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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 Lease land farming for sustainable livelihood by women collectives in Thrissur district(Department of Agricultural Extension Education, College of Agriculture,Vellanikkara, 2023-03-16) Swapna, Thomas; Mercykutty, M J; KAULand is considered as the most valuable fixed asset in all economies and more so in agrarian and developing economies like India where it holds a symbol of both status and sustenance. The average size of operational land holding in India has been reduced very drastically over the years from 2.28 Ha in the 1970-71 to 1.08 Ha in 2015- 16 (GOI,2016). The scenario in Kerala is also similar and average operational landholding is 0.18 Ha (Economic review,2021). The land crisis in the agrarian sector is leading to rising number of small and marginal farmers. Kerala, being a consumer state has to depend on its neighbours for food imports. In Kerala, leasing of land is permitted for members of SHGs for improving the livelihood and earnings of the farm families. Collective farming by women is an initiative introduced by Kudumbashree to encourage cultivation among neighbourhood groups. It not only contributes significant changes in the lives of the poor but also helps to increase agricultural production by bringing fallow and cultivable waste land into agricultural use. The study was undertaken to examine the impact of lease land farming on livelihood security of women farmers. Profile characteristics of women farmers and their influence on group dynamics were analysed. Factors affecting lease land farming and the challenges faced by women collectives were also explored. The present study was conducted in Thrissur district. Ex post facto research design was used. Two blocks were randomly selected where each block representing more area under banana and vegetable cultivation in leased land. From these selected blocks of Kodakara and Ollukkara, two panchayats each were randomly selected. From Kodakara block, Mattathur and Kodakara, whereas from Ollukkara block, Nadathara and Puthur panchayats respectively. From these two blocks, fifteen women joint liability groups were selected randomly, comprising 60 women farmers each who cultivate banana and vegetables under leased land. Thus, the total sample comprised of 120 women farmers. Another respondents of 30 facilitators were also randomly selected. Thus, the total sample included 150 respondents comprising 120 women farmers and 30 facilitators. The data were collected with the help of a semi structured pre tested interview schedule. Perceived impact of lease land farming of women farmers showed that 49.17 per cent were under medium followed by 28.33 per cent under high and 22.5 per cent in low categories. This indicated that women farmers were of the opinion that lease land farming had a positive impact on their livelihood security. Regarding facilitators 26.67 percent belonged to medium category while 36.67 percent each were under low and high categories of perceived impact. Comparison of perceived impact score employing Mann Whitney U test revealed that there was a significant difference among banana and vegetable farmers at 0.05 level. The Livelihood Security Index (LSI) developed by Argade (2014) was used with modifications to compute livelihood security of the farmers. Livelihood security analysis showed that 40% of both banana and vegetable farmers possessed medium level. Comparison of LSI of vegetable and banana farmers was done using independent sample t test and it showed that there was significant difference among the respondent categories where the mean index of banana farmers (0.70) was higher than vegetable farmers (0.47). The group dynamics among the JLG members were assessed using the group dynamics effectiveness index (GDEI). Regarding group dynamics effectiveness index, 46.67% of respondents were under medium category followed by 29.17% and 24.17% under high and low categories respectively. Comparison of group dynamics effectiveness index (GDEI) of vegetable and banana farmers showed that there was significant difference among the respondent categories where the mean index of vegetable farmers (57.84) being higher.Spearman's rank correlation between group dynamics effectiveness index and profile characteristics of women farmers revealed that age, education, annual income, trainings received , occupation, social participation, extension agency contact and innovativeness were having positive significant relationship. With respect to the factors affecting lease land farming, binary logistic regression revealed that group dynamics effectiveness, economic motivation, social participation, extension agency contact, and achievement motivation were significant. Garret ranking was employed to explore the challenges faced by women collectives and were categorised under four aspects ie, lease land related, group related, technical and supplies and services. Among lease land related challenges, non-legalized status was ranked as most serious challenge. With regard to group related challenges, absenteeism of members was ranked first. Improper maintenance of records on farm expenses and price fluctuations were identified under technical and supply challenges respectively. In a nutshell, the lease land farming of women collectives has augmented livelihood security of women farmers. It is suggested that policy for legalization of land leasing for agricultural purpose should be reformed so as to promote fallow land farming.ThesisItem Open Access User centered design, development, and end-user assessment of an M-tool for vegetable cultivation in polyhouse(Department of Agricultural Extension, College of Agriculture,Vellanikkara, 2022-05-20) Poornima C P; KAU; A Sakeer HusainHi-tech farming is gaining grip in Indian farming system. Polyhouse farming which is a subset of hi-tech farming is an alternate new system of crop production which reduces dependency on climatic factors along with economic use of water, fertilisers and other inputs necessarily needed for farming. In a state like Kerala where per capita availability of land is less and density of population is increasing, the polyhouse can be a boon to the farmers. With advancing technologies, proper information delivery system must be there to make f armers get updated with the progress in agriculture. As Information and Communication Technology (ICT) tools are acquiring its foothold even among the rural communities, proper utilisation of suitable tools can help farmers to get more insight of the advances and in turn aid in efficient decision making.ThesisItem Open Access Performance analysis of farmer producer companies (FPCs) in Kerala(Department of Agricultural Extension, College of Agriculture, Vellanikkara, 2022-05-28) Akhil Ajith; KAU; Bonny,Binoo PFarmer Producer Companies (FPCs) are institutional innovations that hold tremendous potential in influencing the agricultural value chains by creating economic profit and social value. As such, the standard measures of financial analysis alone cannot provide an overall indication of the performance of these organisations.Therefore, an attempt to use integrated dimensions of socio-economic parameters were pursued in the present study to delineate the factors affecting the performance of FPCs and in the development of a performance index to grade the FPCs. The results of thestudy also helped in evolving policy recommendations that could improve the performance of FPCs in a sustainable way. The study followed ex-post facto research design conducted among 30 FPCs selected randomly from the 14 districts of Kerala. Proportionate random sampling was employed to ascertain the number of FPCs selected from each district and to identify 120 shareholders. Random and exhaustive sampling was followed respectively in the selection of 60 director board members and 30 CEOs to make the total sample size of 210.ThesisItem Open Access Institutionalization of decentralized planning in agriculture in Kerala: trends, determinants and policy imperatives(Department of Agricultural Extension, College of Agriculture,Vellanikkara, 2022-03-30) Abdul Jabbar P K.; Jiju P AlexKerala has successfully evolved a paradigm of decentralized planning by utilizing the provisions of the 73rd and 74th amendments of the constitution. Local governments have been transformed as effective instruments for formulating and implementing development programmes through people’s participation. They are empowered to discharge such functions through strategic devolution of functions, functionaries and funds. Though a robust framework has been evolved over time to make decentralized planning operational, several bottle necks related to local governance affect the efficacy of planning and implementation processes at the grassroots level. This is evident in the productive sector in general and agriculture in particular. It was in this backdrop the present study was conducted. The study was primarily intended to describe the process of institutionalization of decentralized planning in agriculture in Kerala. In this connection, transitions in the administrative framework and policy environment of decentralized planning were also explored. The determinants of the efficacy of decentralized planning in agriculture and the nature of their influence as experienced by major actors of the process were also identified. The study also explored the accomplishments in the agricultural sector since institutionalization of decentralized planning. Alongside, policy imperatives of the experiences of institutionalization were delineated. The sample consisted of 160 respondents comprising of agricultural officers, panchayat presidents and members of the agricultural working group of various development sectors. Respondents were drawn from 40 grama panchayaths selected from five districts representing the five major agroclimatic regions. The study has revealed that there are 15 distinct processes of decentralized planning in the productive sector at the LSGI level. They have evolved over a period of three five-year plans through various iterative processes and drawing lessons from diverse field experiences. The state government plan allocation to local selfgovernments showed decreasing trend from Ninth Five Year Plan onwards. While local self-government institutions (LSGIs) had been provided with 29.29 per cent of state plan fund allocation, it was reduced to 22.9 per cent and 24.2 per cent in the tenth and eleventh five-year plans respectively. Plan expenditure of LSGIs was found to range from 74.81 per cent to 105.25 per cent during this period. It could also be observed that the mandatory sectoral ceilings for productive sector enforced in various plans have succeeded in ensuring investment in various sub sectors of agriculture. Many institutional innovations were initiated to foster people’s participation in planning. Introduction of ward development committees and Ayalsabhas was a major step towards this direction. However, attempts towards additional resource pooling, collaboration with academic institutions to enhance quality of projects and attempts to avoid thin spread of resources were found to be ineffective. Formulating agricultural projects with the assistance of cooperative sector and integrating central and state schemes were also not effective. In spite of the guidelines for formulating joint projects and muti year projects, local bodies were not venturing to such projects, suggesting that a motivational measure to promote joint projects among local bodies be introduced. Moreover, selection of members to the working group and PPC have to be according to their capabilities adjudged based on a state wide criteria. Employing modern technologies for primary processing and value addition, better provision of services, networking of producers and efficient marketing were not adequately mainstreamed by LSGIs in their plans. The efficacy of processes involved in decentralised planning was perceived differently by different categories of actors. Out of the 15 processes, plan appraisal, integration and implementation were perceived to have low efficacy. Plan formulation and resource allocation were also found to have low efficacy. Integration of projects had the lowest efficacy perception score. However, approval of plans by the District Planning Committee, preparation of detailed projects by the working group, holding of Gramasabha, preparation of draft plan proposals and discussion in the development seminar were reported to have high efficacy. Analysis of the attributes of the actors which contributed to their perception on the efficacy of decentralized planning process revealed that four major factors viz. participation, group decision making, experience and knowledge mediation could explain 77.22 per cent variance. Majority of agricultural officers had medium level of perceived efficacy, significantly influenced by their participation-performance interdependence factor and decentralization- development facilitation factors. Role performance of Agricultural Officers in decentralised planning was found to be high. They had performed their roles actively in budgeting of project proposals, planning, monitoring and evaluation, in the order of involvement. Lowest performance level of Agricultural Officers was found to be in functions related to agricultural extension. Accomplishments of decentralized planning in agriculture were quantified in terms physical targets and financial achievements. Plan fund allocation in the productive sector was found to be the highest in the high range zone, followed by problem zone. Plan expenditure in the districts selected from high range zone, northern region and problem zone was higher than 80 per cent. Projects on various aspects of rice, vegetables and banana had received more funds than other sub sectors during the reference period. With regard to the allocations spent, assistance to labour cost for rice farmers was the major intervention while those for coconut development and promotion of intercropping were less than 10% and 3% of respectively. Compared to other crops, the attention paid by local bodies to development of tuber crops, spices and pulses was less. Cashew being a hardy crop for waste lands did not find any place in decentralized plans of north, central and high range zones. Several deficiencies were found in the process of decentralised planning. Most importantly, there should be focused efforts for enhancing the capacities of working groups and Planning Committees. Integration of development interventions by various agencies at the local level have to be ensured through better coordination. Collective deliberations on sectoral working group reports coordinated by panchayath planning committee will foster shared vision and convergence among functions of various officials transferred to the Grama panchayath. The panchayath level data base, Peoples’ Bio Diversity Register formulated through Bio Diversity Management Committees and the watershed master plan have to be updated through massive farmer participation to ensure data base support to local planning and foster the opportunities for local resource mobilization. Further, assistance for conservation and multiplication of local germplasm, traditional seed reserves by local farmer clusters, community seed banks and seed growers’ networks have to be initiated and the subsidy guidelines have to be broadened to include such initiatives. The perception of poor marketing infrastructure was the most ranked among various constraints analyzed. With regard to projects to bridge the skill gaps in farming and improved service delivery, the existing Agro Service Centres (ASC) at block level and Farmer Service Centres should be networked for technologybased services with supporting projects from decentralized plan allocations. A KVKATMA- LSGD linkage will resolve the issues of less propagation of technologies in projects and less expertise of working group members. To enhance participation of youth in gramasabha a drive on decentralization, gramasabha literacy and the need to participate for youth was suggested as part of school and college syllabus.ThesisItem Open Access Coping strategies of flood affected farmers in Thrissur district(Department of Agricultural Extension, College of Agriculture ,Vellanikkara, 2021) Meghna, Gireesh; KAU; Sreevalsan, J MenonThe study was conducted among 80 flood affected paddy farmers and 80 flood affected banana farmers in Thrissur district to assess their coping strategies for mitigating the impact of flood of 2018 that devastated Kerala. The impact of flood was manifest as changed cropping pattern, labour disengagement, silt deposition in fields and temporary displacement of farmers. The impact on well water contamination and change in total cropped area were considerably less consequential. The overall average coping strategy index of the flood affected farmers was 66.69. The coping strategy index of paddy and banana farmers were 69.34 and 64.04 respectively. Majority of the farmers had medium level of coping strategy. The coping strategy index was constructed using the four components viz., institutional coping, psychological coping, technological coping and economic coping. In the case of institutional coping, farmers received more support from voluntary organizations and Krishi bhavans. Majority of the farmers had medium to high level of achievement motivation, decision making ability, environmental orientation and faith and belief orientation. Agricultural technology coping such as liming, nutrient management, pest, disease management and field sanitation have been adopted by majority of the farmers. Almost all paddy and banana farmers disposed off their assets and borrowed money from banks. Almost all paddy farmers incurred extensive losses in their farms, livestock and household articles at an estimated mean loss of about rupees 1,31,171 per homestead. All banana farmers incurred losses in their farms, livestock and household articles at an estimated average loss of about rupees 1,07,110 per homestead. The average asset disposal value of banana farmers was Rupees 2,27,101 which was higher than that of paddy farmers whose disposal value was Rupees 2,08,488. The average residual funds available for paddy and banana farmers was more than rupees 4.50 lakhs and this fund was utilized to cover the losses due to agricultural and non-agricultural entities. Almost all farmers used the funds mustered to survive the loss due to floods. The average residual funds available for banana farmers was higher than that of paddy farmers. The coping strategy index of farmers of Koratty panchayat was higher than those Padiyur panchayat. When crop-wise comparisons are made, flood affected paddy farmers were observed to be coping better than banana farmers. The coping strategy indices between paddy and banana farmers are observed to have a significant relationship. However there is no relationship between panchayat wise coping strategies of farmers. The interaction between crops and panchayats has a significant relationship with the coping strategy index of farmers. Majority of the farmers were males who had completed high school level education and were in the age group of 40 to 60 years. Majority of the farmers were under the small and marginal farmers category with more than 21 years of experience in farming. Their level of extension agency contact, mass media exposure, social participation and risk orientation were medium. Farmers’ political participation was found to be low. All farmers received flood related monetary compensation from the government. More than one fourth of the farmers diversified their enterprises but one fifth reduced their enterprises and half of the them maintained the enterprises as such as a result of flood. Farm size, risk orientation and extension agency contact had positive and significant relationship with coping strategy index. Farm size had positive and significant relationship with institutional coping, psychological coping and technological coping and economic coping. Increased risk orientation enhanced psychological coping and a smaller family size were found to enhance economic coping.ThesisItem Open Access Skill gap analysis among rural youth in rice farming(Department of Agricultural Extension, College of Agriculture, Vellanikkara, 2021) Thenmozhi, C; KAU; Helen, SThe present scenario of agriculture demands a competent youth. On contrary, there is decreasing participation of youth in agriculture over time due to lack of appropriate knowledge, adequate skills, perceived low status etc. Hence, there is a need to focus on improving the skills of rural youth involved in rice farming for enhancing the agricultural production. The present study was conducted among 120 rural youth engaged in rice farming from four blocks of Palakkad district viz. Kuzhalmannam, Kollengode, Nenmara and Chittur. Majority of the rural youth respondents were males in the age group of 30 to 35 years. Majority of the rural youth were holding less than one hectare of land with five to ten years of experience in farming. Majority of the rural youth were graduates and were engaged in farming as well as employed in the private sector with an income of rupees 1 to 3 lakhs per annum. Majority of the rural youth possessed a sprayer and almost all the respondents owned a smartphone. One-third of the rural youth had received trainings on farming and allied activities. More than half of the rural youth had medium level of social participation, scientific orientation, information seeking behaviour, innovativeness and market orientation. More than two-third of the respondents had medium level of economic motivation, achievement motivation and knowledge level in rice farming. The most preferred occupation by majority of rural youth in Palakkad district was government service. The least preferred occupation by rural youth was taking up the sericulture sector. Majority of the youth in Kuzhalmannam block preferred government service. The most preferred occupation by the rural youth in Kollengode block was farming. Most of the rural youth in Nenmara block opted for business. Majority of the youth residing in Chittur block preferred private service. There was a high degree of concordance among rural youth from four blocks of Palakkad district in preferring their occupation. The existing skill level of rural youth in rice farming was 69.73. The overall general skill of rural youth was 73.99. The overall managerial skill of rural youth in rice farming was 71.97. The overall communication skill of rural youth was 68.18. The overall technical skill level of rural youth in rice farming was 64.79. The overall skill gap among rural youth involved in rice farming was 30.27. The highest skill gap was found among rural youth in technical skills with a mean of 35.21. The overall gap in general skills among rural youth was 26.01. Among the general skills, learning skills had the highest gap with a mean value of 28.63. The overall gap in managerial skills among rural youth was 28.03. Time management had the highest skill gap among the managerial skills with a mean value of 30.97. The overall gap in communication skills among rural youth was 31.82 in which ICT skills topped the list with a mean value of 48.33. Block-wise analysis revealed that rural youth from Kollengode block had the highest skill gap with a mean rank of 34.42 whereas rural youth from Nenmara block showed the lowest skill gap with a mean rank of 26.53. Three-fourth of the rural youth in the study area belonged to the category of medium level of skill gap in rice farming. Farming experience, social participation, trainings received, extension agency contact, economic motivation, scientific orientation, knowledge level, information seeking behavior, achievement motivation, innovativeness and market orientation had positive and significant relationship with the skill level of rural youth in rice farming. Educational status had a negative association with the skill level of rural youth in rice farming. For every one unit increase in the level of economic motivation, information seeking behavior and achievement motivation of rural youth, the probability to acquire above average skills in rice farming increases by 2.765, 2.462 and 2.638 units respectively. The strategies to bridge the skill gap among the rural youth in rice farming includes organizing skill-oriented training programmes at regular intervals on latest technologies. Networking and formation of rice farming youth groups would create a sense of social security and sustain their interest in rice farming. Institutional support and incentives for starting rice-based enterprises may be provided to enhance the incomegenerating opportunities in rice farming. Awareness about ICT initiatives in agriculture and effective usage of social media tools would improve their skills in rice farming. Consorted efforts may be initiated to retain youth in rice farming through effective utilization of skill development programmes of the central and state governments.ThesisItem Open Access Developing a framework of social audit for evaluating projects on climate resilient agriculture in Malawi(Department of Agriculture Extension,College of Agriculture, Vellanikkara, 2020) Joseph Timothy Before; KAU; Jiju P AlexSocial audit as a tool for evaluating development projects and has been found to be efficient for appraising projects in various sectors like health, natural resource management, agriculture, community development, water sanitation and hygiene, land conservation etc. In spite of the interventions by governments and non-governmental organization to ensure food security, agricultural development projects in most countries around the world had been affected with number of issues including climate change, corruption, lack of participatory evaluation mechanism as well as poor involvement of communities in decision making processes. The scenario is not different in Malawi either, specifically Phalombe district which faces a number of climate change problems like floods and droughts throughout the year. The present study which followed expo-facto design was undertaken to assess the effectiveness of projects on climate resilient agriculture that are implemented in Phalombe, Malawi. The study analyzed the outcomes, constraints and impact of selected projects and evolved a framework of social audit for evaluating such projects. Data was analyzed using Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS) and the results have been presented quantitatively and descriptively. A total of 120 respondents from three Extension Planning Areas of Tamani, Kasongo and Mpinda were purposively selected for the study since they had participated in climate resilient agriculture projects. The sample also included 15 staff from the three NGOs that were selected for the study. It was found that 96 female farmers (78.3%) and 24 males (21.7%) had participated in the study which showed that more women were taking part in climate resilient agriculture projects compared to men. The research also revealed that manypeople who participated in climate resilient agriculture projects were married and most of them had education upto primary school level (84.2%). Secondary level education was found to have been acquired by 8.3% of the total respondents. Lower level of education was found to contribute to poor demanding of transparency and accountability from NGOs. Assessment of the agreement of respondents on severity of constraints showed that Kendall’s coefficient of concordance W= 0.5, significant at 1 per cent which proved that there was high degree of concordance among the 120 respondents in ranking the constraints according to their importance. The major constraints identified by the beneficiaries were: drying up of water resources, drought/ flood, small quantity of food, late delivery of inputs and poor involvement in decision making The results also showed that both beneficiaries and stakeholders agreed that AEDO and AEDC, NGO staff, Village Headman, Lead farmer, VCPC, ACPC, VDC, Community Policing, ASHP and Community Development Assistant should be part of social audit process. The components identified for social audit of climate resilient agriculture included training programmes, muster rolls, materials procured, input distribution, cash distribution and funding. Based on the study it could be proposed that all actors mentioned in the study should be part of the process. The framework of social audit formulated as part of the study suggested the important aspects that should be subjected to social audit. This would help devise efficient ways of conducting social audit of climate resilient projects in Malawi as it had been evolved through a participatory process involving all the stakeholders of climate resilient development projects in agricultural sector.ThesisItem Open Access Scenario analysis of Mushroom microenterprises(Department of Agricultural Extension, College of Agriculture, Vellanikkara, 2021) Swathy Suresh, K S; KAU; Jayasree Krishnankutty, MMushrooms have aroused man's interest since the dawn of civilization. They are considered as one of the most important high quality protein rich vegetable crops. Mushroom entrepreneurship if promoted, will offer plenty of advantages and have the capacity to assist rural society in establishing more long term economic growth. Kerala has an immense potential for mushroom production due its low cost, easy availability of raw materials, and round-the-year production capability. Even though a field with great scope for exploration, the studies with extension aspects are very limited and in this backdrop the present study was conducted to know about the current scenario of mushroom cultivation. The current study entitled “Scenario analysis of mushroom microenterprises” was conducted in Kerala Agricultural University. Data collection was carried out among 120 mushroom entrepreneurs. Sixty mushroom entrepreneurs each from Thrissur and Palakkad districts, mainly engaged in production (spawn / mushroom) and marketing; production, processing and marketing were randomly selected. The independent and dependent variables were selected for the study on the basis of judges rating. An interview schedule was prepared to collect data from mushroom entrepreneurs. Then the collected data were arranged, scored and analyzed using suitable statistical tools. The results revealed that among the 120 mushroom units, majority (56.66%) units were production and marketing type and 43.33 per cent of mushroom units were production, processing and marketing type. The analysis of mushroom unit structure showed that, majority (40.83%) of mushroom entrepreneurs had production unit size above 500 sq.feet; 54.16 per cent had kutcha type of mushroom shed; family or group labour was the source of labour for 75.83 per cent of mushroom entrepreneurs and majority of them had equipments in the range of 2 to 4 in numbers. A large proportion (43.33%) of mushroom entrepreneurs belongs to the age category 31-40 years and around 40.83 per cent of them were graduates. Agriculture along with mushroom cultivation was the family occupation of majority (37.5%) of the mushroom entrepreneurs. Nearly 41.66 per cent of mushroom entrepreneurs were received income per season in the range of Rs/- 25,000 – 50,000 and around 51.66 per cent had obtained yield per season above 150 Kg. Majority (28.33%) per cent of mushroom entrepreneurs had an experience of two and half to three years and about 30.83 per cent choose direct selling to consumers and local markets as their major marketing avenue. For transporting the mushroom products 68.33 per cent of mushroom entrepreneurs were used their own vehicle. Majority of the mushroom entrepreneurs had medium level of economic motivation (80%), risk orientation (54.16%) and extension contact (71.66%). In case of mobility, the frequency of visit for most of the mushroom entrepreneurs were to nearby panchayath and town for various purposes. Institutional supports like training and SHM subsidy were availed by majority (48.33%) of the mushroom entrepreneurs. The various institutions providing support includes Kerala Agricultural University, Extension Centres, Research Organizations, State Horticulture Mission and Kudumbasree District Mission. The analyses of producer characteristics were carried out using two way contingency table and chi-square test, and inferred that there exist a positive significant relationship between the type of mushroom shed and yield; marketing avenue and income; marketing avenue and family occupation. Other salient findings from the study revealed that majority (61.66%) of mushroom entrepreneurs were females and nearly 85.83 per cent were sole entrepreneurs. Around 81.66 per cent of mushroom entrepreneurs had their own source of investment for mushroom cultivation. Oyster mushroom was the major type cultivated by 68.33 per cent of mushroom entrepreneurs, 35 per cent of them were collecting mushroom spawns from various government sources and nearly 79.16 per cent didn’t face any problem regarding the quality of yield and spawn. Around 84 per cent of mushroom entrepreneurs had trade mark for their mushroom products. Polythene cover was the packing material used by 75.83 per cent of mushroom entrepreneurs. The performance of mushroom units includes four dimensions ie., Social Capital Indicators (SCI), Good Mushroom Cultivation Practices (GMCP), Efficiency Indicators (EI) and Incremental Expansion (IE). The overall performance score shows that, majority (62.5%) of mushroom units performs under medium category. Using discriminant analysis and binary logistic regression, a comparison was done with dimensions of performance index and type of units. The result stated that the dimension Social Capital Indicators (SCI) is the significantly discriminating one for type of units. The relationship of independent variables with the performance of mushroom units had been analyzed using Spearman’s rank correlation coefficient method. The independent variables like size of production unit, income per season, yield per season, experience, type of mushroom shed, marketing avenue, risk orientation, extension contact, mode of transport for sale of goods and institutional support shows a positive significant relationship and the variables such as source of labour and family occupation shows a negative significant relationship with the performance of mushroom units. The major constraints faced by mushroom entrepreneurs were marketing difficulty, price instability and lack of market information. Finally, strategic options such as promotion of direct marketing method, extension interventions, creating public awareness, providing trainings, etc. were suggested for the improvement of mushroom enterprises. A futuristic scenario analysis was also conducted to predict the futuristic possibilities of mushroom enterprises in Kerala.ThesisItem Open Access Technological capability analysis of coconut based enterprises(Department of Agricultural Extension, College of Agriculture ,Vellanikkara, 2021) Shilpa, P; KAU; Binoo, P BonnyCoconut based enterprises holds great significance in the state as coconut is the prime homestead crop of Kerala. These enterprises are proven to generate higher economic returns for the coconut sector. Technological capability (TC) plays key role in the performance of the hundreds of enterprises involved in manufacturing and marketing of various coconut products. Technological capability (TC) encompasses all activities, physical systems, skills and knowledge bases, managerial systems, and entrepreneurial values that generate unique benefit for an enterprise. Thus, it formed a determining factor in the efficiency and effectiveness of enterprises. Therefore, an understanding of TC of coconut-based enterprises holds great importance for state’seconomy in terms of entrepreneurship development. It was in this rationale, the present study was undertaken to document and characterize coconut enterprises based on the major products and services, to map the technology use pattern of these enterprises, to evaluate the technological capabilities of the selected enterprises and to evolve a conceptual model for sustainable entrepreneurship development. The results of the studycan be used to decode the critical factors that form the basis the technological capability of coconut enterprises that can effectively redefine the coconut-based entrepreneurship in the state. The three districts from the state of Kerala viz. Thrissur, Kozhikode and Ernakulam which had the largest number of registered coconut processing enterprises were selected as the study area. The details of Micro Small Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) collected from the respective District Industries Centres (DICs) were used for the purposive selection of these districts. The enterprises under farmer collectives using the technological support from Coconut Development Board (CDB)functioning in these districts were also included under the study. The total sample size ofenterprises was fixed as 45 following the ratio of 20:10:15 in proportion to the number of registered coconut enterprises in the selected districts of Thrissur, Ernakulam and Kozhikode respectively. An additional eight social enterprises run by farmer collectives in theseselected districts were also selected. A total of 100 skilled workers involved in technology use in these enterprises were also selected as respondents in the study. Thus, the total sample size of the study was 153 comprising of the 45 MSME coconut entrepreneurs, 08 FPO CEOs and 100 skilled workers. The results delineated three major products from coconut enterprises based on productionproportion viz. coconut oil (81.14%), virgin coconut oil (VCO) (9.43%) and coconut paste (9.43%). Coconut oil was identified to have a production proportion of 80 per cent in micro enterprises while in small enterprises and in medium and social enterprises it recorded 90 and 76.93 per cent respectively. The technology use pattern of coconut enterprises was mapped based on the skill sets of the workforce related to communication skills, technical skills, problem solving skills, interpersonal skills and decision-making skills. The correspondence analysis result showed that problem solving skills was associated with both micro and small enterprises while decision making skills and technical skills were associated with small enterprises. The skill which assumedimportance in medium and social enterprises was interpersonal skill. The analysis of perceived skill competence of workforce across the enterprises revealed that, in micro enterprises workers expressed highest competence in problem solving while in small enterprises it was for technical skills while in the case of medium and social enterprises the workers perceived their expertise in decision making. The perceived skill gap analysis revealed that in micro enterprises the highest gap (with a score of 34.17) was in decision making and in small, medium and social enterprises were lacking more in problem solving skills with scores 30.96 and 24.22 respectively. Kruskal- Wallis test was performed to compare the perceived skill competence of workforce in different category of enterprises and it showed that there was a significant difference in the perceived skill competence of work force among the different categories of coconut enterprises. The technological capability of enterprises was estimated using technology capability index (TCI) with resources, level of technology use, market competency and coordination and accessibility as four macro indexes. The weightage for each macroindex was calculated from the Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP). The average TCI score for the entire coconut-based enterprises were found to be 0.34 and the enterprise categories were giving importance for level of technology use (with a score of 0.66) in developing their technological capability followed by resources (0.5). There was a significant positive correlation between technological capability and educational status, skill competence of workforce at 5 per cent level of significance and a significant positive correlation between the level of extension contact, mass media contact, social participation, managerial competency, level of technology use, and production capacity at 10 per cent level of significance. Scaling readiness of technologies were measured as the product of innovation use and innovation readiness in the levels of management, technology use and marketing. The micro enterprises got highest score of scaling readiness which in turn indicates more interventions can be made with less investment in the existing technological ecosystem of these enterprises. The study suggested a frame work combining selected dimensions to elucidate sustainable entrepreneurship development in coconut enterprises. Sustainable entrepreneurship development in coconut enterprises has been defined as the function of technological capability of enterprises, skill competence of workforce, scale readiness of innovations and forward and backward linkages of the enterprise. The technology capability dimensions identified were resources, level of technology use, market competency and coordination and accessibility. The skill competence determined the technology use pattern in coconut enterprises from the significant relation with TC. Innovation was another important attribute of technology capability which was analyzed in termsof its scaling readiness. Scaling readiness defined the status of an enterprise to upgrade with technological innovations at different levels. The forward and backward linkages in enterprise such as value and supply chain channels were also having paramount importance in the determining the sustainable enterprise performance.