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Kerala Agricultural University, Thrissur
The history of agricultural education in Kerala can be traced back to the year 1896 when a scheme was evolved in the erstwhile Travancore State to train a few young men in scientific agriculture at the Demonstration Farm, Karamana, Thiruvananthapuram, presently, the Cropping Systems Research Centre under Kerala Agricultural University. Agriculture was introduced as an optional subject in the middle school classes in the State in 1922 when an Agricultural Middle School was started at Aluva, Ernakulam District. The popularity and usefulness of this school led to the starting of similar institutions at Kottarakkara and Konni in 1928 and 1931 respectively.
Agriculture was later introduced as an optional subject for Intermediate Course in 1953. In 1955, the erstwhile Government of Travancore-Cochin started the Agricultural College and Research Institute at Vellayani, Thiruvananthapuram and the College of Veterinary and Animal Sciences at Mannuthy, Thrissur for imparting higher education in agricultural and veterinary sciences, respectively. These institutions were brought under the direct administrative control of the Department of Agriculture and the Department of Animal Husbandry, respectively. With the formation of Kerala State in 1956, these two colleges were affiliated to the University of Kerala. The post-graduate programmes leading to M.Sc. (Ag), M.V.Sc. and Ph.D. degrees were started in 1961, 1962 and 1965 respectively.
On the recommendation of the Second National Education Commission (1964-66) headed by Dr. D.S. Kothari, the then Chairman of the University Grants Commission, one Agricultural University in each State was established. The State Agricultural Universities (SAUs) were established in India as an integral part of the National Agricultural Research System to give the much needed impetus to Agriculture Education and Research in the Country. As a result the Kerala Agricultural University (KAU) was established on 24th February 1971 by virtue of the Act 33 of 1971 and started functioning on 1st February 1972. The Kerala Agricultural University is the 15th in the series of the SAUs.
In accordance with the provisions of KAU Act of 1971, the Agricultural College and Research Institute at Vellayani, and the College of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, Mannuthy, were brought under the Kerala Agricultural University. In addition, twenty one agricultural and animal husbandry research stations were also transferred to the KAU for taking up research and extension programmes on various crops, animals, birds, etc.
During 2011, Kerala Agricultural University was trifurcated into Kerala Veterinary and Animal Sciences University (KVASU), Kerala University of Fisheries and Ocean Studies (KUFOS) and Kerala Agricultural University (KAU).
Now the University has seven colleges (four Agriculture, one Agricultural Engineering, one Forestry, one Co-operation Banking & Management), six RARSs, seven KVKs, 15 Research Stations and 16 Research and Extension Units under the faculties of Agriculture, Agricultural Engineering and Forestry. In addition, one Academy on Climate Change Adaptation and one Institute of Agricultural Technology offering M.Sc. (Integrated) Climate Change Adaptation and Diploma in Agricultural Sciences respectively are also functioning in Kerala Agricultural University.
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ThesisItem Open Access Investigations on soil crop and machine parameters towards the development of a root crop harvester(Department of Farm Machinery and Power Engineering, Kelappaji College of Agricultural Engineering and Technology,Tavanur, 2020) Basavaraj; KAU; Jayan, P RThe tractor drawn root harvester was designed and developed by considering soil, crop and machine parameters and performance evaluation of the machine was carried out in the experimental area at KCAET, Tavanur and different farmers’ fields at Palakkad and Thrissur districts. The developed machine mainly consists of main frame, power transmission system, digging and soil separator units. The effect of three blade geometries viz., straight edge, V-type and crescent blades at three rake angles of 15, 20 and 25 deg. and at three forward speeds of 1.5, 2.0 and 2.5 km h-1 for the digging unit of the harvester were evaluated in terms of draft, digging efficiency, per cent damage of tuber/rhizome and fuel consumption of tractor mounted harvester for harvesting coleus, ginger and turmeric. The best optimal condition was observed at a forward speed of 2.0 km h-1 with 20 deg. rake angle for V-type blade. The soil separator unit of the harvester was evaluated along the digging operation. The soil separator unit was tested with different operational parameters viz., diameter of crank 40, 60 and 80 mm and spring tension 800, 1200 and 1600 N m-1. The best optimal operational conditions were observed at a spring tension of 1600 N m-1 with 80 mm diameter of crank. The maximum draft of 2009.52 N was recorded in straight blade while the minimum of 1418.66 N was observed in V-type blade. The maximum digging efficiency of 99.89 per cent was noticed in V-type blade, whereas the lowest of 84.15 per cent in straight edge blade. The least damage coleus of 0.59 per cent was observed in V-type blade whereas highest of 5.5 per cent was obtained in crescent blade. Among the different type of blades tested, the less fuel consumption of 3.80 l h-1 was noticed for V-type blade, whereas the maximum of 4.98 l h-1 for straight edge blade. In the case of harvesting ginger, the maximum draft of 2176.33 N was recorded in straight edge blade while the minimum of 1374.31 N was observed in V- type blade. The maximum digging efficiency of 99.57 per cent was noticed in V-type blade, whereas the lowest of 80.40 per cent in straight edge blade. The least damage coleus of 0.86 per cent was observed in V-type blade whereas highest of 6.05 per cent was obtained in crescent blade. Among the different type of blades, the less fuel consumption of 3.74 l h-1 was noticed for V-type blade, whereas the maximum of 5.19 l h-1 for straight edge blade. In the case of harvesting of turmeric, the maximum draft of 2192.08 N was recorded in straight edge blade while the minimum of 1390.06 N was observed in V-type blade. The maximum digging efficiency of 99.50 per cent was noticed in V-type blade, whereas the lowest of 81.91 per cent was recorded with the straight edge blade. The least per cent damage coleus of 0.74 per cent was observed in V-type blade whereas highest of 7.3 per cent was obtained in crescent blade. Among the different type of blades, the less fuel consumption of 4.0 l h-1 was noticed for V- type blade, whereas the maximum of 5.57 l h-1 for straight edge blade. The field capacity of the machine for coleus, ginger and turmeric were 0.15, 0.16 and 0.16 ha h-1 respectively and the field efficiencies were 86.11, 88.89 and 88.89 per cent respectively. The soil separation indices of root crop harvester for coleus, ginger and turmeric were found out as 82.71, 73.22 and 68.82 per cent respectively where as the conveying efficiencies were 90.70, 87.55 and 89.71 per cent respectively. The estimated cost of the prototype tractor drawn root crop harvester was as Rs. 60,000. The cost of operation was found out as Rs. 767.57 per hour. The saving in cost over root crop harvester for three root crops was 89 per cent. The machine has BEP of 40 h, PBP as 1.5 years and BCR as 10.7.ThesisItem Open Access Development of a bund strengthening implement for paddy wetland based on soil - machine parameters(Department of Farm Machinery and Power Engineering Kelappaji College of Agricultural Engineering and Technology, Tavanur, 2018) Suma Nair; KAU; Ramachandran, V RThree models (BF1, BF2 and BF3) of a low cost, tractor drawn bund strengthening implement were developed and their performance was evaluated at three test locations, viz., Pullazhi kolepadavu in Thrissur kole lands, Kolothumpadam kolepadavu in Ponnani kole lands and Athalur, Tavanur (non-kole). The forming board type design was chosen. The major dimensions of the developed models, viz., top width, bottom width and rear height are 150, 250 and 150 mm for BF1, 200, 350 and 150 mm for BF2 and 250, 400 and 250 mm respectively. The main parts of the implement were the MS angle bar tool frame and hitch assembly of size 1150 mm x 500 mm, implement frame made of MS angle bars to connect the forming board assembly to the tool frame, modified forming boards with gathering boards attached in the front, and a 400 mm long, three sided forming case at the rear which provided a plastered finish to the formed bund. All the elements, including the forming boards and the forming case, acted like a single unit. Analyses of the various soil properties at the three test sites were also performed. The soils at Pullazhi kolepadavu and Kolothumpadam kolepadavu were silty clay while the soil at Tavanur was sandy loam in texture. The dimensions of the bunds drawn by the implements were suited to the prevalent farmers’ practice at Pullazhi and Ponnani. At Tavanur, new bunds could be drawn using the implements. At Pullazhi kole fields, models BF1 and BF2 showed a better performance in terms of strength measured as cone index. The performance of BF3 and BF4 gave the best results at Ponnani. BF2 or BF4, operated by NH 3230, were suitable to the Tavanur fields, in terms of strength of bund as assessed by cone index. Shear strength values exhibited by the manual bunds were always lesser than that by mechanically formed bunds at Pullazhi. Bunds formed by BF2 showed the highest value of 46.02 kPa at 0.2 m depth which went upto 40.81 kPa on the seventh day. The same trend was seen in Ponnani also but the bunds formed by BF3 and BF4 had the highest shear strength values.The average speed of operation ranged from minimum of 1.24 km h -1 when BF1 was operated by KTT at Tavanur, in sandy loam soils to 2.98 km h -1 when BF2 was operated by JD 5042 at Ponnani. Draft was least for BF1 operated by KTT and highest for BF3 and BF4 operated in Ponnani silt-clay. The minimum fuel consumption was noted as 2.53 L h -1 for BF1-NH 3230 combination at Tavanur while the maximum was 3.76 L h -1 for BF3-JD 5042 at Ponnani. The BF4 trials had higher consumption of 7.71 L h -1 in silty clay at Ponnani and 5.62 L h -1 in sandy loam at Tavanur. The maximum capacity of 2984.24 m h -1 was observed for BF2 operated by JD 5042 at Ponnani kole. BF4 had lower capacities as two passes of the tractor were required to complete the operation. The minimum capacity of mechanical bund strengthening implement is 906.86 m h -1 . The manual operation has a capacity of 62.5 m h -1 . Thus there is a 14 times increase in capacity of bund formation by mechanical implements. Wheel slip is within the acceptable range of 5 to 15 per cent. The cost of mechanical formation of bunds ranges from Rs. 18/- to Rs. 30/- per 100 m. while it ranges from Rs. 178/- to Rs. 227/- for manual operation. The developed implement had a FOS of 2.17. Hence, taking all observations into account, it can be summarised that the bund strengthening implement model BF2 was found suitable to Pullazhi kolepadavu in terms of size, strength, lower moisture content and higher bulk density. At Ponnani, the models BF3 and BF4 performed well. However, as BF4 operation involved a higher fuel consumption and lower capacity of bund formation, the model BF3 can be recommended. At Tavanur fields, the prevalent manual bunds showed better performance parameters. However, new bunds can be formed in the fields using the developed implements. Trial BF4 and BF3 gave better performance in these soils.ThesisItem Open Access Development and evaluation of a vacuum frying system for banana chips (Musa spp.)(Department of Food and Agricultural Process Engineering, Kelappaji College of Agricultural Engineering and Technology, Tavanur, 2017) Ranasalva, N; KAU; Sudheer, K PFrying is an indigenous cooking method. The deep fat frying produces crispy textured and tasty fruits and vegetable products with increased fat content. The property of oil and fried product gets degraded during deep fat frying. The vacuum frying could be an alternative technology that involves low frying temperature and pressure aids in reduced oil absorption in fried product and preserves the quality of frying oil. Accordingly an advanced vacuum frying system with dual chambers, oil storage and a frying chamber with de-oiling system was developed to produce vacuum fried raw and ripened banana chips. The developed vacuum frying system was batch type with product capacity of 12 kgh-1 and frying oil tank capacity of 30 l. The properties of the product and oil were evaluated and standardisation of process parameters was done with the developed vacuum frying system. The oil blend (Rice bran and Palm oil) at 80:20 was identified as suitable frying oil with high oxidation and thermal stability among coconut, rice bran, palm, corn and blended oils. Effective de-oiling was attained with removal of 74.1 and 71.4% oil, respectively, in VF-raw and VF-ripe centrifuged at 1000 rpm for 5 min. The vacuum frying with de-oiling nullified the effect of pre-treatments like blanching cum drying, freezing and gum coating for the production of VF-raw and VF-ripe. The quality parameters like oil content, moisture content, energy, texture, bulk density, true density, colour values, thickness expansion and sensory acceptability of vacuum fried raw and ripened banana chips were evaluated at different processing conditions. The processing conditions of vacuum frying at 105°C and 18 kPa for 13 min produced improved quality of VF-ripe with low oil content (13.35%), acrylamide content (122.8 μgkg-1), moisture content (0.869%), water activity (0.21), L* (57.28) a* (12.23), b* (56.4), yellowness index (131.3) bulk density (0.453 gcm-3), true density (1.38 gcm-3), thickness expansion (-74%) and good organoleptic properties with high sensory score of 8.6. The process protocol for the production of VF-raw has to be improved to attain consumer acceptability. The vacuum fried ripened banana chips processed at 105°C for 13 min, packed in 400 gauge LDPE with nitrogen flushed packaging showed good consumer acceptability upto 90 days of storage. After 90 days of storage, the products exhibited poor consumer acceptability due to reduced degree of crispness. The FFA value of the blended oil was within the acceptable limit upto 52 batches of frying at 105°C and 18 kPa for 13 min. The total polar compound of the blended oil increased from 9.5 to 15.7% after sixty batches which was within the safe level. The production cost formulated based on fixed and variable cost for per kg of vacuum fried raw and ripened banana chips was Rs.342/- and Rs.363/- respectively.ThesisItem Open Access Evaluation and refinement of low cost automation system for naturally ventilated greenhouse(Department of Soil and Water Conservation Engineering, Tavanur, 2019) Jinu, A; KAU; Abdul Hakkim, V MGreenhouses are structures used for offseason cultivation of crops and also for obtaining maximum production from unit area. In greenhouses, crop growing environment as well as growing medium can be modified by adopting suitable technologies for microclimate control and water and fertilizer application. Manual controls of microclimate and water and fertilizer application are time and labour consuming and hence automation is required for the better greenhouse management. The study entitled “Evaluation and refinement of low cost automation system for naturally ventilated greenhouses” was conducted during the period July 2015 to February 2017 to modify the existing low cost automation system at ARS Anakkayam and also for its performance evaluation. Existing automation system has limitations such as it cannot manage temperature and relative humidity separately and also it cannot manage irrigation and fertigation. These problems were rectified in refined automation system. The refinement of the system was done by changing the microcontroller used in the automation system and also using a timer for the timely management of irrigation and fertigation. The refined system was capable of managing temperature and relative humidity separately and performing irrigation and fertigation operations inside the greenhouse. The refined automation system was tested without crop and with crop during three crop seasons with salad cucumber crop (variety Saniya) inside the greenhouse. The experiment was conducted inside a naturally ventilated greenhouse situated at the ARS, Anakkayam, under Kerala Agricultural University. For comparison, salad cucumber was cultivated inside another greenhouse which is manually controlled. Microclimate as well as crop data were collected from outside the greenhouse and both these greenhouses and compared. The temperature inside the AGH was less compared to NAGH and the relative humidity inside the automated greenhouse never exceeded above 70%. The yield and all other crop parameters were better in AGH compared to NAGH.ThesisItem Open Access Impact of climate change and watershed development on river basin hydrology using SWAT – a case study(Department of irrigation and drainage engineering, Kelappaji college of agricultural engineering and technology, Thavanur, 2016) Anu Varughese; KAU; Hajilal, M SClimate change is considered as a global phenomenon, but investigation at the regional level is essential to understand the changes induced, and to suggest suitable adaptation strategies. This study is mainly concerned with the analysis of possible changes in the hydrology of Bharathapuzha river basin in the state of Kerala, India. Initially the trend in historic climate data was analysed to get an idea about the changes happening in the area. The trend analysis of gridded data using Mann-Kendall and t-test showed that the mean, maximum and minimum temperatures during 1951-2013 showed a significant increasing trend and the increase in mean, maximum and minimum temperatures during the period was at the rate of .07°C/decade, 0.14°C/decade and 0.04°C/decade respectively. Trend analysis of gridded rainfall data for the period 1971-2005 showed statistically significant decreasing trend, at the rate of 15 mm/year. Trend analysis of seasonal rainfall indicated that there was no significant trend in seasonal rainfall except during the south-west monsoon period when there was an increasing trend. To find out the best suitable climate model for the region, the downscaled reanalysis data on precipitation and temperature from five regional climate models (RCM’s) derived from different Global Climate Models (GCM’s) were compared with observed data of area on the basis of the four statistical parameters (standard deviation, correlation coefficient, coefficient of variation and centred root mean square difference). The GFDL-CM3 RCM gave better comparison with the observed data and hence was used for further data analysis. Bias in precipitation was corrected using power transformation which corrects the mean and coefficient of variation (CV) of the observations. Since temperature is approximately normally distributed, it was corrected by fitting it to the mean and standard deviation of the observations. The model data for two emission scenarios RCP4.5 and RCP8.5 and two scenario periods 2041-70 and 2071-99 were selected for the study. Comparison of the post-processed climate data to observed climate data was carried out. Based on the results obtained, the annual maximum and minimum temperatures is expected to increase in future. It is also predicted that there will be a decrease of 4 to 7 per cent in average annual rainfall during 2041-70 compared to the present day average values, whereas the decrease will be up to 10 to 15 per cent during 2071-99. To evaluate the surface runoff generation and soil erosion rates from the area, the Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) model was used. The model was calibrated and validated on a monthly basis using the observed data and it could simulate surface runoff and soil erosion to a good level of accuracy. The model evaluation statistics used for the calibration and validation periods were Nash-Sutcliffe Efficiency (NSE), Coefficient of determination (R2) and PBIAS. The study demonstrated that the SWAT model can be used to predict the monthly stream flow and sediment loss from the basin. So the calibrated and validated model was then used for studying the impact of changes in climate and watershed interventions on the hydrology of the river basin. The model predicts 15 to 20 per cent decrease in stream flow by the end of the century if the worst situation of climate change continues (RCP8.5). While analysing the water balance components, it is seen that ET ranges from 15 to 22 per cent of the annual rainfall in the current scenario, while it may increase to 29 to 32 per cent in the RCP4.5 scenario and 32 to 35 per cent in RCP8.5 scenario. Lateral flow component is the lowest, comprising only 8 to 10 per cent of the total rainfall and there is no much variation for this component within the scenarios. Monthly streamflow predicted for the two periods 2041-2070 and 2071-2099 when compared with the current scenario values shows that irrespective of the scenarios, the streamflow is found to be less than that of the current scenario in almost all months. During 2046-2070, the sediment loss in RCP4.5 scenario is predicted to be much less than the RCP8.5 scenario, whereas to the end of the century, the sediment loss in RCP8.5 scenario is greater than RCP4.5 scenario in almost all years, and the annual sediment loss goes up to 7 to 9 t/ha, from the present condition of 2.5 to 4 t/ha.The impact of watershed interventions on the river hydrology was studied based on 0.05, 0.1 and 0.2 per cent increase in Water Retention Structures (WRS) in the area. The monthly stream flow simulated for the period 2007 to 2011 after adding WRS showed that even though the annual river flow decreased, the flow during the summer months (base flow) increased after adding the WRS and the percent increase in flow was highest during the months of January to April when the river has a very lean flow. Rather than utilizing the stored water in the upper reaches for irrigation and domestic purpose, the increase in summer flow will be helpful for maintaining a better environmental flow regime. Though the decrease in annual streamflow due to the WRS is small (1 to 6 per cent), the redistribution of peak flow to the summer months is significant. The annual streamflow in the current scenario is found to be decreasing with increasing capacity of the water storage structures. Streamflow prediction for the period 2041-2069 under the two scenarios RCP4.5 and RCP8.5 with WRS showed that the monthly stream flow could be increased by 5 to10 per cent due to the addition of the WRS during December to March. The water stored on account of increased WRS can be utilized for irrigation and domestic purpose in the upper reaches and at the same time the increase in summer flow will be helpful for maintaining a better environmental flow regime.ThesisItem Open Access Impact of climate change and watershed development on river basin hydrology using SWAT – a case study(Kelappaji College of Agricultural Engineering and Technology, Thavanur, 2016) Anu, Varughese; KAU; Hajilal, M SClimate change is considered as a global phenomenon, but investigation at the regional level is essential to understand the changes induced, and to suggest suitable adaptation strategies. This study is mainly concerned with the analysis of possible changes in the hydrology of Bharathapuzha river basin in the state of Kerala, India. Initially the trend in historic climate data was analysed to get an idea about the changes happening in the area. The trend analysis of gridded data using Mann-Kendall and t-test showed that the mean, maximum and minimum temperatures during 1951-2013 showed a significant increasing trend and the increase in mean, maximum and minimum temperatures during the period was at the rate of .07°C/decade, 0.14°C/decade and 0.04°C/decade respectively. Trend analysis of gridded rainfall data for the period 1971-2005 showed statistically significant decreasing trend, at the rate of 15 mm/year. Trend analysis of seasonal rainfall indicated that there was no significant trend in seasonal rainfall except during the south-west monsoon period when there was an increasing trend. To find out the best suitable climate model for the region, the downscaled reanalysis data on precipitation and temperature from five regional climate models (RCM’s) derived from different Global Climate Models (GCM’s) were compared with observed data of area on the basis of the four statistical parameters (standard deviation, correlation coefficient, coefficient of variation and centred root mean square difference). The GFDL-CM3 RCM gave better comparison with the observed data and hence was used for further data analysis. Bias in precipitation was corrected using power transformation which corrects the mean and coefficient of variation (CV) of the observations. Since temperature is approximately normally distributed, it was corrected by fitting it to the mean and standard deviation of the observations. The model data for two emission scenarios RCP4.5 and RCP8.5 and two scenario periods 2041-70 and 2071-99 were selected for the study. Comparison of the post-processed climate data to observed climate data was carried out. Based on the results obtained, the annual maximum and minimum temperatures is expected to increase in future. It is also predicted that there will be a decrease of 4 to 7 per cent in average annual rainfall during 2041-70 compared to the present day average values, whereas the decrease will be up to 10 to 15 per cent during 2071-99. To evaluate the surface runoff generation and soil erosion rates from the area, the Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) model was used. The model was calibrated and validated on a monthly basis using the observed data and it could simulate surface runoff and soil erosion to a good level of accuracy. The model evaluation statistics used for the calibration and validation periods were Nash-Sutcliffe Efficiency (NSE), Coefficient of determination (R2) and PBIAS. The study demonstrated that the SWAT model can be used to predict the monthly stream flow and sediment loss from the basin. So the calibrated and validated model was then used for studying the impact of changes in climate and watershed interventions on the hydrology of the river basin. The model predicts 15 to 20 per cent decrease in stream flow by the end of the century if the worst situation of climate change continues (RCP8.5). While analysing the water balance components, it is seen that ET ranges from 15 to 22 per cent of the annual rainfall in the current scenario, while it may increase to 29 to 32 per cent in the RCP4.5 scenario and 32 to 35 per cent in RCP8.5 scenario. Lateral flow component is the lowest, comprising only 8 to 10 per cent of the total rainfall and there is no much variation for this component within the scenarios. Monthly streamflow predicted for the two periods 2041-2070 and 2071-2099 when compared with the current scenario values shows that irrespective of the scenarios, the streamflow is found to be less than that of the current scenario in almost all months. During 2046-2070, the sediment loss in RCP4.5 scenario is predicted to be much less than the RCP8.5 scenario, whereas to the end of the century, the sediment loss in RCP8.5 scenario is greater than RCP4.5 scenario in almost all years, and the annual sediment loss goes up to 7 to 9 t/ha, from the present condition of 2.5 to 4 t/ha.The impact of watershed interventions on the river hydrology was studied based on 0.05, 0.1 and 0.2 per cent increase in Water Retention Structures (WRS) in the area. The monthly stream flow simulated for the period 2007 to 2011 after adding WRS showed that even though the annual river flow decreased, the flow during the summer months (base flow) increased after adding the WRS and the percent increase in flow was highest during the months of January to April when the river has a very lean flow. Rather than utilizing the stored water in the upper reaches for irrigation and domestic purpose, the increase in summer flow will be helpful for maintaining a better environmental flow regime. Though the decrease in annual streamflow due to the WRS is small (1 to 6 per cent), the redistribution of peak flow to the summer months is significant. The annual streamflow in the current scenario is found to be decreasing with increasing capacity of the water storage structures. Streamflow prediction for the period 2041-2069 under the two scenarios RCP4.5 and RCP8.5 with WRS showed that the monthly stream flow could be increased by 5 to10 per cent due to the addition of the WRS during December to March. The water stored on account of increased WRS can be utilized for irrigation and domestic purpose in the upper reaches and at the same time the increase in summer flow will be helpful for maintaining a better environmental flow regime.
