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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.
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ThesisItem Open Access Self-Directed Blended Learning and Students’ Academic Achievement(2023) Karmakar, Kritika; Bhattacharjee, RupjyotiCovid-19 pandemic had a marked impact on the educational system all over the world. The pandemic has exposed the students to remote learning environment and has accelerated the adoption and prominence of online education among them. It was seen that in the post-pandemic situation students started to incorporate online learning in their daily routine after the returning back from schools, which is termed as self-directed blended learning. Self-directed blended learning is an educational approach where learners take an active role in their learning process by combination of the offline and online mode. In this approach, learners have the flexibility to engage with educational content online from the comfort of their home in addition to conventional classroom learning. But this approach may have both benefits and challenges. By using stratified sampling method four Kendriya Vidyalaya schools were chosen from Balipara block of Sonitpur district, Assam. After identifying the prevalence of self-directed blended learning among students with the help of a self-constructed checklist, a sample of 224 students were selected from the highly prevalent group by the Cochran’s formula. A self-constructed questionnaire was distributed to those selected students in order to elicit information regarding their demographic characteristics, the factors influencing them to adopt the self-directed blended learning approach and the challenges of this approach. Academic records of the selected students were obtained from respective school authorities in order to assess the impact of self-directed blended learning on students’ academic achievement. The collected data were coded and analyzed using IBM SPSS software. With the help of a multiple regression analysis, it was found that factors of physical, social and intellectual dimension had a significant influence on students’ adoption of self-directed blended learning approach, with intellectual dimension being the strongest influencing factor. By calculation of composite mean it was found that among all the four chosen dimensions of challenges, physical challenge holds the highest position and with the help of correlation analysis, it was identified that self-directed blended learning has a positive impact on students’ academic achievementThesisItem Open Access A Study on Prevalence of Social Anxiety among Students(2023) Laldinpuii, B.; Bhattacharjee, RupjyotiAnxiety is a mental health condition in which the person anticipates a future worry and reacts to specific items and situations with dread and fright. Social anxiety is a persistent mental health issue characterized by unreasonable anxiety during social interactions. Everyday social encounters for those with social anxiety can result in unreasonable worry, fear, self-consciousness, and embarrassment. Symptoms can include an extreme fear of being judged, feeling embarrassed or ashamed, or worry about upsetting someone. The college time is critical for college students’ rapid maturity of cognition, emotion, and behaviour. Interpersonal communication is becoming increasingly vital in college students’ studies, lives, and employment. It is one of the most significant psychological issues influencing college students’ studies and lifestyles, and interpersonal communication issues are prevalent among today's college students. (Luan Y. et al, 2022). The objectives of the study were to find out the prevalence of social anxiety among students, to assess gender difference in the prevalence of social anxiety and to find out the impact of social anxiety on life style of the students. The study was conducted on 198 numbers of college going students who falls under the age group of 19-21 years. Two questionnaires were used for data collection. The responses were coded and analysed. The findings revealed that social anxiety was prevalent among students as about a quarter of the students (24.8%) were found to have a high level of social anxiety and 56.6 percent of the students were found to have a moderate level of social anxiety. Social anxiety has the potential to negatively impact all aspects of life, including social relationships, academic performance, emotional well-being, and future work opportunities — particularly if left unaddressed. With proper planning and understanding of its unique effects on students, educators can create an inviting environment for all students to learn and grow.ThesisItem Open Access EVALUATION OF FUNCTIONAL PROPERTIES OF SEEDS FROM MORINGA OLEIFERA AVAILABLE IN ASSAM(2023) HOQUE, FARHANAZ SULTANA; Baruah, Luna DuttaThe present study entitled “Evaluation of functional properties of seeds from Moringa Oleifera available in Assam” was undertaken with an aim to evaluate the functional properties of the Moringa oleiufera seeds.The objectives of the study were ,analysis of phytochemical and antioxidant properties of Moringa oleifera seeds, formulation of Moringa oleifera seeds flour incorporated product, nutritional evaluation of the developed product and analysis of hypoglycemic efficacy of the developed product. In the present study, a total no. of 45 different formulations of product (chapatti) were developed with incorporation of raw and debittered Moringa oleifera seeds flour. The debittering treatments were boiling, roasting as well as soaking ( for 12, 24, 36 and 48 hrs.) and boiling, and soaking (for 12, 24, 36 and 48 hrs.) and roasting. Results obtained from the analysis of phytochemical and antioxidant properties of the raw and treated Moringa oleifera seeds available in Assam in terms of total phenolic contents (mg/100g) of Moringa oleifera seeds for T0, TB, TSBa, TSBb, TSBc, TSBd, TR, TSRa, TSRb, TSRc, TSRd were found to be 29.55±0.01 mg/100g, 23.87±0.01 mg/100 g, 19.28±0.007 mg/100g, 18.96±0.02 mg/100g, 17.87±0.02 mg/100g, 16.26±0.02 mg/10g, 24.57±0.01 mg/100g, 19.55±0.04 mg/100g, 19.95±0.58 mg/100g, 19.99±0.017 mg/100g, 20.00±0.02 mg/100 g respectively. Total flavanoid contents (mg/100g) of Moringa oleifera seeds for T0, TB, TSBa, TSBb, TSBc, TSBd, TR, TSRa, TSRb, TSRc, TSRd, were found to be 5.82±0.04 mg/100g, 9.07±0.01 mg/100g, 6.03±0.02 mg/100g, 5.76±0.02 mg/100g, 5.73±0.01 mg/100g, 5.66±0.02 mg/100g, 5.74±0.01 mg/100g, 5.65±0.04 mg/100g, 5.62±0.03 mg/100g, 5.60±0.02 mg/100g respectively whereas tannin content (mg/100g) of the raw and treated Moringa oleifera seeds for T0, TB, TSBa, TSBb, TSBc, TSBd, TR, TSRa, TSRb, TSRc, TSRd; were 6.11±0.08 mg/100g, 3.24±0.01 mg/100g, 2.52±0.02 mg/100 g, 2.82±0.01 mg/ 100 g, 2.77±0.04 mg/100g, 2.92±0.01 mg/100 g, 3.02±0.02 mg/ 100 g, 2.89±0.05 mg/ 100g, 2.82±0.01 mg/ 100 g, 2.80±0.01 mg/100g, 2.69±0.01 mg/ 100g, respectively. The phytic acid contents of the raw and treated Moringa oleifera seeds ranged from 7.51±0.02 mg/ 100 to 9.82±0.03 mg/100g. The phytate contents (mg/100g) of the raw and treated Moringa oleifera seeds were observed as 8.05±0.03 mg/100g, 7.75±0.03 mg/100g, 7.51±0.02 mg/100 g, 7.54±0.01 mg/ 100 g, 7.57±0.01 mg/100g, 7.62±0.03 mg/100 g, 9.82±0.03 mg/ 100 g, 7.74±0.03 mg/ 100g, 7.77±0.01 mg/ 100 g, 7.84±0.02 mg/100g, 7.90±0.02 mg/ 100g, in T0, TB, TSBa, TSBb, TSBc; TSBd, TR, TSRa, TSRb, TSRc, TSRd; respectively. Antioxidant activity was ovserved highest in boiled Moringa oleifera seeds which showed 71.18±0.06%. All the formulations of raw and treated Moringa oleifera seeds flour incorporated chapatti with the level of 5 to 20 per cent were subjected to sensory evaluation by 10 semi trained panelists using 9 point hedonic scale. From the sensory evaluation chapatti incorporated with 20 per cent soaked (12 hrs) and boiled Moringa oleifera seeds flour i.e. CSBa4 and chapatti incorporated with 15 percent soaked (12 hrs) and roasted Moringa oleifera seeds flour i.e. CSRa3 were highly accepted in terms of all the sensory attributes and selected for further analysis. Results revealed in terms of moisture, crude fibre, crude fat, crude protein, total carbohydrate, total energy content and total mineral content for CSBa4 and CSRa3 were : 32.82±0.68 g/100g and 24.21±0.38 g/100g; 3.25±0.03 g/100g and 3.75±0.04 g/100g; 3.58±0.02 g/100g and 4.25±0.03 g/100g; 8.57±0.02 g/100g and 7.23±0.04 g/100g; 30.00±0.02 and 35.00±0.01; 214.09±0.04 kcal/100g and 220.43±0.03 kcal/100g; 1.80±0.03 g/100g and 1.89±0.01 g/100g respectively. Mineral contents of the developed product in terms of iron, calcium, potassium and zinc were found to be 4.07±0.04 mg/100g and 6.73±0.10 mg/100g; 40.16±0.42 mg/100g and 38.42±0.52 mg/100g; 158.6±1.00 mg/100g and 117.4±0.01 mg/100g; 1.10±0.02 mg/100g and 1.11±0.03 mg/100g respectively. In vivo studies were performed to study the impact of supplementation of the developed product in Wister rats. The product obtained score of 45.65 in the glycemic index scale and it can be considered as low glycemic index food. It also significantly reduced the blood glucose level of alloxan induced diabetic rats in 21 days supplementation period with @100 mg/kg b.w, @300 mg/kg. b.w. and @900 mg/ b.w. in dose dependent manner. The mean decrease in blood glucose levels were found to be 25 mg/dl followed by 21 mg/dl and 19 mg/dl in group D3, group D2 and group D1 respectively. From the findings of the study it can concluded that Moringa oleifera seeds possesed a decent nutritional composition and it can be incorporated in value added product development after subjecting to debittering treatments. The developed product can also be commercialized and popularized among different populations as a source of nutri dense food as this has low glycemic index property (45.65) and antihyperglycemic effect. It can be recommended to patients having type 2 diabetes mellitus with some modifications, as well as for people with other non communicable diseases.ThesisItem Open Access Ergonomic Evaluation of Task Performed by Workers in Manual Brick Kiln(2023) Baruah, Nikhil; Baruah, MoontyThe present study was conducted in Jorhat district of Assam. The study intended to find out the work-related health problems prevalent among the workers engaged in brick kiln activities. The ergonomic risk factors causing health problems were also examined in the study. The measures to minimize work related health problems among the brick kiln workers were also discussed. Three subdivisions of Jorhat namely Jorhat, Mariani and Titabor were selected performing for the study based upon the brick kiln industry. A total of 306 workers from the selected brick processing industries were selected from the total population of the brick industry on the 95% level of confidence. Findings revealed that among the surveyed workers, 59 per cent were male and 41 per cent were female workers and mostly 81 per cent were married. Most of the workers were under the age group of 41-50 years. Most (53) of the workers in the age group of 51-60 years were involved in the brick industry from 4 to 6 years followed by 46 numbers in the age group of 61-70. Only 11 of the workers were engaged from 7 to 9 years in the age group of 61-70. Loading of bricks to bake was found to be highly involved activity (Rank I). This was followed by arranging brick to dry (Rank II) and stacking brick (Rank III). The workers engaged in brick kiln industry worked for 10 to 12 hours daily. On an average of 2 hours of the break was found to be taken by the respondents for their lunch and rest period in all the brick processing units as surveyed. In the present study of ergonomic risk factors in brick kiln industries was studied in terms of postural analyses, types of muscular efforts, perceived exertion, REBA score etc. Findings of the study revealed that highest RPE score (Rating of Perceived Exertion) i.e., 4.25 was observed while performing molding brick which was followed by loading brick to fire with the mean RPE score of 4.23. While performing these activities the workers sit and stand in a continuous awkward posture. Arranging bricks to dry recorded the lowest RPE score of 2.47. From the data it was observed that during performance of all the activities the workers felt highest discomfort in thighs, lower back in standing type of activity followed by neck, wrist and shoulder in sitting and squatting postures. Majority 97.71% reported knee pain followed by 94.12% suffered low back pain and shoulder pain 93.79%. Around 66 per cent of the workers felt the pain always whereas, 28 percent of the workers had the pain sometimes, followed by 6 per cent of workers who never had pain during activities. It was observed that 38 percent of the workers suffered from less acute incidences of body pains whereas 45 percent of the workers had negligible incidences which was followed by acute incidences i.e., 17 percent. From the analysis of collected data, it was observed that as age, years of involvement increase prevalence of work-related musculoskeletal disorder among the worker was higher. To improve the musculoskeletal health of kiln workers, workers should be trained in occupational safety and ergonomic principles. They should be encouraged to use personal protection aids like the lumbar belt to reduce lower back issues, the duration of rest should be split into short breaks, workers should be motivated to change their postures periodically with various stretching practices to relieve excessive muscular stress, tasks should be rotated between males and females, among age groups and BMI categories periodically as these factors are associated with musculoskeletal issues. Trolleys should be used not only in brick carrying but also in mould carrying. Moulding box and other hand tools should be redesigned ergonomically, and the use of already redesigned hand tools (i.e., spade, trowel, etc.) must be promoted.ThesisItem Open Access A study on entrepreneurial behaviour of agri-input dealers in upper Brahmaputra valley zone of Assam(2023) Trishnamoni Hazarika; Deka, ChittaranjanAgriculture is the backbone of economy because of its high share in employment and livelihood generation. Agricultural inputs are the inputs like, seeds, fertilizers, pesticides, equipments, animal feeds, machineries etc.that are used in farm production. The person who provides agricultural inputs along with some agro advisory services to the farmers are the Agri Input Dealer. The agri-input dealers play an important role in ensuring that farmers access their necessary inputs for improving productivity in their respective farms. While purchasing the inputs, farmers seek for information from agri input dealers about the usage of inputs, both in terms of quality and quantity. The study was undertaken in two districts of Assam namely, Jorhat and Golaghat. A descriptive research design, following an ex-post facto approach was utilized for the study through a simple, purposive, and random sampling design. A total of 130 respondents were selected for the study. 40% respondents from each district were selected. With respect to profile characteristics of the respondents, the study revealed that majority of the respondents (63.846 %) belonged to the middle-age category. Near about half of the respondents (46.93%) had completed graduation and PG level of education. Majority (60%) of the respondents belonged to small sized family. Most of the respondents (40.77%) had 6-10 years of experience as an agri-input dealer. Around half (54.62%) of the respondents received 1-2 nos. of training programmes. Majority (80.76 %) of the agri-input dealers have received training on pest and disease control in agriculture. Around half (50.769%) of the respondents had marginal land holding and one third (33.85%) of the respondents had 2-4 lakhs of annual income from dealership. With regards to entrepreneurial behaviour of the respondents, the study revealed that majority (64.62%) of the respondents had medium level of innovativeness, medium level of achievement motivation ( 53.85% ), medium decision making ability ( 72.3% ), medium level of risk orientation (63.845%), medium level of co-ordinating ability (56.93%), medium level of planning ability (50.00%), medium level of information seeking behaviour (69.23%), medium level of cosmopoliteness (63.07%) and medium level of self-confidence(63.85%). With the help of Entrepreneurial Behaviour Index (EBI), entrepreneurial behaviour of agri-input dealers was calculated and came into the conclusion that majority (64.62%) of the respondents had medium entrepreneurial behaviour followed by high entrepreneurial behaviour (16.93%) and low entrepreneurial behaviour (18.46%). To determine the relationship between entrepreneurial behaviour and some selected independent variables, correlation and multiple regression analysis was used. Among 7 independent variables, 5 variables viz. age, education, years of experience as an agri-input dealer, nos. of training received, annual income received from dealership showed significant relationship with the entrepreneurial behaviour of agri-input dealers at 0.01 level of probability. In multiple regression analysis, it was found that among 7 independent variables, 5 variables viz. age, education, years of experience as an agri-input dealer, nos. of training received, annual income from agri-input business contribute significantly towards variation in the entrepreneurial behaviour of agri-input dealer at 0.01 level of probability. With regards to problem, the study showed that86.92% of respondents were facing problem due to complex procedure for procurement of inputs for the farmers. To combat this problem, any other procedure of maintaining log record other than Aadhar linking must be initiated by the government or must fix the glitches in the current system.83.07% were facing problem due to less demand of agri-inputs which is because of erratic rainfall which disturbs the cultivation practices of farmers in their fields. Proper irrigation facilities should be provided to the farmers to deal with this problem. Other problems faced by the input dealers are- “loss incurred by them due to lack of getting quick information about banning of pesticides”, “unscrupulous sale of agri inputs by the non licensees to the farmers”, “more market competition” etc. CONTENTThesisItem Unknown A study on managerial ability of the members of Agnigarh Producer Company Limited in Sonitpur district of Assam with reference to commercial litchi production(2023) Thakuria, Samar; Das, P. K.he study entitled “A study on managerial ability of the members of Agnigarh Producer Company Limited in Sonitpur district of Assam with reference to commercial litchi production” was conducted with the following objectives: 1. Measure the managerial ability of the members of Agnigarh Producer Company Limited with reference to commercial litchi production 2. Find out the factors influencing managerial ability of the members of Agnigarh Producer Company Limited with reference to commercial litchi production 3. Identify the constraints faced by the members of Agnigarh Producer Company Limited in management of litchi orchard The study was undertaken in Sonitpur district of Assam which was selected purposively, as the Farmer Producer Company dealing with commercial litchi production was operating in this district. FPC namely, Agnigarh Producer Company Limited of Sonitpur district was selected purposively for the study. A sample of 80 respondents was selected from the 13 selected villages following a proportionate random sampling technique. The primary data for the study were collected by the personal interview method with the help of a structured research schedule. The primary data for the study were collected during the month of February, 2023 and June, 2023. Keeping in view the objectives of the study, 18 independent variables and 1 dependent variable were included in the study. The independent variable included in the study were Age, Education level, , Size of operational land holding, Area under litchi cultivation, Annual net farm income, Litchi yield, Farm mechanization, Irrigated area under litchi cultivation, Level of farm wage payment related to litchi cultivation, Experience in litchi cultivation, Social participation, Adoption of recommended litchi production technology, Achievement motivation, Orientation towards the competition, Attitude towards modern agriculture, Risk orientation, Extension contact, Exposure to training on litchi cultivation. The dependent variable included in the study was the managerial ability of the members of Agnigarh Producer Company Limited with reference to commercial litchi production which was measured by using the scale developed by Jadav (2005). Extensive literature was browsed for seeking additional information on the conceptual framework of the dependent variable. Findings revealed that majority of the respondents (43.75%) belonged to middle aged category. Majority of the respondents (41.25%) had formal education up to higher secondary/PU level and there were not any respondents from illiterate, can read only category in the study area. Majority of respondents (41.25%) belonged to small farmer in land holding category. Majority of the respondents (50.00%) were having area from 0.10 to 1.5 ha under litchi orchard with medium annual net farm income ranging from Rs 94278.31 to Rs 156528.93. Majority of the respondents (60.00%) had medium level of litchi yield, medium level of farm mechanization (70.00%) and medium level of irrigated area under litchi cultivation (77.50%). Majority of them (80.00%) had medium level of farm wage payment related to litchi cultivation. Majority of respondents (53.75%) had 9-19 yearsof experience in litchi cultivation. Majority of the respondents (55.00%) were belonged from having membership in one organization. Majority of them (70.00%) had medium level of adoption of recommended litchi production technology, medium level of achievement motivation (68.75%), medium level of orientation towards the competition (67.50%), medium level of attitude towards modern agriculture (63.75), medium level of risk orientation (67.50%), medium level of extension contact (63.75) and high level of exposure to training on litchi cultivation (50.00%). Findings revealed that the majority of the respondents (61.25%) had medium level of managerial ability index. The mean score (56.62%) indicated that on an average the respondents had medium level of managerial ability index with standard deviation of 15.69. The value of co-efficient of variation (27.72) indicated that the respondents were relatively homogenous with respect to their level of managerial ability index.Majority of the respondents (50.00%) had medium level of knowledge on scientific practices of litchi,medium level of planning ability (63.75%), medium level of organizing ability(45.00%),medium level of supervising ability (72.50%),medium level budgeting ability(50.00%), medium level of coordinating ability (53.75%),medium level communication ability (60.00%).Majority of them(56.25%) had medium level of controlling ability,medium level ofdecision making ability (52.50%),medium level of human relationship ability (61.25%). Findings revealed that Mean supervising ability score (70.93) indicated that on an average the respondents had high level of supervising ability (ranked first),mean communication ability score (62.49)indicated that on an average the respondents had high level of communication ability (ranked second),mean decision making ability score (61.62) indicated that on an average the respondents had high level of decision making ability(ranked third).Mean organizing ability score (61.60) indicated that on an average the respondents had high level of organizing ability, mean human relationship ability score (60.62) indicated that on an average the respondents had medium level of human relationship ability, followed by mean controlling ability score (59.68) indicated that on an average the respondents had medium level of controlling ability, mean budgeting ability score (58.53) indicated that on an average the respondents had medium level of budgeting ability, mean coordinating ability score (56.81) indicated that on an average the respondents had medium level of coordinating ability which were ranked Fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh, and eight respectively. Similarly, the mean planning ability score (53.74) indicated that on an average the respondents had low level of planning ability. The mean knowledge in scientific practices of litchi score (49.78) indicated that on an average the respondents had medium level of knowledge in scientific practices of litchi which were ranked ninth and tenth respectively. Findings of correlation analysis indicated that out of the 18 selected independent variables, 12 independent variables were significantly correlated with the managerial ability of the members of FPC. All these 12 independent variables viz., education level (0.687), size of operational land holding (0.520), area under litchi orchard (0.327), annual net farm income (0.686), level of wage payment related to litchi cultivation (0.404), experience in litchi cultivation (0.634), adoption of recommended litchi production technology (0.704), achievement motivation (0.716), attitude towards modern agriculture (0.465), risk orientation (0.793), extension contact (0.810) and exposure to training on litchi cultivation (0.587) showed significant and positive relationship with the managerial ability of the members of FPC at 0.01 level of probability. The findings of the regression analysis indicated that out of 12 independent variables, only 5 variables, viz., educational level (1.819), experience in litchi cultivation (0.415), achievement motivation (1.001), extension contact (1.588) and exposure to training on litchi cultivation (3.334) were found to contribute significantly towards variation in the managerial ability of the members of FPC. Two variables viz., educational level, experience in litchi cultivation showed significant contribution towards the managerial ability of the members of FPC at 0.05 level of probability. Three variables viz., achievement motivation, extension contact and exposure to training on litchi cultivation showed significant contribution towards the managerial ability of the members of FPC at 0.01 level of probability. The 12 independent variables fitted in the linear regression analysis could predict 92.30 per cent of the variation in the managerial ability of the members of FPC. Findings revealed that "High incidence of bats and birds" got the highest score (PCI-217) and hence was the 1st ranked problem of the majority of the respondents. Followed by "Litchi yield loss due to weather condition" which got the 2nd highest scores (PCI-200) and hence ranked as the 2nd major problem. “High cost of labour' was another problem faced by members of Agnigarh Produce Company Limited in management of litchi orchard which was ranked third on the basis of the 3rd highest score (PCI-199). "Scarcity of labour in time" was ranked 4th among problems faced by the respondents while with a PCI score-189. "Lack of irrigation facility" got the 5th rank among the problems based on the score of PCI-178 as mentioned by the respondents.ThesisItem Unknown Impact of Mechanization on Beneficiary Farmers Under APART Project in North Bank Plains Zone of Assam(2023) Alom, Suhail; Sharma, HaridraThe Assam Agricultural University,Jorhat launched the World Bank aided project “Assam Agribusiness and Rural Transformation (APART)” during 2016-17. Since inception, the project is providing farm mechanization interventions to improve farm mechanization level in Assam. Considering the efforts made towards farm mechanization, it was felt imperative to understand the impacts of the APART project on farm mechanization. Hence, the present study – “Impact of mechanization on beneficiary farmers under APART project in North Bank Plains Zone of Assam” was conducted to find out whether the project is truly achieving its objectives. The objectives of the study were to measure the extent of mechanization by beneficiary farmers under APART project; assess the impact of mechanization on the beneficiary farmers under APART project and find out the problems faced by the project staff in effective implementation and by beneficiary farmer in adoption of the mechanization interventions. The study was carried out in Lakhimpur, Sonitpur and Darrang districts of North Bank Plains Zone (NBPZ) of Assam. A total of 100 beneficiary farmers were selected as respondents for the study. For the present study, 10 profile variable, 5 descriptive variables and 2 inhibitive variables were selected. The data were collected with the help of research schedule by personal interview method. Appropriate statistical techniques were used for analysis of data. The study revealed that majority of respondents 65.00 per cent belonged to 38-57 years category. Majority of respondents 27.00 per cent had middle school level education followed by primary level by 24.00 per cent. Majority of the respondents 75.00 per cent were found to have single family. A total of 70.00 per cent had medium land holding. Among the respondents, 41.00 per cent were found to have low innovativeness and 59.00 per cent of the respondents had medium level of scientific orientation. Majority of the respondents 55.00 per cent had 'only cultivation' as main occupation .Likewise majority of respondent 40.00 per cent received 2-days training and (majority 78.00 per cent)had medium degree of information exposure, Out of the all respondents 59.00 per cent of the respondents reported that the labor were not readily available for farm operations. To measure the extent of mechanization, 3 crops were selected viz., Sali rice, toria and potato. Highest MI was for potato 84.87 per cent followed by Sali rice 74.65 per cent . Toria showed lowest MI i.e. 51.29 per cent among the three selected crops in the study areas. Distribution of respondents according to MI showed that majority of respondents 72.00 per cent belongs to medium mechanization category. Out of the 10 profile variables, education level (r=0.665), innovativeness (r=0.534), training exposure (r=0.654), Occupational status (r=0.205), labour availability (r=0.729), degree of information exposure (r=0.369) and scientific orientation (r=0.279) were significantly and positively correlated with Mechanization Index (MI) at 1% level of probability. Size of land holding (r=-0.754) was found to be negatively correlated with Mechanization Index (MI) and the correlation is significant at 1% level of probability. All the profile (predictor) variables taken together explained the variation in the Mechanization Index (MI) 88.10 per cent (adjusted 2=0.881). For Sali rice, average area before mechanization was 1.04 ha and which increased to 1.44 ha after mechanization and the difference (t=19.622) was significant at 1% level of probability for the study area. Likewise the average production of Sali rice before mechanization was 41.70 q which increased to 79.20 q after mechanization. The difference (t=21.079) was significant at 1% level of probability for the study area. The average productivity was found to be 40.10 q/ha before mechanization and 55.00 q/ha after mechanization in Sali rice. The ‘t’ value was found to be significant at 1% level of probability for productivity (t=19.063). For toria average area before mechanization was 0.34 ha and area was increased with the application of mechanization that is 0.52 ha.The ‘t’ value was found to be significant at 1% level of probability for the study area (t=26.798).The average production of toria before mechanization was 2.68 q which was increased to 5.77 q after mechanization. The ‘t’ value was found to be significant at 1% level of probability for the study area (t=28.436). The productivity was found 2.68 q/ha before mechanization and 5.77 q/ha after mechanization. The ‘t’ value was found to be significant at 1% level of probability for the study area (t=16.201).For potato average area before mechanization was 0.92 ha and area was increased with the application of mechanization that is 1.24 ha. The ‘t’ value was found to be significant at 1% level of probability for the study area (t=24.226). The average production of potato before mechanization was 65.50 q which was increased to 245.64 q after mechanization. The ‘t’ value was found to be significant at 1% level of probability for the study area (t=16.670). The productivity was found 71.20 q/ha before mechanization and 198.10 q/ha after mechanization. The ‘t’ value was found to be significant at 1% level of probability for the study area (t=23.931).Finding reveal that the mean cropping intensity before mechanization was 131.42 per cent and after mechanization it increased to 140.93 per cent. The significance of mean cropping intensity before mechanization and after mechanization was tested by t-test (t=8.451) and was significant at 1% level of probability. The major constraints faced by the project staff in effective implementation of the mechanization intervention were - Lack of awareness on mechanization benefits leading to less adoption of farm machineries (Rank I); Problem in getting consensus of a group of farmers over fixing time and date of training programme due to pre-occupied time schedule of farmers (Rank II) ; Problem in regular monitoring of fields and activities of farmers due to limited staff, distance and limited transport facilities (Rank III) ; Varied responses and level of adoption among farmers’ (Rank IV) ; Large scale demonstration of machineries suffered due to small land holding in different villages (Rank V) and Non availability of organized farmers groups at village level creates problem during execution of the project (Rank VI).Major constraints faced by beneficiary tribal farmers in adoption of the mechanization intervention were - High fuel cost to run machineries (Rank I); Small and scattered land holding causing difficulties in management during peak crop season (Rank II); Non availability of required farm machinery at peak season as less number of farm machineries are available compared to demand (Rank III); Long distance between crop fields and fuel pumps leading high procurement cost (Rank IV); Non availability of trained person to maintain machines locally (Rank V) and Machineries of low quality leading frequent repairing (Rank VI).ThesisItem Open Access A STUDY ON ENTREPRENEURIAL BEHAVIOUR OF NURSERY OWNERS IN ASSAM(2023) Bhutia, Penchen Tshyoza; Borua, SajibNursery is a place where plants are propagated, cared for, grown, and then sold for use in commercial or residential gardens. Improved quality seedlings are raised under ideal circumstances until they are ready to be planted on a small or large scale. Nurseries are presently becoming popular economic agro-based enterprises and commercial ventures in horticultural sector. It has established its credibility by increased production, creating jobs in both rural and urban areas, and increasing exports significantly. To be profitable, establishing a nursery is a long-term endeavour that demands preparation and skill. New breed of entrepreneurs who are well versed in the modern principles of business management and who have the desirable attitude, values and behaviour are required to show a significant outcome in this sector as success of any enterprise depends on entrepreneur’s efficiency and effectiveness. Understanding nursery owners' entrepreneurial behaviour will allow change agents and extension machinery to intervene to correct, modify, alter, or promote appropriate behavioural changes that will allow nursery owners to pursue their business profitably and sustainably. The study was undertaken in three districts of Assam namely, Jorhat, Nagaon and Golaghat which were selected purposively as it is located in close proximity to the only Agricultural University in the state. A sample size of 90 was taken using convenience sampling. 30 nurseries were selected from each district under the study. Primary data for the current study was collected in the month of April- June. The findings of the present investigation revealed that majority of the respondents (55.56%) belonged to the middle-aged category. Most of the respondents (46.67%) had high level of education. Majority (56.67%) of the respondents belonged to small sized family while 91.1% of the respondents had marginal land holding. Most (62.22%) of the respondents belonged to medium income category. Majority (80%) of the respondents had easy access to labour available on both weekdays and weekends. The study also revealed that most (52.22%) of the respondents had medium level experience in nursery business while majority (71.11%) of the respondents had medium level of training exposure and had attended 1-3 number of trainings conducted by various external sources. In terms of various parameters related to entrepreneurial behaviour the study reveals that majority (74.44%) of the respondents had medium level of innovativeness, medium level of achievement motivation (57.78%), moderate decision-making ability (68.89%), medium level of risk orientation (51.11%), moderate level of coordinating ability (57.78%), moderate level of planning ability (60.00%), medium level of information seeking behaviour (77.78%) and medium level of self-confidence (86.67%). With the help of Entrepreneurial Behaviour Index (EBI), entrepreneurial behaviour of nursery owners was calculated and came into the conclusion that majority (68.89%) of the respondents had moderate entrepreneurial behaviour followed by high entrepreneurial behaviour (17.78%) and low entrepreneurial behaviour (13.33%). The problems stated by the respondents included non-availability of desired inputs at the right time, high cost of inputs, lack of knowledge about proper techniques of marketing, lack of knowledge on proper utilization of land under nursery and many more. In terms of natural calamities high rainfall was stated as the most occurring problem for the outdoor nurseries though measures have been taken to overcome the problem. On the other hand, flood was stated as a major problem by almost all the nursery owners of Nagaon district. By overall evaluation of problems, problems related to inputs ranked first followed by land utilization problems, problems related to storage, institutional problems, marketing problems, transportation problems, problems related to natural calamities, social problems and personal problems.ThesisItem Open Access A study on technological gap in adoption of recommended maize cultivation practices by the shareholders of Nameri Valley Farmer Producer Company in Sonitpur district of Assam(2023) Dutta, Maitrayee; Das, P. K.The findings of correlation analysis revealed that variables age, education level, family type, institutional linkage, occupational status, operational land holding, experience as a grower, exposure to training on maize cultivation, net annual farm income, availability of working capital for maize cultivation, farm mechanization, knowledge on maize cultivation, economic motivation, degree of commercialization of maize cultivation showed significant and negative correlation with the extent of technological gap in adoption of maize cultivation practices by the shareholders of Nameri Valley FPC. Variables net annual income from maize cultivation and risk orientation had no significant relationship with technological gap in adoption of maize cultivation practices by the shareholders of Nameri Valley FPC. The variables which were significantly correlated with the extent of technological gap in adoption of recommended maize cultivation practices were further considered for multiple regression where the value of R2 (0.840) indicated that 14 independent variables could explain 84.02% of the variation in the extent of technological gap in adoption of recommended maize cultivation practices by the shareholders of Nameri Valley FPC. Among the computed PCI values for the production constraints, damage caused by the elephants has the highest value of 227 and has been ranked first as perceived by the shareholders. Occasional damage of the crops by flood was ranked as the 2nd most important constraint with PCI score of 220, followed by high incidence of army worm which was ranked as the 3rd important constraint in maize cultivation practice with PCI score-219. Lack of proper irrigation facilities, lack of knowledge about identification of diseases (PCI-210), high cost of insecticides and pesticides (PCI-180), less opportunity of training on maize cultivation (PCI-178) was ranked as 4th, 5th, 6th and 7th constraints respectively faced by the respondents in cultivation of maize crop. As regards the computed PCI values for the marketing constraints, lack of proper transport facilities has the highest value of 220 and has been ranked first as perceived by the growers. ‘Lack of market related information’ was ranked as 2nd important constraint with PCI-208. Low selling price (PCI-200) and low quality planting material (PCI-195) were ranked as the 3rd and 4th constraints respectively.
