Linkage between the department of agriculture and soil conservation unit in the implementation of soil and water conservation programmes in Kerala

Abstract

A study was conducted to analyse the linkage between the officials in the Department of Agriculture and soil Conservation Unit in the implementation of soil and water conservation programmes in Kerala and to suggest a suitable administration strategy for the effective implementation of soil and water conservation programmes. The study also aimed to understand the role perception and role performance of the officials in the Department of Agriculture and soil conservation Unit with respect to soil and water Conservation Programms. The locale of the study was Kozhikode, Idukki, Palakkad, Thrissur and Thiruvananthapuram districts. Stratified multistage random sampling procedure was adopted for the selection of respondents. The respondents comprised 64 Agricultural Officers, 12 Principal Agricultural Officers, 22 Junior Soil Conservation Officers and 12 District Soil Conservation Officers. Pre-tested structured quistionnaries were used for the collection of data. Role perception, role performance and linkage were the dependent variables study. The independent variables selected for the purpose of study were age, education, rural-urban background, experience, trainings undergone, achievement motivation, job involvement, job environment and job satisfaction. The salient the study were as follows : Majority of the Agricultural Officers and 50 per cent of the Principal Agricultural officers had low level of perception about their roles whereas majority of Junior Soil Conservation Officers and District Soil Conservation Officers had high role perception with respect to soil and water conservation. More than half of the Agricultural Officers, 50 per cent of the Principal Agricultural Officers and two third of the Junior Soil Conservation Officers and District Soil Conservation Officers had high role performance with respect to soil and water conservation. Majority of the officials were from rural background, had high achievement motivation, high job involvement and high job satisfaction. The characteristics viz; trainings undergone, job involvement, job environment and job satisfaction had a positive and significant relationship with role perception of Agricultural Officers. Among the characteristics hob involvement contributed much to the role perception of Agricultural Officers. Of all the nine characterizes, only job satisfaction had a positive and significant relationship with role performance of Agricultural Officers. There was linkage between officials in the Department of Agriculture and soil Conservation Unit, but only modicum and there was no significant difference between the Principal Agricultural Officers and District Soil Conservation Officers in the performance of their linking roles with respect to soil and water conservation programmes. The important factors which affect linkage as perceived by the officials in Soil Conservation Unit were absence of separate department for Soil and Water Coservation, inadequate contact between officials in the Department of Agriculture and Soil conservation Unit, lack of Team work between officials in the Department of Agriculture and Soil Conservation Unit, negative attitude towards functional integration of Soil Conservation Unit with the Department of Agriculture, lack of formal and informal communication between officials in the Department of Agriculture and Soil conservation Unit and possible areas of joint activity left undefined.