plantation of tea saplings to the final produce. It requires workers throughout the year and involves both male and the female workers for different jobs. The workers are the integral part of the tea industry, but also to manage them in proper direction, the Executive board, office staff, garden staff, etc. are also integral part of the whole system. To manage these huge amounts of human resources in proper direction to get a good result for the benefit of the tea estate is very critical and so that they take various major strategies. There are total 74 numbers of tea estates in Golaghat district of Assam. Out of these, 45 numbers of tea estates have their own tea processing unit. Golaghat district is considered as intensity of big tea estates in comparatively high and also production of tea is comparatively high in Assam and quality of tea is also good. Therefore, to conduct this study 5 numbers of large tea estates out of the 45 tea estates of Golaghat district are selected randomly, which have their own tea processing unit. The recruitment and selection criteria for different positions of human resources were differ from tea estate to tea estate based on their company’s rules and regulations. The tea estates follows all the guidelines provided by the Government of India through various acts or boards to manage the workers and employees properly in terms of proving facilities, bonuses, incentives, leaves, etc. The working hours for all the employees and the workers in all the studied tea estates were same i.e., 8 hours per day for both male and female. Based on tea production the whole financial year is divided into two seasons i.e., On Season and Off Season. During the On Season tea production increases so, the tea estates need more workers to maintain the same level of production due to this reason, tea estates hire the temporary or casual workers. But during the Off Season tea production declines, so the tea estates need less workers than the On Season due to reason and to manage their income in proper way tea estates do not hire the temporary or casual workers during the Off Season. From this study, it was observed that in four tea estates out of five of the studied tea estates, the percentage of workers decreased during the Off Season was in between 35-50% but in Methoni tea estate due low number of temporary workers, the percentage of workers decreased during the Off Season was 23%. The total cost on workers during the Off Season in all the studied tea estates were seen decreased by 40-60 % due absence of temporary workers and the less amounts spent on incentives. The tea estates having both own and bought leaf factory or processing unit earned more income than the tea estates having only own leaf factory. Due to which, they spent less percentage of their income on the workers’ cost than the tea estates which have only own leaf factory. The tea estates were having both own and bought leaf factory spent about 10-20% of their income on the workers’ cost but the tea estates having only own leaf factory spent about 30-45% of their income on the workers’ cost. Also because of this reason the total income per hectare of the tea estates having both own and bought leaf factory were comparatively higher than the tea estates which have only own leaf factory. Also the cost on workers per hectare showed an inverse relationship along with the registered area of the tea estate. The kind of constraints faced by the tea estates in management of human resources in the studied tea estates were mainly due to the geographical position of the tea estates, socio economic nature of the tea estates, etc.ThesisItem Open Access ECONOMICS OF PRODUCTION AND RESOURCE USE EFFICIENCY IN RAPESEED AND MUSTARD CULTIVATION IN MAJULI, ASSAM(AAU, Jorhat, 2021) Das, Debajit; Changmai, H KRapeseed (Brassica campestris) and Mustard (Brassica juncea) are major Rabi oilseed crops of India. It is the third most important edible oilseed crop in the world after soybean and oil palm. An attempt has been made in this study to examine the economics of production and resource use efficiency in rapeseed and mustard cultivation in Majuli district of Assam for the year 2020-21. The total cost of cultivation of rapeseed and mustard per farm for the sample was found to be Rs.71782.03 and the operational cost and fixed cost per farm were recorded as Rs.45111.13 and Rs.26670.90, respectively. The highest percentage of total cost was incurred in operational cost (62.81 per cent) followed by fixed cost (37.19 per cent). The cost of cultivation per farm varied directly with farm size which was found to be highest in medium (Rs.115048.57) farm size followed by semi-medium (Rs.79698.77) and small (Rs.49301.29) farm size. Input wise highest cost was incurred on labour (27.48 per cent). Cost of cultivation of rapeseed and mustard per hectare varied inversely with farm size, which was found to be highest in small (Rs.47764.06) farm size followed by semi-medium (Rs.44873.70) and medium (Rs.41913.15) farm size. Study revealed that as farm size increased, bullock labour was substituted by machine labour and it was directly related to farm size. The average cost of cultivation (cost C2) per hectare of rapeseed and mustard was worked out as Rs.44850.31. The average cost A1, cost A2, cost B1, cost B2, cost C1 and cost C3 per hectare were Rs.25118.19, Rs.27590.61, Rs.29443.71, Rs. 38457.18, Rs.35836.84 and Rs.49335.54. The average yield of rapeseed-mustard per hectare was recorded as 13.93 quintals. The highest yield was found in small farm size (14.28 quintals) followed by semi-medium (13.26 quintals) and medium (12.41 quintals) farm size. The average net income realized from cultivation of per hectare of rapeseed-mustard was Rs. 27257.43. This was highest in case of small farm followed by semi medium and medium farm size on per hectare basis. The average B:C ratio in the study was found to be 1:1.61, which was higher at small farm size (1:1.70) followed by semi medium (1:1.61) and medium farm size (1:1.50). Farmers' technical efficiency was estimated to be 70.50 per cent on an average. An inverse relationship between farm size was observed. As indicated by input slacks draught labour was significantly excessively used. Farmers of semi-medium and medium farm size use excess of seeds. Input slack value of fertilizer was highly significant for all the farm sizes indicating excessive use of this input. The major constraints involved in rapeseed and mustard cultivation were high weed infestation, lack of technical knowledge, high incidence of pest and diseases, unfavorable product price, inadequate storage facilities and lack of proper transport facilities.ThesisItem Open Access DETERMINANTS OF ADOPTION OF RECOMMENDED KHASI MANDARIN PRODUCTION PRACTICES IN ASSAM(AAU, Jorhat, 2021) Borah, Nabanita; Deka, NiveditaCitrus is a vast genus of fruits that belongs to the Rutaceae family. Khasi Mandarin is an extensively produced and commercialised mandarin variety grown in India's north-eastern area. In 2015-16, Assam's total orange production was 210141 tonnes, with an area of 15649 hectares and a yield of 13428 kg per hectare. Despite the availability of new varieties, a more comprehensive set of procedures, scientific technology, and conventional orchard management, the mandarin orchard continues to suffer. Farmers' failure to embrace or inadequate adoption of recommended mandarin practices could be the reason for the low production of mandarin. The present study is an attempt to study the extent of adoption level of recommended Khasi Mandarin production practices and analyses the factors affecting adoption of the recommended practices. The study also explores the problems faced by the farmers in adoption of recommended practices. The study was conducted in Kamrup rural and Kamrup metropolitan districts of Assam. A multistage random sampling technique was followed to select the ultimate sample unit of 120 farmers. The result of the study revealed that growth rate of area under mandarin for Kamrup rural, Kamrup metropolitan and Assam was found to be significant and positive over the time period 2007-2019, i.e., 9.74, 5.65 and 5.60 per cent per annum, respectively. Growth rate in production of mandarin for Kamrup rural, Kamrup metropolitan and Assam was also recorded to be positive and significant, i.e., 10.87, 4.45 and 8.29 per cent per annum, respectively. And growth rate of productivity of mandarin for Kamrup rural district and for the state of Assam was recorded to be positive and significant i.e., 1.03 and 2.54 per cent per annum, respectively. Whereas, the growth rate for productivity of mandarin for Kamrup metropolitan district was found negative and significant, with a value of -1.13 per cent per annum. Out the two districts, Kamrup rural showed maximum variability in area (23.88 %) and production (25.33 %) whereas Kamrup metropolitan showed maximum variability in productivity (8.20 %). For Assam maximum variability was found in area under Khasi Mandarin (14.97 %). And 12.10 per cent variation in production followed by 4.86 per cent in productivity. During the period, area effect was the most responsible factor for changing production in Kamrup rural, Kamrup metropolitan and Assam i.e., 85.75 per cent, 128.89 per cent and 63.98 per cent, respectively. The total cost per hectare per year for pooled farms was Rs.36113.66, Rs.39459.73, Rs.39897.30, and Rs.40350.03 for the year 6th, 10th, 15th and 20th, respectively. Gross returns per hectare 7 per year from pooled farms for the considered years were found to be Rs.118561.70, Rs.138124.80, Rs.154565.10, and Rs.166308.20, respectively. Net return for the farm was obtained by deducting total cost per year from gross return per year, which was calculated to be Rs.82448.05, Rs.98665.12, Rs.114667.80, Rs.125958.20 for 6th, 10th, 15th and 20th year. Benefit cost ratio for the pooled farm was calculated to be 3.35 per cent, NPV was found to be Rs.727830.86 and IRR was calculated to 38.91 per cent, which indicates cultivation of mandarin in the study area is economically feasible and profitable. For calculating the adoption level adoption index was calculated and farmers were categorized into three groups‘ viz., low, medium and high adopters by using mean and standard deviation. For analyzing the factors affecting adoption of recommended practices logistic regression model was used. In the study 12 practices recommended by Assam Agricultural University in package of practices was considered. And the constraints faced by mandarin growers were group under four categories viz., technical, economic, storage and marketing and general constraints. The ranking of problems in each category was done by using Henry Garret ranking method. The study found that majority of farmers belongs to medium adopter (71.67) category followed by low adopters (15.83) and high adopters (12.50). Planting materials, weed management, and harvesting practices were found to be highly adopted by the sample farmers, whereas irrigation, disease, and post-harvest management strategies were found to be lowly embraced. And the study shows that major problems faced by mandarin growers are disease sensitivity of the crop, operations are labour intensive, marketing prices of the produce fluctuate highly and unavailability of proper roads. So, awareness and training to the farmers about recommended practice, arranging supply of quality planting materials, providing subsidies on inputs, appointment of more extension workers and their regular training in concerned department about up to date technical know-how, establishment of storage structures and preservation industries etc., can help the farmers of the study area to tackle their day to day problems in cultivation procedures and also converting that medium adopter group into high adopters.ThesisItem Open Access Assessment of productivity gap in rape and mustard cultivation in Kokrajhar district of Assam(AAU, Jorhat, 2021) Basumatary, Phami; Borthakur, NilotpalThe present investigation entitled, “Assessment of productivity gap in rape and mustard cultivation in Kokrajhar district of Assam” was undertaken with following objectives viz., to examine the extent of resource use and efficiency measures in rape and mustard production, to estimate magnitude of productivity gaps in rape and mustard cultivation and identify the factors required for intervention and valuations of technological intervention required for enhancing rape and mustard productivity and explore the policy options. Being one of the largest rape and mustard growing districts of Assam, in term of area of cultivation, Kokrajhar district was selected for the study. Two blocks namely Titaguri block and Gossaigaon block were randomly selected from the district. In the next stage, a total of four villages, i.e., 6 No. Basbari and Brahmapur villages from Titaguri block and Saraibil and Kachukata villages from Gossaigaon block were selected at random. At the last stage, 25 farmers from each village were randomly selected forming the primary data of 100 sample farmers. The framers were then categorised into marginal (< 1 ha), small (1-2 ha), medium (2-4 ha) and large (>4 ha) based on their land holdings. Secondary data were collected from the publication, Impact of Technologies on Oilseeds Production in North Eastern Region and Krishi Vigyan Kendra, Kokrajhar. The findings revealed that the sample farmers did not follow proper package of cultivation practices for rape and mustard. The results showed that the average cost of cultivation was estimated to be Rs. 29539.18 per hectare, which varied from Rs.26294 to Rs. 32711.39 per hectare. The results indicated that technical, allocative and economic efficiency of farms were respectively 94.23 percent, 90.83 percent and 87.72 percent on average. The yield gap analysis recorded 6.48 q/ha yield gap between the research station yield and average farm yield, 3.38 q/ha yield gap between demonstration yield and average farm yield and yield gap of 3.10 q/ha between progressive farm yield and average farm yield. The index of realized potential farm yield-II was estimated to be 64.03 percent on an average. Regression analysis showed that the gaps in input used between progressive farms and the sample farms needed to be reduced in order to narrow down the yield gap. In order to reduce the input gaps, farms needed to invest more on their inputs. The results of valuation of technical intervention showed that smaller farms had to invest more in inputs than the larger farms in order to increase their rape and mustard yield.ThesisItem Open Access AN ECONOMIC ANALYSIS OF FACTORS AND CONSTRAINTS OF PRODUCTION AND MARKETING OF MAJOR SPICES IN ASSAM(AAU, Jorhat, 2021) Borbaruah, Niharika; Barman, R.N.Spices are generally considered as high-value crops that can be included in the farm plan to generate additional revenue in addition to the staple food crops. The climatic condition of Assam is very much suitable to grow a variety of spice crops. The present study entitled “An Economic Analysis of Factors and Constraints of Production and Marketing of Major Spices in Assam” was conducted under two different agro climatic situations representing plain and hill zones. Two districts, Karbi Anglong, a hill district and Jorhat, a plain district were selected for the study. The study was designed to examine the trends in area, production and productivity of spices using the exponential form. Over years data pertaining for the period 2005-06 to 2019-20 on area, production and productivity for important spices were collected and analysed for growth rates. Cobb-Douglas Production Function and Multiple Linear Regression equations were used to examine the factors influencing production and marketing of spices, respectively. The study also examined the different marketing channels, price spread and marketing efficiency using various market concepts. Furthermore, the constraints in production and marketing in both the districts were studied separately based on growers' perceptions. The trends in area, production and productivity of ginger, turmeric, chilli, black pepper, coriander and garlic were examined for the state of Assam and both the districts. A positive and significant growth rates were found in area, production and productivity of ginger, turmeric and chilli in the state and both the districts. However, a negative trend was found in area and production of black pepper in Jorhat district. Coriander productivity in Assam was also found to be negative, which could be attributed to factors such as a lack of technological advancements and the use of high yielding varieties. Furthermore, a negative growth was found in garlic’s production and productivity in Karbi Anglong and area in Jorhat, respectively. The significant factors affecting production of ginger and turmeric in the hill district were operational land and human labor and while factors affecting ginger production in the plain district were operational land and seed rhizome. The significant factors affecting production of turmeric in the plain district were operational land, human labor and capital at disposal. However, credit use had a significant and negative effect on production. Operational land and human labor had a positive and significant effect on chilli production while use of plant protection chemicals had a negative effect. Production kept for home consumption and seed rhizome had a significant and negative impact on marketable surplus in all the crops of the regions. However, in case of turmeric in the hill district, selling price had a significant positive impact on marketable surplus. Furthermore, post-harvest cost of turmeric in the plain district had a significant negative impact on marketable surplus. The study of marketing of spices revealed that the different marketing channels of ginger in the hill district include: Producer → Local/Itinerant Trader → Wholesaler → Retailer → Consumer and Producer (through Growers Cooperatives) → Wholesaler → Distant Market, while the different marketing channels of ginger in the plain district include: Producer → Wholesaler → Retailer → Consumer and Producer → Retailer → Consumer. The different marketing channels of dried turmeric in the hill district include: Producer → Wholesaler-cum-Processor → Retailer → Consumer and Producer (through Growers Cooperatives) → Wholesaler-cum- Processor → Distant Market while the different marketing channels of dried turmeric in the plain district include: Producer → Wholesaler-cum-Processor → Retailer → Consumer and Producer → Retailer-cum-Processor → Consumer. The different marketing channels of chilli include: Producer →Retailer → Consumer and Producer → Wholesaler → Retailer → Consumer. Also, the different marketing channels of black pepper include: Producer → Retailer → Consumer and Producer→ Local Trader → Wholesaler → Distant Market. Marketing efficiency of 9.75 (only up to wholesale level) was found in channel II of ginger in hill district and Channel II (7.91) in plain district was found to be more efficient. In case of dried turmeric, marketing efficiency of 14.66 (only up to wholesale level) was found in channel II in hill district and Channel II (9.22) in plain district was found to be more efficient. Channel I was found to be more efficient in case of chilli (3.36) and black pepper (3.19), respectively. The major constraints that affected production and marketing of ginger and turmeric in the hills were low adoption of better and improved production practices and technology and presence of middlemen/ local traders respectively while the major constraints that affected production and marketing of ginger and turmeric in the plains were unfavourable weather conditions and poor market infrastructure respectively. The major constraint in the production of chilli and black pepper was high cost of cultivation while the major constraint pertaining to marketing of chilli and black pepper was low selling price in the local and distant market during the peak time.ThesisItem Open Access ECONOMIC ANALYSIS OF WOMEN AGRI STARTUPS IN MANIPUR(AAU, Jorhat, 2021) Devi, Heikham Narmila; Halim, R. A.India has been an agrarian economy with 55 percent of its population deriving its livelihood from agriculture and its allied sectors. Agri-business venture is an emerging need for seamless blending of on-farm and non-farm employment in the country. Startups have played a significant role in growth, development and industrialization of many economies over the world. In India, agricultural startups are still at a sprouting stage, trying to solve multiple emerging problems in Indian agriculture and agribusiness ecosystem. Women-owned business enterprises are playing a prominent role in the society and generating more employment opportunities in the country. The increase in the women entrepreneurs has led to the change in the demographic characteristics of business and economic growth of the country. The present study entitled “Economic analysis of women Agri startups in Manipur” highlights the role of women startups, the resource management pattern, overview of production and the problems faced by the startups. Multi stage random sampling method was used to select 8 (eight) startups based on product variations. Results from the analysis revealed that out of all the variable costs under the study, cost incurred in the raw material and labour were the main capital-intensive costs. The selected startups under study have also proven to be all feasible and profitable in terms of their production and the existing price of production. Returns on production by the startups across various groups proved to be all positive, and among all the startups, the startup engaged in the production of processed meat products and value-added fruit products proves to be the most cost effective. The results have also revealed that problems faced by the startups mainly consists of lack of funding, poor transportation facility, lack of entrepreneurial development training, non-availability of labour or weaver, lack of guidelines and technical assistance and lack of equipment and machineries.
