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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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20111
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Subject: Home Science × Author: Agey Pappachan, T × Thesis Type: M.Sc ×
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    ThesisItemOpen Access
    Quality evaluation of organic vegetables.
    (Department of Home Science, College of Agriculture, Vellayani, 2011) Agey Pappachan, T; KAU; Suma Divakar
    The project entitled, ‘Quality evaluation of organic vegetables’ was carried out with the objective to study and compare the quality characteristics of organic and inorganic vegetables. Amaranth (Arun), brinjal (Haritha) and cowpea (Jyothika) were the selected vegetables. Parameters like physical characteristics, nutrient composition, antinutrient profile, shelf life, sensory qualities and pesticide residues were studied. Three types of farming practices were identified as treatments. 1) T1 - Organically cultivated vegetables (PGS certified ) 2) T2 - Organic input vegetables (PGS certified ) 3) T3 - Inorganic vegetables (from local farmers ) PGS was the certification adopted by the organic bazaar operational at Jawahar Nagar, monitored by the NGO (Thanal, Thiruvanathapuram). No significant difference was observed for the physical characteristics of the vegetables under different treatments except for the length and breadth of brinjal, it was observed to be significantly high in inorganic brinjal. Assessment of nutritional qualities revealed that calcium content was significantly high in organic amaranth, where as betacarotene content was significantly higher in inorganic amaranth compared to organic. As for cowpea there was no significant difference observed among treatments for any nutrient. In brinjal vitamin C content was significantly higher in organic brinjal compared to inorganic ones. Shelf life analysis showed that brinjal, cowpea and amaranth in all treatments kept well for similar periods without much variation. Pesticide residue analysis reported that inorganic vegetables like cowpea and brinjal contained detectable amount of malathion which was above the maximum permitted residue limit. In this study, on analysis of the results in general, physical qualities, sensory qualities, nutritive profile and shelf life parameters are seen to be on par amongst the organically and inorganically cultivated vegetables. However, the major concern is the presence of pesticide residue which has great health and environmental implication.