Browsing by Author "Sakeer Husain, A"

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Catgeorization and analysis of indigenous Horticultural practices in Kerala
(2010) Sakeer Husain, A; Sundaramari, M
Development and validation of a web interface for research management in Kerala Agricultural University
(Department of Agricultural extension, College of Horticulture, Vellanikkara, 2013) Shely Mary Koshy; Sakeer Husain, A
Kerala Agricultural University (KAU) is the prime organisation in Kerala involved in agricultural research. Research activities in KAU are organised and conducted at six Regional Research Stations, 16 Research Stations, some specialised centres of research and studies, Instructional Farms, and in the laboratories of various departments of the colleges. It is very difficult to manage and monitor all these research projects by the research administration in KAU without a Management Information System (MIS). A web interface which can be integrated with a data base will solve this problem to a large extent. The present study entitled “Development and validation of web interface for research management in Kerala Agricultural University” was taken up in this background to identify the information needs of researchers and research administrators, to develop a web interface for research management and to conduct an end user assessment of the developed web interface. Sixty researchers and 30 research administrators were selected for the study. Thirteen research need domains were identified and there were 77 information need items under 13 domains. The study showed that there was significant concordance in the rating/ ranking of the information needs by researchers under all domains. The information needs mostly needed by the researchers included information on different sections in the DR’s office that deals with different project categories, collaboration the university has with other agencies, areas of specialization of scientists of KAU, guidelines for submission of progress of project to the funding agencies, guidelines for submitting project proposals to funding agencies, various facilities available in the university for research, formalities to be undergone to avail these facilities, updated statistics of Indian agriculture, updated statistics of Kerala agriculture, sources of getting research materials like inputs/ equipment for doing research, 105 information on online journals, status of project proposals submitted, and abstracts of research results. The research administrators’ major information needs included information on area of specialization of scientists of KAU, research stations/centres in KAU, information on different sections in the DR’s office that deals different project categories, chairpersons and members of PC groups, thrust area of each PC group, contact details of scientists of KAU, formalities for getting/giving administrative sanction and technical sanction, agencies from whom funds are received in KAU, guidelines for submission of progress of project to the funding agencies, areas of specialization of different funding agencies, updated statistics of Kerala agriculture, popular journals in agriculture, research works presently undergoing in KAU, information on PG and Ph.D. research works, status of project proposals submitted, detailed report of projects, abstract reports of the research work completed, details of research results, technologies commercialized, technologies for commercialization, and technologies recently developed. The significant difference, if any, among researchers and research administrators on each of the information needs were also assessed using Mann-Whitney U test. In addition, the details on individual projects to be included in the Management Information System (MIS) required for research management, additional links/labels in the web interface, the preferred format of presentation of the website, the facilities and services for doing research in KAU that are to be included in the web interface were also identified. Based on the above analysis, a web interface was developed as a prototype of the website for Directorate of Research. The interface was developed using HTML and designed with a simple cascade style sheet. There are 18 links in the homepage with a total of 103 web pages. The end user assessment of the web interface revealed that among the six design elements such as ‘home page’, ‘navigation’, ‘organization’, ‘links and labels’ and ‘readability’ that were used to assess the web 106 interface, the readability of the web interface needed more improvement. The constraints in using the web interface as well as suggestions for improvement and scaling up of the interface were also elicited. The prototype developed as part of the study will be handed over to the Directorate of Research, KAU for content enrichment as per the suggestions of the study.
E-Payment to SHGs-issues and challenges: A study on NABARD financial services Ltd.
(College of co-operation, banking and management, Vellanikkara, 2016) Jibinlal, K M; Sakeer Husain, A
Effectiveness of agriclinics and agribusiness training programme in Kerala
(Department of Agricultural Extension, College of Horticulture, Vellanikkara, 2004) Parimaladevi, S; Sakeer Husain, A
The study entitled “ Effectiveness of agriclinics and agribusiness training programme in Kerala” was undertaken “to evaluate the training content and methodology of the agriclinics and agribusiness training programme organized in Kerala by Kerala Agricultural University, to analyse the trainees profile, to assess the establishment of agriclinics and agribusiness centres by the trainees, to study the constraints, if any, faced by the trainees in establishing the centres and to suggest suitable measures to streamline the training and the scheme on agriclinics and agribusiness.” The study was carried out in Kerala state. Sixty trainees of agriclinics and agribusiness training programme organized by Kerala Agricultural University were selected randomly and they were the major category of respondents of the study. 30 trainers of the above said training programme were also selected randomly to identify the perception of trainers regarding the relevancy of the content of the training programme. Data were collected through mailed questionnaire. Majority of the trainees selected for the training programme were young (92 per cent), male (85 per cent), unmarried (73 per cent), agricultural graduates (82 per cent) having no income. Most of the trainees had more positive attitude towards self employment (73 per cent), more self confidence (55 per cent) and high information seeking behaviour (67 per cent). The study revealed that field trips, study tour, talks by successful entrepreneurs were the most effective methods as perceived by the trainee respondents. The study also indicated that most of the trainers selected for agriclinics and agribusiness training programme were effective. The results showed that the topics such as “Agribusiness development, analysis of opportunities; Role of IT in Agribusiness; Scope and local applications of e-Commerce; Market planning and market competition; Brands, packaging, product features; Advertising and its impact; Sales promotion activities; Problems and prospects of pesticides marketing; Commercial production of cut flowers and dry flowers; Bio process in value addition on agro produce; Composting techniques; Schemes of the National Horticulture Board; Crop and animal insurance – Implications for agribusiness; Case Study: ABARD SAIU on Medicinal Plants; Importance of marketing in the context of globalisation and privatization and What do bankers expect from entrepreneurs? were found to be the most useful topics for the trainees as all the respondents had rated these topics as useful. In trainers view, emphasis was given on areas like marketing, small business and orientation on specific enterprises. The study shows that there were five types of business started by the trainees such as plant nursery, acquarium, consultancies, hatchery and commercial cultivation of crops. Among sixty trainee respondents, only nine trainees had started agriclinic and agribusiness centres. The study revealed that the factors such as attitude towards self-employment, entrepreneurial ability and self confidence were found to influence the trainees in establishing agriclinic and agribusiness centres. The factors such as attitude towards self employment, decision making ability and information seeking behaviour were found to be significant between male and female respondents. It is clear from the analysis that there is significant relationship between the factors viz., entrepreneurial ability and decision making ability with the perception of trainees about trainers effectiveness and the utility of the content of the training programme. There is significant relationship between attitude towards self employment with the perception of trainees about the effectiveness of training methods used in the training programme. The most important constraint faced by the trainees in establishing agriclinic and agribusiness units was the availability of credit facilities on time followed by cumbersome process in getting loan sanctioned and availability of matching grant for availing credit. It can be concluded that most of the constraints experienced by the trainees were financial in nature.
Expert systems for demand driven extension
(Department of Agriculture Extention, College of Horticulture, Kerala Agricultural University, 2020) Malliboina, Mahesh Yadav; Sakeer Husain, A
Impact of the rice variety,Uma (Mo16) on farmers
(Department of Agricultural Extension College of Horticulture, Vellanikkara, 2015) Neshva; Sakeer Husain, A
Rice is the staple food of the people of Kerala, and traditionally, the cultivation of rice has occupied pride of place in the agrarian economy of the state. Palakkad and Alappuzha are the two major rice-producing districts of Kerala. About 600 varieties of rice were grown in the sprawling paddy fields of Kerala. One of the most popular rice varieties of Kerala is Uma (Mo.16) developed by the Rice Research Station, Moncompu of Kerala Agricultural University and it occupies more than 60 percent of the paddy cultivation area in Kuttanad region. The study intended to analyse the attributes of the rice variety, Uma (Mo16) vis-a-vis other rice varieties as perceived by farmers and to assess the socio economic impact of Uma on rice cultivating farmers. The study was confined to Kuttanad tract of Alappuzha. An ex-post facto research design was adopted for the study. Five padasekharams were selected through simple random sampling method, and from each padasekharam, 20 farmers cultivating the rice variety, Uma were selected, thus constituting a sample size of 100. A pretested structured interview schedule and PRA techniques were employed for data collection. The results revealed that tolerance to pests and diseases was ranked first with an index of 94.60 followed by non-lodging nature of plant (92.60), non-shattering nature of panicle (86.70), amenability to mechanisation (75.40), millers’ preference (49.60) and cooking quality (42.00). Varietal comparison of other rice varieties prevalent in Kuttanad area with ‘Uma’ using PRA technique revealed that ‘Uma’ was perceived as the superior variety with a score of 520.42 followed by Jyothi (443.95) and Prathyasa (418.72). Results of SWOC analysis done using PRA techniques, revealed that among the strengths, ‘high yield’ ranked first with an index of 98.80 followed by ‘tolerance against pest and disease incidence’ (96.00), ‘high grain weight’ (91.00), ‘high tillering capacity’ (89.00) and ‘high seed dormancy’ (85.2). However, low cooking quality (96.10) and less preference of the rice variety by millers (94.2) were emerged as the major weaknesses. It was, also found that all the respondents were continuously cultivating ‘Uma’ without any varietal shift. Majority (56 per cent) of the farmers had been continuously cultivating the rice variety, Uma for the past 15-17 years. With regard to the social impact on farmers, it was revealed that social participation has improved significantly. Similarly, information seeking behaviour has also increased positively, where as labour use has decreased significantly. However, there was no significant change in the communication behaviour of farmers. As regards economic impact, ‘annual income’, ‘family expenditure’, ‘savings’ and ‘asset creation’ of farmers have increased significantly after cultivation of the rice variety, Uma as compared to pre-Uma period. Indebtedness of farmers was also found to have decreased. Thus, the rice variety Uma could make a very promising impact on the socio- economic variables of farmers. Regarding comparative income advantage of Uma, it was found that this variety had an income advantage of Rs.38000/- per ha over the variety, Jyothi and Rs.95000/- per ha over local varieties. Thus, for a single puncha season, Uma had given an additional income of Rs.104.30 crores as compared to Jyothi and Rs.260.75 crores as compared to local varieties, in Kuttanad tract of Alappuzha alone. With regard to constraints faced by Kuttanad farmers, ‘non-availability of labour’ was ranked first with an index of 98.60 followed by ‘high cost of inputs’ like fertilizers and pesticides (89.60), ‘vagaries of weather and climatic conditions’ (81.20) and ‘non fixing of floor price on time’ (70.80
Livelihood analysis of kattunaikan tribe of Wayanad
(Department Of Agricultural Extension, College Of Agriculture, Vellayani, 2013) Sreejas, S; Sakeer Husain, A
Organizational communication system in marine products export development authority (MPEDA)
(College of co-operation, banking and management, Vellanikkara, 2016) Haritha, K M; Sakeer Husain, A
Profile analysis of coconut climbers in Thiruvananthapuram district
(Department Of Agricultural Extension, College Of Agriculture, Vellayani, 1994) Sakeer Husain, A; Shilaja, S
The study, “Profile of coconut climbers in Thiruvananthapuram district “ was carried out with the following specific objectives. 1. To assess the availability of labour for coconut climbing as perceived by the coconut farmers. 2. To analyse the socio-psychological and economic profile of agricultural labourers engaged in coconut climbing. 3. To study the employment and wage pattern of coconut climbers. 4. To identify the constraints experienced by the coconut climbers with a view to suggest welfare measures, if any The study was confined to Thiruvananthapuram district of Kerala state. The total number of respondents for the study was 100 coconut farmers and 100 coconut climbers. Coconut farmers were selected using random sampling technique and the coconut climbers were selected using key informant technique. The study revealed that 52 per cent of the coconut farmers perceived the availability of coconut climbers as more than sufficient and 48 per cent perceived the availability of coconut climbers is not sufficient to meet their requirements. Majority of coconut climbers came under middle aged group with an average age of 38. More than 75 per cent of the climbers belonged to scheduled castes. Majority of the climbers had nuclear families with a family size of less than 5 members. On an average, the family educational status of the respondent was at primary school level. A great majority of them had a farm size of 6-15 cents, with low housing facilities. The experience of majority of climbers in their profession was found to be upto 15 years. There was some mobility of labour among coconut climbers. However, 55n per cent of them had low occupational mobility. The coconut climbers selected for the study had an average family annual income of Rs. 25055 and an average family expenditure of Rs. 23317. Even though their average savings was found to be Rs. 2483 per year majority of them saved only less than this amount. Similarly, a great majority of the climbers had indebtedness of only less than the average indebtedness of Rs. 668 in a year. Majority of the coconut climbers studied were having low political participation, low social participation, low economic motivation, low achievement motivation and low level of aspiration. On other hand, they had high cosmopolite orientation, high risk preference and possessed only less amount of traditional values related to agriculture. The attitude of the coconut climbers towards their profession was found to be favourable. Majority of the respondent climbers had only a limited knowledge about P.P measures in coconut. Similarly, they had only a very low awareness and utilization of welfare programmes. It was also found that, on an average, the coconut climbers were employed for 218 days in an year, with 164 days in coconut climbing. They received maximum number of days of employment during the month of March, May and February. The daily average wage rate of coconut climbers was Rs. 82.30 with a monthly income of Rs. 1496. They earned higher income during May, followed by March, February and April. Among the various constraints, ‘After attaining a certain age, even before becoming old, one cannot climb the palms’ and ‘No fixed income during rainy season’ were perceived by the coconut climbers as their major constraints.
Response behaviour towards branded agro-processed products
(Department of Co- operative Management, College of Co- operation, Banking and Management, Vellanikkara, 2006) Prameela, V; Sakeer Husain, A
Tools and services for m-extension: problems and prospects
(Department of Agricultural extension, College of Horticulture, Vellanikkara, 2016) Nagam Kusuma Kumari; Sakeer Husain, A
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.; Sakeer Husain, A
Hi-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.
Utilisation behaviour of registered farmers of selected agricultural produce market committees (APMCs) of Telangana state on e-nam portal
(Department of Agricultural Extension, College of Agriculture, Vellanikkara, 2021) Malliboina Mahesh Yadav; Sakeer Husain, A
National Agricultural Market (e-NAM) is a pan-India electronic trading platform launched in 2016 by Government of India. The e-NAM is a virtual market, but at the back end, there is a physical market which assists all the APMC related information and services through a single window system and it includes information about commodity arrivals and prices of the available commodity. The integration of markets across the country through a common e-platform ensures a transparent sale process. As on August 2020, 1000 markets from 18 States and 3 Union Territories were connected with e-NAM. The present study intended to analyse the process and functioning of e-NAM facilities under selected APMCs in Telangana State, the perception of farmers about e-NAM and its utilisation and to identify the constraints in availing e-NAMservices.The study was conducted in Hyderabad and Warangal districts of Telangana state. A total of 90 respondents (60 farmers and 30 traders) formed the sample of the study using random sampling procedure. First of all, the study analysed and described the process and functioning of e-NAM. Besides, the results of the study revealed that majority (50%) of the farmers belonged to middle aged group, 88.33 per cent of farmers were males, and 50 per cent of farmers had small family size (<5 members in their family). With regard to their educational status, 31.67 per cent completed primary school level of formal education. Further, 66.37 per cent of farmers were depended on agriculture alone and 65 per cent were having more than 10 years of farming experience. Forty per cent each of the farmers possessed small farms (2.5-5 acres) and were having an annual income of ₹1 lakh to ₹2 lakhs. Nearly half of the farmers had savings between ₹50000-₹100000 and availed loans from cooperative banks (51.66%). Majority of the farmers had medium level of information seeking behaviour (56.67% farmers), medium level of decision making ability (65%), market orientation (56.67%) and economic motivation (66.66%). Though majority (90%) of the farmers were computer illiterate, all the farmers were able to use the basic functions of mobile phones. Three fourth of the traders belonged to middle aged group, all the traders were males, 50 per cent traders had medium sized family (5-8 members in their family), pursued high school level education (33.33%), and trading alone was the main occupation for 73.33 per cent traders with ₹2 -₹5 lakhs of annual income (63.34%) and ₹1 to ₹2 lakhs savings per annum (60%). Exactly 46.67 per cent of the traders availed loans from private banks with an interest rate of 10 to 20 per cent. Majority of the traders had medium level of information seeking behaviour (76.67%), market orientation (80%) and economic motivation (66.66%). All the traders were able to use computer and mobile phones. All the farmers perceived that weighing of the produces at e-NAM was done correctly. Similarly, 100 per cent of the farmers perceived that transaction cost to farm produce was not reduced through e-NAM. All the farmers were aware of the lot number generation, sale bills, grading, electronic weighing and bid creation, However, majority of the farmers were not aware of many of the facilities and services available in e-NAM. The farmers mainly utilised the eNAM portal for price checking followed by mobile number linking with e-NAM portal. All the other services were utilised by only a very few farmers. The study further revealed that educational status, computer literacy, m-literacy and awareness about e-NAM were having positive correlation with utilisation of e-NAM facilities, while age, farming experience, savings and decision making ability showed negative correlation with the utilisation of e-NAMfacilities. The traders also perceived that correct method was followed at e-NAM for weighing the produce. They further perceived that the marketing efficiency was very high with e-NAM, while better quality certificate was not available at e-NAM. All the traders were aware of most of the eNAM facilities and services unlike the farmers. The traders were mainly utilising e-NAM portal for mobile number linking followed by checking quality of the commodities and price checking. Use of warehouse facilities checking e-NAM MIS, grievance on e-NAM services were the underutilized services by the traders. The most important constraints faced by majority of the farmers were inadequate facilities for quality checking, inability to sell more number of commodities, poor knowledge on computer and internet and the limited number of bidders taking part in bidding. The most important constraints faced by traders were the problem of power failure, poor knowledge on computer and internet, lack of proper grading, and the less bidding time. Thus creating awareness among farmers and providing necessary skill in using various eNAM facilities and handholding them in effective utilisation of e-NAM would be crucial in the success of e-NAM in India.