A STUDY ON INFORMATION MANAGEMENT BEHAVIOUR OF RICE FARMERS UNDER COLLECTIVE FARMING OF KUDUMBASHREE MISSION IN KANNUR DISTRICT OF KERALA
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Date
2016
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Acharya N.G. Ranga Agricultural University
Abstract
Information being crucial input in the field of agriculture, the farmers need to
improve upon their traditional ways of farming and therefore, the farmers have to be
always in the pursuit of timely and relevant scientific information. But a big gap exists
between the available technologies and their rapid transfer to the farmers. A good
technique of information management will certainly reduce this gap, if not eliminate it.
Rice cultivation has been part and parcel of Kerala’s culture but the area and
production of paddy had declined over the past years. Land brought under paddy
cultivation has been declining drastically for the past few years. It is in such context that
the Kudumbashree mission started the collective farming project with the objective of
revamping the paddy cultivated area in the state. Increased financial returns and
sustainable employment opportunities have given the women beneficiaries a sense of
security and hope for future. Moreover it has helped in increasing the agricultural
production by bringing fallow and cultivable waste land into agricultural production
process.
Keeping the above in view, a research study was designed to assess the
information management behaviour of rice farmers under the collective farming of
Kudumbashree mission in Kannur district of Kerala. An ex-post facto research design
was followed to conduct the study with a total of 120 women rice farmers selected from
two blocks. The data was collected through pre-tested interview schedule, which was
subjected for statistical analysis and interpreted.
Findings of the study indicated that majority of the women rice farmers were
middle aged with high school education with their occupation of agriculture + animal
husbandry, more than 15 years of farming experience, medium family size, marginal
farmers, married, medium annual income, better training received and medium level of
social participation, extension contact, loan borrowing and utilization behaviour,
economic motivation, scientific orientation and market orientation.
Majority of the women rice farmers had medium level of information input,
information processing, information output and information management behaviour.
Cent per cent of the women rice farmers regularly contacted the personal localite
sources like fellow Kudumbashree members followed by neighbours (96.67%), local
leaders (88.33%) and panchayaths (80.00%). Again cent per cent of the women rice
farmers regularly contacted personal cosmopolite sources such as Kudumbashree
officials followed by 93.33 per cent had regular contact with agriculture officer
followed by bank personnels (86.67%), trainings (76.67%) and demonstrations
(63.33%). Most of the women rice farmers (98.33%) had mobile phones followed by
television (93.33%), newspapers (90.00%), agricultural magazines (80.00%) and
Krishimela / exhibitions (73.33%).
All the women rice farmers (100%) used discussing with Kudumbashree
members followed by judging in the light of past experience (91.67%), discussing with
fellow farmers (85.00%), discussing with neighbours (80.83%), judging by considering
its economic feasibility (78.33%), judging by considering the degree of complexity
(74.17%), discussing with local leaders (73.33%) and discussing with extension family
members (65.00%)
Most of the women rice farmers (95.00%) stored the information by memorizing
the information followed by taking hints in a note book / diary (85.00%), preserving the
printed literatures like leaflets, bulletins, booklets etc (71.67%) and preserving the
newspaper cuttings (35.00%) as the methods for information storage. None of them had
the habit of preserving the information in a CD or a floppy disc.
A large percentage of the women rice farmers utilized the information for postharvest
and marketing operations (45.83%) followed by application of fertilizers and
pesticides (38.33%), selection of seed material (26.67%) and scheduling the irrigation
(23.33%).
Most women rice farmers (96.67%) regularly used the information output
channels like discussing with fellow farmers followed by participating in farmer’s
training programmes (74.17%) and discussing with extension workers (70.00%).
The correlation analysis indicated that out of 15 independent variables, eight of
them such as education, annual income, social participation, extension contact, training
received, economic motivation, scientific orientation and market orientation were found
to be positive and significant in their relationship with the information input behaviour,
information processing behaviour, information output behaviour and with information
management behaviour at 0.05 level of probability. Whereas age, occupation, farming
experience, family size, land holding, status of women and loan borrowing and
utilization behaviour were found to be non - significant.
The Multiple Linear Regression Analysis revealed that the selected independent
variables put together contribute 68.18 per cent of the total variation in the information
management behaviour of the rice farmers. Education, social participation, extension
contact, training received, economic motivation, scientific orientation and market
orientation had contributed significantly at 0.05 level of probability towards the
variation in the information management behaviour of rice farmers. Remaining 31.82
per cent may be due to extraneous characteristics.
Most (81.67%) of the women rice farmers stated that lack of experience in
storage and transformation of information was the major constraints followed by other
constraints like increasing workload of functionaries and mounting aversion to
voluntarism (75.83%), lack of need-based training (54.17%).
Most of the women rice farmers (85.00%) suggested that training should be
specific and given on a need oriented basis to overcome the problems in their
information management behaviour followed by reducing the workload assigned to the
functionaries of the Kudumbashree (73.33%), computer based knowledge be imparted
to all Kudumbashree members (65.00%), follow-up should be conducted on a regular
basis (61.67%), marketing should be done through co-operatives marketing chain and
incorporate new strategies (50.83%).
Description
D5253
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