PhD

The study was aimed to analyse the impact and implication of economic reforms in agriculture on the economic performance of farmers, SWOT analysis of agriculture in Kerala as well as extension organization in the State Department of Agriculture and delineation of the dimensions of organizational efficiency in the State Department of Agriculture. Consensus building workshop was conducted on the basis of collected data and extension strategy was formulated for the changing agricultural situation in Kerala. A sample of 300 farmers was selected at random from 20 panchayats (five each for coconut, rice, tapioca and homestead based farming system) from the five NARP zones of the state. Besides 60 stakeholders and 90 extension personnel were selected as respondents for the study. The components of economic performance and dimensions of organizational efficiency formed the variables of the study. The data were gathered by the use of interview schedule and questionnaire from the respondents. Statistical techniques such as correlation, ANOVA, Paired ‘t’ test and Discriminant Function Analysis were used to analyse the data.
The variables namely, economic motivation and market demand were exhibited significant association with economic performance in the coconut based farming system. Innovation proneness, information backstop, market perception, market behavior were exhibited significant association with economic performance in the rice based farming system. In the tapioca based farming system variables namely, information backstop and market intelligence were having significant association with economic performance.
The high organizational efficiency cluster consisted of only 15 per cent of the extension personnel. The dimensions namely, job perception, guidance and supervision, job performance and achievement motivation were perceived high among the extension personnel. The dimensions such as facility and resource, job satisfaction, job involvement and job autonomy were perceived low among the extension personnel.
The dimensions, job satisfaction with job autonomy, guidance and supervision and facility and resources; facility and resources with guidance and supervision; organizational commitment with organizational involvement and job perception; job performance with organizational commitment were having significant relationship with each other.
To asses the economic performance of farmers, Cantrill’s ‘self-anchoring striving scale’ was adopted. Data from the farmers were collected using pre-tested structured interview schedule.
For identification of SWOT, Delphi technique – the methodology for elicitation of expert opinion – was used. SWOT from the stakeholders were collected using separate schedules.
The economic performance of farmers among farming system were low during the reference period-II (1996-2001) than the references period –I (1990-1995). It was in the decreasing order as tapioca based, coconut based, rice based and homestead based farming system.
In Northern Zone, comparatively low economic performance was observed in the tapioca based farming system. In the Central Zone, low economic performance was obtained in the coconut based farming system. In the High Range Zone, low economic performance was observed in the rice based farming system and in the Special Zone and Southern Zone low economic performance was obtained in the homestead based farming system.
Among performance of individual crop, the low economic performance was observed in coconut when compared to other crops in the Northern Zone. Among the farming systems, paddy exhibited low economic performance in rice based farming system in the Northern Zone. The economic performance of coconut and pepper was low in the tapioca based farming system. Arecanut showed low economic performance in the rice based farming system. The performance of banana and tapioca were having almost at same level in both the reference period irrespective of the farming system.
In the Central Zone, coconut exhibited low economic performance than other crops. Among the farming systems, coconut and rubber were having low economic performance in the rice based farming system. The economic performance of pepper was low in the homestead based farming system. For banana, low economic performance was obtained in the coconut based farming system. Tapioca obtained low economic performance in the tapioca based farming system.
Coconut obtained low economic performance in the High Range Zone during reference period-II when compared to other crops. Among the farming systems, the performance of paddy was low in the coconut based farming system. The economic performance of coconut, banana, rubber, cocoa and coffee was low in the rice based farming system. Pepper obtained low economic performance in the tapioca based farming system.
In the Special Zone, coconut had low economic performance during the reference period – II than the reference period-I than other crops. In the coconut based farming system the low economic performance was obtained for paddy. Coconut and pepper had low economic performance in the homestead based farming system. For banana and rubber low economic performance was obtained in the coconut based farming system.
The economic performance of pepper was low during the reference period – II than the reference period – I when compared to the other crops in the Southern Zone. Paddy obtained low economic performance in the coconut based farming system, coconut and rubber obtained low economic performance in the homestead based farming system and pepper obtained low economic performance in the tapioca based farming system.
The economic performance of farmers in the High Range Zone was low when compared to other zones during the reference period-II than the reference period-I. The large farmers were having comparatively low economic performance than small and the marginal farmers. In the High Range Zone comparatively low economic performance was obtained for the small farmers than the other two categories.
Plant diversity, diversified physiography, progressive and highly literate farmers, rich natural resource and bio-diversity were ranked high among the strengths of agriculture in Kerala. The weaknesses ranked high were fragmented and uneconomic holdings, low value addition process, highly fluctuating and unrewarding price regime, predominant labour problem, post harvest loss, lack of infrastructure facilities etc. The opportunities such as untapped export potential, popularize and make use of brand name, diversification of activities, human resource development, use of information technology were having the top positions. Rapid soil erosions, deforestation, slow adoption of quality culture, globalization of Indian agriculture and WTO were ranked high among the threats.
Grass root level extension functionary offices, reasonably well structured organizational set up, human resource, reasonably good laboratory and infrastructure facilities for testing seed, fertilizer, soil etc. were ranked high among the strengths of extension organization in the State Department of Agriculture. The weaknesses such as dual administrative control, lack of human resource development mechanism, insufficient infrastructure facilities, paucity of funds to invest in high-tech programs, poor conveyance facilities were having high ranks. Market oriented extension with emphasis on export and import, strengthening information communication technology, gearing up to face the challenges raised by globalization were having top ranks among the opportunities. The threats such as conversation of arable land to non-agricultural purpose, lack of commitment among extension personnel, globalization necessitated changes in the concept of conventional agriculture, restrictive funds from the government, absentee land owners were having top ranks.
Based on the results consensus was arrived on the strategies for the farming systems and extension organization in the State Department of Agriculture.