eChapters

43.1. Aim

To conduct practical on preparation of preserve and candies from fruits.

43.2. Theory

Preserves (murraba) are made by cooking the entire fruit or its slices/pieces in sugar syrup of higher concentration (65-70°Brix). Usually for 1 kg fruit around 1.75 kg sugar is used and the cooking is continued till the TSS reaches 68%. Fruits like aonla, bael, apple, pear, karonda, pineapple and papaya etc can be used for making preserves. Aonla, bael and apple preserves are commercially available in the market.

Candies are also prepared in similar way as preserve, but the TSS maintained is slightly higher (75-80%). In preserve, the fruit is kept immersed in syrup and packed while in case of candies, the syrup is drained off and fruit pieces are further dried and packed. For candy preparation, the fruit pieces are dipped initially in 55-60% sugar solution and the TSS of the syrup is increased by 5% everyday up to 4-5 days till a TSS of 70oBrix is reached. The fruit pieces are then separated from syrup, rolled in powdered sugar, dried and packed. Karonda, apple, peels of orange, lemon, grapefruit, petha (Ash gourd) and ginger etc are used for candy preparation. Petha, ginger, papaya, aonla etc candies are commercially available in the market.

Preserve (Murabba) is made by cooking the fruit either whole or in slices/ pieces in sugar syrup of heavy concentration (65-70oBrix). Usually for 1 kg fruit around 1.75 kg sugar is used and the cooking is continued till the TSS reaches 68oB. Fruits like petha (ash gourd), aonla, bael, apple, pear, karonda, pineapple and papaya etc., are used for making preserve/murabba.
Candies are also prepared similarly but the TSS is maintained up to 75-80%. For candy preparation, the fruit pieces are dipped initially in 55-60% sugar solution and the TSS of the syrup is increased by 5% everyday up to 4-5 days and then the fruit slices are drained free of syrup and dried in driers. Fruits like aonla, karonda, cherry, apple, ginger peels of orange, lemon, and grapefruit etc., and petha (ash gourd), are used for candy preparation.
Selection and preparation of fruits: Wash the fruits in water to remove dirt and residues. Peel, core and cut the fruits into pieces. Pricking should be done with stainless steel forks. In case of petha (ash gourd), after pricking place them in lime water

Cell culture refers to removal of cells from an animal or plant and their subsequent growth in a favorable artificial environment. The cells may be removed from the tissue directly and disaggregated by enzymatic or mechanical means before cultivation, or they may be derived from a cell line or cell strain that has already been establwashed.

Primary culture refers to the stage of culture after the cells are isolated from tissue and proliferated under appropriate conditions until they occupy all of the available substrate (i.e., reach confluence). At this stage, the cells have to be subcultured (i.e passaged) by transferring them to a new vessel with fresh growth medium to provide more room for continued growth.

Pharmaceutical and chemical industries depend largely on toxicological evaluations to provide information regarding safety of their commercial products. Toxicologists so far have been relying on animal studies to investigate potentially beneficial or harmful effects of drugs and chemicals prior to testing them in humans. Traditionally, the safety assessment process during drug development has been based on screening indiscriminately a plethora of new chemical entities (NCEs) using large number of animals as testing models in order to identify new therapeutic agents with the expectation that one or a few of these NCEs have some competitive advantages over the existing therapeutic agents. That is why they are more efficacious, bioavailable, selective, and safer. This approach is costly, time-consuming, and requires large quantities of test material. Currently, it takes about 10-12 years and a huge expenditure for a drug to move from research laboratory to patent. Thus alternative cell culture models in the early phases of drug discovery process can save time and money both by eliminating least beneficial NCEs.

Principle

Standard solutions are the solutions of accurately known concentrations. There are two types of standard solutions viz., primary and secondary.

A known quantity of the substances is dissolved in a volumetric flask and the volume is made upto the mark. Standard solutions prepared in this way are known as primary standard. This method can be used for preparation of standard solutions of substances which satisfy the following conditions.

INTRODUCTION
In order to turn grains into flour and create a variety of food products, including bread, cakes, pasta, and other baked goods, a flour mill is used to prepare goods. Depending on the type of grain (wheat, corn, etc.) and the intended end product, the process also entails cleaning, milling, and occasionally additional flour refinement.
GRAIN SELECTION AND CLEANING
To get rid of dust, stones, husks, and other foreign objects, the grains must be cleaned before milling:
• Cleaning: To guarantee that only premium grains are fed into the milling process, grains (usually wheat, corn, or other cereals) are cleaned using devices like air separators, sieves, or rotary cleaners.
• Pre-conditioning: In certain situations, moisture is added to the grains to condition them, softening them and increasing milling efficiency.
Wheat Flour Production Process A Step by Step Approach
Grading
Using cutting-edge equipment, the skilled millers evaluate and analyze the wheat when it gets to the flour mill. Wheat samples are prepared for chemical and physical examination. When grading wheat, many factors are taken into account, but the most crucial one is the protein content. Following this procedure, millers keep the same-grade wheat in silos until they need it for milling.
Purifying
To get rid of impurities, such as sticks, stones, and other fine materials, the wheat is meticulously cleaned. The purified wheat is now prepared for conditioning.

Radio script should be prepared in such a way that listener should feel that somebody is talking with him in a friendly manner and with informal style. For this purpose:
1. Collect the material from your experience.
2. Keep the purpose of the script and audience in mind.
3. Decide the method of presentation of information.
4. Considering the time available for the talk, the script should be prepared.
5. Generally we talk two words per seconds and 8 to 10 lines are required per minute having 5-6 words per sentences.
6. Time for talk is always limited hence select one idea at a time never include maximum technical information in the script.
7. Arrange the information in the sequences.
8. Include supporting and illustrated facts.
 

The RTS beverage was prepared by using freshly prepared carrot juice, sour orange juice, water and sugar as per FPO specification.

Beverage is a drinkable product which includes all drinks fermented or unfermented, sweetened or unsweetened. It may be fruit based or non-fruit beverage. Fruit based beverage is the fruit juice that has been considerably altered in its composition before consumption e.g. drink, squash, nectar etc. In this chapter, preparation of RTS drink and squash has been discussed.

1. PREPARATION OF READY-TO-SERVE (RTS) DRINK FROM FRUITS

Theory: RTS is a type of fruit beverage which contains at least 10% of fruit juice and 10 degree Brix as Total Soluble Solids (TSS) with 0.3% acidity. It is not diluted before serving, hence it is known as ready-to-serve beverage. It can be prepared from fresh/preserved pulp/juice of various fruits like mango, litchi, apricot, guava, lemon etc.

Chemical changes occur during oven-drying because of the direct effect of high temperature, or of enzymic or bacterial changes during the early stages of drying, or of loss of volatile consitituents. Feeds containing molasses should be ground in a mortar.

Dried materials should be ground to pass 1 mm sieve. Samples expected to moisture during the treatments are usually predried. If wet samples are used directly in the assay, sufficient large quantity has to weighted out. In the first stage, roughages about 250-1000g are used, somewhat dependent upon homogeneity and moisture content of the wet material. These samples are weighted into trays and dried in draft oven at 60-70ºC. The dry samples are then again weighed, determined the moisture content. The trays are then left to equilibrate in air at room temperature for two days. before a second reweighing of the trays with samples. Then the sample is milled and filled into airtight containers and labelled as dry samples.

45.1. Aim

To conduct practical on preparation of sauce from different fruits.

45.2. Theory

Sauces are of thinner consistency as compared to ketchups and contain TSS not less than 15oBrix. Pumpkin, tomato, apple, papaya and plum pulps etc are used successfully for preparation of sauces. Mixed vegetable sauce using pumpkin, tomato, chillies, carrots are sold as continental sauces.

45.3. Raw material, ingredients and utensils required

1. Fruits like Apple, tomato, papaya, pumpkin, plum etc are used for making sauce.

2. Stainless steel knives, de-corers, ladle and utensils for cooking and mixing, glass bottles, sterilization tank, Bhatti/LPG stove etc.

Tomato, apple, plum, mushroom, etc., are used successfully for the preparation of sauces. Sauces are of two kinds 1) thin sauces consisting of vinegar extracts of flavoring material like herbs or spices and 2) thick sauces which are highly viscous.
Sauces are prepared by maceration of spices, herbs, fruits, and vegetables in cold vinegar or by boiling. Thickening agents like pectin, carboxymethylcellulose,n etc., are also added to sauces to prevent the sedimentation of solid particles. The sauce is generally cooked to such a consistency that it can be freely poured without fruit tissues.
Procedure
Tomato fruits are washed, cut into pieces, and heated/boiled for about 10 minutes in their own juice in SS pan to soften the tissue. The heated fruit mass is passed through a pulper to separate skin and seeds. Half of the sugar and spices are placed in a muslin cloth bag which is then immersed in the pulp during cooking. Cooking is continued till the pulp is reduced to half of the original volume.

Principle

Equal volumes of all acids / bases containing their gram equivalent weights per litre of the solution react completely with each other.

More often, if the reagent is not a primary standard, a secondary standard solution must be prepared. The chemical is dissolved and made up or diluted to the desired concentration and then it is standardized against a primary standard or against another reliably known secondary standard solution. Such solutions are called as secondary standard solutions.

Aim

To know the methods of preparation of side bars for large animal Thomas splint fabrication

Procedure

Two strong dry matured bamboo splints are of more than actual length of Thomas splint are prepared, (figure 1)

Three nicks at a distance of 2 inch are grooved on the side of the side of the splint at one end of the splints for keeping the tying end of the ropes in position (figure -2)

The bamboo splints at the lateral ends are thinned to some extent. For knob kniiting of splint to the metal ring by making an arc (figures).

All the steps are depicted in figure 1 -4.

Before fixing the metal ring with the bamboo extention splint the thinned ends are emersed inside water for easy arching of the bamboo splint.

Objectives

• Better understand the process and different stages of meiosis.
• Prepare your own specimens of onion root in which you can visualize all of the stages of meiosis.

Principle

Meiosis is a type of cell division in which the number of chromosomes is halved (from diploid to haploid) in the daughter cells, i.e., the gametes. It occurs in cell that produce gametes in sexually reproducing organisms. The division is completed in two phases, meiosis I and meiosis II. Meiosis I is a reductional division in which the chromosomes of homologous pairs separate from each other. Meiosis II maintain same number of chromosomes, hence, is called as equational division. Stages of meiosis can be observed in a cytological preparation of the pollen mother cells of the anthers of f lower buds.

Introduction
Ocular micrometer and stage micrometer are used to measure the size of microorganisms. The Ocular micrometer consists of a circular disk of glass which has graduations engraved on surface. A stage micrometer or objective micrometer has scribed lines on it that are exactly 0.01mm (10 micrometer) apart. Ocular micrometer is calibrated for the objective first. To calibrate the ocular micrometer for a given objective, the two scales are superimposed and determined how many of the ocular gradation coincide with one graduation on the stage micrometer scales. Thus, the distance between the graduations on the ocular micrometer can be determined and so the size of the organism can be determined.
Materials
1. Ocular micrometer
2. Stage micrometer
3. Microscope
4. Stained slides of yeast or bacteria

Object: Preparation of solutions. 

Material required: Volumetric flask, measuring cylinder, beakers, pipettes, balance, distilled water and chemicals. 

Theory: The use of solution is common in experimental procedures of plant physiology. It is very important for a student to be familiar with their preparation. The substance dissolved in a solution is called solute and the medium in which it is dissolved is known as solvent. Solutions of two liquids (e.g. alcohol in water) and solid in liquid (e.g. NaCl in water) are most common. Solutions are thus a homogenous mixture of a solute in a solvent. 

35.1. Aim

To prepare squash from fruits or fruit pulp.

35.2. Theory

Squash is a type of fruit beverage containing at least 25% fruit juice or pulp and 40% total soluble solids (TSS). Squash is diluted before serving (1:3). According to FSSAI specifications, class II preservative in fruit squash shall not exceed 350 ppm sulphur dioxide/700 ppm KMS or 600 ppm sodium benzoate. Artificial colour and flavours can also be added when declared on the label.

35.3. Raw material, ingredients, machinery and equipments required

1. Fruits like mango, orange, lemon, lime, litchi, pear, apricot and pineapple are used for making squash.

Need of Analysis Technique

There are various methods to determine the concentration of a substance present in the matrix of an organic matter, these methods are very expensive, require expertise, need skilled man power, expensive chemicals and sophisticated equipments. But the volumetric analysis requires very less equipment and its level of accuracy is fairly high. It is very beneficial in the preparation of normal and molar solutions which is the back bone of all the research. Scientific venture is useless without the preparation of accurate standard solutions which is to be used in the estimation of various substances by sophisticated techniques like colorimetry, spectrophotometry, atomic absorption spectrophotometer (AAS), inductively coupled plasma emission spectrophotometer (ICP) etc. So the emphasis has been laid on the preparation of quick and accurate preparation of the standards. Volumetric analysis is the simplest technique by which, we can determine the concentration of a substance in solution form by titration of unknown solution against a known concentration solution. One solution is called the standard (known concentration) and other is called unknown solution. In this, reaction takes place either

1. Preparation of Standard Sodium Hydroxide Solution

 Introduction

 When oxalic acid reacts sodium hydroxide, sodium oxalate and water are

form. Phenolphthalein indicator detects the end point by its characteristics

colour change.

 Apparatus

 Burettes, pipette, volumetric flask, beaker

 Reagents

 • Oxalic acid crystals

 • Sodium hydroxide – 0.1 N approximate

 • Phenolphthalein solution – 0.1 percent in ethyl alcohol

Procedure Preparation of 0.1 N oxalic acid solution 1. Weight accurately 1.575 g of oxalic acid into a 250 ml beaker using a weighing bottle. 2. Add some distilled water to the beaker and dissolve the oxalic acid with the help of glass rod. 3. Transfer the solution into a 250 ml volumetric flask through a funnel. 4. Wash the beaker 3- 4 times with small quantities of distilled water and transfer the washing into the flask. 5. Make up the volume up to the mark with distilled water and mix thoroughly. 6. Preparation of approximately 0.1 N sodium hydroxide solution 7. Weigh about 4.25 g of sodium hydroxide pellets and dissolve into 200 ml of distilled water.

Introduction

Subculture is key skill in bacteriological laboratory allowing us to colony propagate a pure culture in single colony. Pure cultures are essential for characterization such as identification using biochemical test or antimicrobial susceptibility testing.

Protocol

1. Label your fresh blood agar plate.

2. Select a single colony to subculture (colonies grows by clonal expansion; each colony should be a pure strain.)

3. Use the colony you have just picked to make the 1st streak on your fresh plate.

TV Talk
The talk delivered through TV i.e. through an electronic audio-visual medium which provides pictures with synchronized sound. The medium is cosmopolite in nature and can be used to develop instant mass awareness.

Important points while writing a programme for broadcasting
• Writing should be catchy, readable, conversational sound, understood and absorbed by the audience.
• Writing should be in simple, known language avoiding too much technicalities
• Interest of the listener should be sustained continuously
• Application of figures should be done judiciously
 

THEORETICAL ORIENTATION

One of the training methods used in management training and technical training is workshop method. The word workshop is borrowed from the area of industry. As the word says, in the workshop of industries, practical work is done by the workers. Similarly, through workshop method, some works are done by the participants who are actively involved in the same. One component which is common for all the methods is the person who conducts the proceedings of the method. We may call him a trainer or more appropriately for this method the director of the workshop. In using workshop method, the trainer needs a few experts who may be called as consultants or co-trainers. The trainer cannot handle the workshop situation single-handed.

A workshop schedule is very much important for planning an effective workshop method. It will help arrange all the necessary materials and the people well in advance to organise the workshop programme successfully and achieve the objectives of the workshop for which it is organised.

Materials Required

Tomato fruits, pulper, steel pans, weighing balance, refractometer, sugar, salt, spices, acetic acid, citric acid, muslin cloth etc.

Procedure
I. Puree

    1.    Extract fruit pulp by Hot process as told by the teacher.
    2.    Record the TSS of the pulp.
    3.    Concentrate the pulp by heating to 12º Brix (heavy puree)
    4.    Hot fill the boiling puree into pre-sterilized glass bottles (200 ml cap.)
    5.    Seal the bottles by crown corking
    6.    Heat process in boiling water in a big aluminium pan for 15-20 min. 
    7.    Cool the bottles to room temperature as quickly as possible.
    8.    Label and store at a dry place.

The Tris citric acid egg yolk glycerol extender is the most frequently used extender in the cryopreservation of cattle and buffalo semen. Preparation of the extender plays a very important role in determining the quality of the processed semen. Therefore, care must be taken to ensure that the extender is prepared aseptically and it contains all the ingredients in appropriate concentration. Extender should always be prepared under a laminar air flow. It is also important to check that the pH and osmolarity of the semen extender for a particular species corresponds to the prescribed limits for that particular species. The Tris citric acid egg yolk glycerol contains the following ingredients:

Objective: Preparation of Turmeric powder
Turmeric (Curcuma longa L), the ancient and sacred spice of India known as ‘Indian saffron’ is an important commercial spice crop grown in India. It is used in diversified forms as a condiment, flavouring and colouring agent and as a principal ingredient in Indian culinary as curry powder. It has anti-cancer and anti-viral activities and hence finds use in the drug industry and cosmetic industry. 'Kum-kum', popular with every house wife, is also a by-product of turmeric. It finds a place in offerings on religious and ceremonial occasions. A type of starch is also being extracted from a particular type of turmeric. The increasing demand for natural products as food additives makes turmeric as ideal produce as a food colourant. India is the largest producer, consumer and exporter of turmeric in the world.

A puppet is an object resembling a human, animal, or mythical figure, animated or manipulated by a puppeteer. Puppetry, an ancient form of theatre dating back to the 5th century BC in Ancient Greece, encompasses a wide array of puppet types, crafted from diverse materials to suit various forms and purposes.

Puppets vary greatly in complexity, from simple constructions to intricate designs. The puppeteer controls movements using hands, arms, or devices like rods or strings, manipulating the puppet’s body, head, limbs, and sometimes its mouth and eyes. Often, the puppeteer provides the character’s voice, synchronizing speech with puppet movements, which together convey narratives and stories.

Among the simpler puppet types are finger puppets, miniature figures fitting onto a single finger, and sock puppets, created and animated by inserting a hand into a sock, manipulating the hand to simulate the puppet’s mouth movements. Hand puppets, including live-hand puppets operated by one hand inside the puppet, and larger versions like live-hand puppets requiring two puppeteers, also feature prominently.

47.1. Aim

To conduct practical on preparation of pickle from different vegetables.

47.2. Theory

Pickles are good appetizers and add to the palatability of a meal. Pickles may be unfermented (mostly Indian pickles) and fermented (western pickles). Salt, vinegar, edible oil or acetic acid acts as preservative in pickle making. Mixed vegetable pickle from cauliflower, carrot and turnip is most common. Cucumber and olive pickles are examples of fermented pickles. The process of steeping vegetables/fruits in salt solution is also a common method used for preservation of mango and vegetable slices for longer duration storage for its later use in pickling.

This practical assignment deals with preparation of village improvement plan by analyzing the facts such as farming system, infrastructure, communication etc., facilities available at that particular village through participatory extension tools and methods. This assignment also helps students in designing a blueprint for developing the village into a model village.

PURPOSE

To develop the village in every aspect like agriculture, education, infrastructure, communication.

To prepare a comprehensive, realistic and practical blueprint for development of the village into a model village.

To improve the socio-economic condition of the farmer

Juice and juice products represent a very important segment of the total processed fruit industry. Juice products are being marketed as refrigerated, shelf-stable, and frozen, in a variety of packages with increased emphasis on functionality, health attributes, new flavors or blends, and in some cases fortified with vitamins and minerals. High-quality juice operations are dependent upon a source of high- quality raw material.
Fruits provide an important source of energy for human beings. But the main drawback is that the availability of majority of fruits is seasonal and they are perishable. Hence, fruits need to be processed and preserved which extends their shelf life and also results in value-addition. India is a producer of many varieties of citrus fruits. Hence, it is sensible if processing industries are set up near the places where the fruits are grown. States like Maharashtra, Uttaranchal, Himachal Pradesh and the North-Eastern states are high producers of many fruit verities. Assam is a major producer of fruits such as pineapple, orange, lemon, mango etc. and it is grown in large quantities over here. Hence, fruit squash and cordial making activity in a small scale is highly recommended in these regions.

Fruits and vegetables are one of the most consumable commodities globally and also serves as an important ingredient in human dietaries. There are a lot of different varieties of fruit and vegetable and the prices keep fluctuating of the products. The production of fruit and vegetables needs to be handled, processed, or utilized properly. The costs involved in preventing the losses are always cheaper than the cost of production, therefore processing receives higher attention in recent years. The fruits and vegetables processing industry was earlier highly unorganized but due to the increasing demand for processed
food, the industry has started attracting investors. India facilitates the fruits and vegetables processing industry in obtaining its primary resources; India is the second-largest producer of fruits and vegetables. The global fruit and vegetable processing market includes the global fruit & vegetable processing equipment market and processed fruits & vegetables market. There are different methods included in fruits and vegetable processing that helps in increasing the life of seasonal fruits and vegetables are canning, dehydration, freezing, pickling, etc.
Crystallized Fruits
Candied fruit when covered or coated with crystals of sugar, either by rolling in finely powdered sugar or by allowing sugar crystals to deposit on them from dense syrup are called crystallized fruits.

Fodders and grasses can be preserved either as hay (dried fodder) or as silage (wet fodder), depending on weather conditions and available resources. These are fed in some (high input) farms to bridge seasonal scarcity periods.
Hay making: * The crop is harvested for hay making at its pre – flowering stage, when its growth is levelling off and its feeding value is still high; * Hay is best made during the rain free days; * Crops with thick and juicy stems should be dried after chaffing and conditioning, which will speed up the drying process and slow down the loss of nutrients; * Hay should be raked only a few times during the drying process in order to avoid the shattering of leaves and bleaching of the hay; * Legumes should be raked in the morning hours to avoid leaf shattering; * After drying and curing, bailing and / or stacking should be
done as early as possible. Storage under a roof is preferred; * For hay bailing, maximum permissible water concentration is 15%. Storage of hay before sufficient drying may cause fire due to spontaneous combustion; * Storage of hay with higher moisture concentration may result in mould growth, making the hay unfit for feeding.
Silage making: * Crops and plant materials rich in soluble sugars, such as – maize, sorghum, oats, sugarcane tops, hybrid Napier grass and other grasses are highly suitable for ensiling; * The dry matter concentration of the forage at the time of ensiling should be around 15 – 30 %, but higher is possibe; * Chaffing of the material for ensiling increases its compactness, thus eliminates the air space to the maximum content; * Green to semi – green forage, which may use the O2 present for respiration, results in high quality silage; * The silo should be air tight after filling; * Fermentation starts withing hours after closing the silo, and accelerates over the next 2 to 3 days. It terminates after about 3 weeks. Organic acids, primarily – lactic acid and acetic acid, ethanol and gasses such as CO2, CH4, NO2, and NH3 are produced during the fermentation process; * Due to production of acid, the pH of the biomass is reduced to a level below 4, resulting in the termination of all biological activities, after which material remains conserved under aerobic conditions.

To prepare a series of dilutions of the original more concentrated stock solution, one need to consider both the required final concentration and required volume of the diluted material. The dilution can be readily calculated by the equation:

Peer-reviewed academic journals publish a variety of article types, such as “research articles” that report original research, “reviews” of the literature, and “case reports” of a small number of interesting cases. Each article type has its own specific format, and it is important that you use the appropriate one.

The Feasibility study of dairy project cover capital investment on land, building, infrastructure, working capital, manufacturing and marketing cost, and financial projections to work out its viability. Once viability is established, a detailed project report should include the following ten steps for project planning and implementation:

First Step: This step involves appointing a consultant to plan the project in relation to the design the dairy plant, proposed market and select an architect and a structural consultant. Prepare tender documents for civil works and plant equipment. Study the demand-supply of target products through a market survey to formulate the suitable product mix in terms of volume and range. e.g. study of various dairy products e.g. Khoa, ghee, Ice cream. The capacity of the plant and the provision of various facilities would be determined by the products demand.

Any farmer/Entrepreneur who wishes to avail bank loan for starting or expanding his dairy enterprise should apply for loan to the nearest branch of a commercial bank, regional rural bank or co-operative bank in their area in the prescribed application form which is available in the branches of financing banks.

Preparing Projects for Bank Appraisal

    1.    The entrepreneur can prepare the project or Scheme report after consulting local technical persons of State Animal Husbandry Department, DRDA, Dairy Co-operative Society / Union / Federation / commercial dairy farmers.
 
    2.    The project report should have mention about practical training and experience in dairy farming. So in order to meet this requirement the inexperienced entrepreneurs can visit progressive dairy farms and government / military / agricultural university dairy farms in the vicinity to have first hand information about the enterprise. Nowadays several online portals (www.aaqaa.com.) also provide useful guidance and information on setting up dairy based enterprise.

Abstract
 
This work aimed to evaluate agromicrobes preponderance and activity in maize ecosystem of same soil types (diara land/fragile land) under different agricultural practices. We conducted a five year field survey of grower’s field to investigate the effect of tillage system, maize plant genotypes and soil organic carbon level on preponderance of diazotroph (Azotobacter), plant growth promoting rhizobacteria (Pseudomonas) and arbuscular mycorrhiza (AM) colonization of maize ecosystem. No tillage, traditional maize cultivar and soil organic carbon (>1%) appear to support the preponderance of targeted diazotrophs, plant growth promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) in maize rhizosphere and AM colonization of maize root. Elevation in the preponderance of bacteria, Azospirillum population in maize root, AM colonization, microbial biomass, nitrogen mineralization, phosphate solubilising microbes, cellulose hydrolyzing microbes and acetylene reducing assay (ARA)  of maize root appeared due to organic fertilization of maize crop.

Introduction

Vegetable crops are an important component of Indian Agriculture. They are known for their short cycle and high productivity per unit area providing a valuable source of income leading to improve livelihood. The prosperity and advancement of a nation largely depend on achieving nutritional security to its people. The vegetables play a vital role as major supplement to food and nutritional security of our people. They are important source of nutrients like b- carotene, vitamin B, C, E as well as folic acid, iron, magnesium, etc. and they also supply fair amounts of carbohydrate, protein, fiber, antioxidants and energy.

The livelihood in rural India mainly depends on agriculture in the form of various land-based enterprises like crop farming, livestock rearing etc. But the landless people in the villages depend mainly on agricultural wages. These landless rural resource poor possess own labour as the only abundant factor which is free to them and they try to use it to its maximum for their survival and thus concentrate on animal husbandry. Goats are kept as a source of additional income and as an insurance against income shocks of crop failure. In addition, the rural poor who cannot afford to maintain a cow or a buffalo find goat as the best alternative source of supplementary income and milk. Goats represent a more liquid form of capital than cattle and are readily tradable, hence goats are called as “poor man’s cow” in Indiabecause it will produce milk, meat and manure like cow at very low costs.Goats are also perceived to be a less risky to invest into compared to sheep. Goat rearing has significant effect in augmenting farmers’ income. Goats preferentially select plant parts that are higher in digestibility when stocking density is low. Tolerance of goats toward bitterness may play an important role in maximizing grazing capacity and in biological control of weeds. Goats will sustain and produce well under low fodder, low water and extreme adverse climate and it will produce well in terms of milk, meat, manure and hide. Goats are docile, good tempered, cooperative animals easy to rear by women, land less labour and children and they will thrive well on shrubs, bushes and kitchen waste. They are known as moving ATM because they will provide financial assistance to farmer thought the year in all situations.

Introduction

Ornamental fish keeping in aquarium has emerged as the second most popular hobby next to photography. As these fishes usually are kept in aquarium, they are popularly known as ‘Aquarium Fishes’. These beautiful fishes form an important commercial component of aquaculture, providing for aesthetic requirements and upkeep of the environment. At present the market for ornamental fish in the world for public aquaria is less than 1% and over 99% of the market is still confined to hobbyist. In India the hobby of ornamental fish keeping is nearly 70 years old. The brilliant, flamboyant color and exotic appearance of fish appeal almost for every one, children and aged alike. According to psychiatrists, placing aquaria with ornamental fishes in the patient’s house could treat certain type of mentally disordered problems. The relatively minimum requirement of space or attention compared to other pet animals is the reason of growing interest in keeping aquaria all over.

Today, our country is the second largest producer of fruits in the world, yet the per caput availability of fruits is below the recommended level (Chadha et al., 2013). The major reason for low availability of fruits is poor productivity. In addition, pressure of burgeoning population and ever increasing demand also result in reduced availability of fruits. The production of fruit crops is still nature dependent. The problem of low productivity of fruits is compounded by several environmental, genetic and conditional factors. At present, there exist a wide gap in between actual fruit yield and their potential yield in almost all tropical and subtropical fruit species, particularly in perennial and woody trees of fruits.

There is a great diversity in perennial fruit crops which permits considerable manipulation for various purposes and desirable outcome. For achieving even the average productivity in many fruit crops, the production constraints like lack of information regarding canopy management, non-adoption of appropriate agro-techniques and timely management practices are required, while the concern about existing a large number of old and senile orchards which has turned or are turning even unproductive needs attention (Hare Krishna, 2012). Though, the country’s fruit production status is showing an increase, but far below the potential production requires immediate attention to critically analyze the situation by revisiting the problems and its causes, identifying the gaps and development of need- based technologies in the present context.

Abstract

Asurvey was conducted in wet temperate zone (Agro climatic Zone III) of Himachal Pradesh at an elevation of 1670-2290 m above mean sea level, falling in Kumarsain, Thanedhar, Jubbal and Kotkhai areas of Shimla district: a potential apple growing area. The average land holding size varies from 0.74 to 6.50 hectares with the predominance of small and marginal farmers. The area under apple increased with the increase in the size of holdings from 0.44ha to 2.10 ha in case of marginal and large farmers respectively. Average number of animals varied from 2.54 to 3.20 per house hold with Jersey cow component varying from 0.71 to 1.40. Grass availability was 13.18 per ha against their requirement of 49.05 for 200 days and 89.51 qt. for 365 days in an year and the carrying capacity was 0.36 and 0.20 respectively. Thus, there is a need to adopt improved horto-pastoral mode of agro forestry to sustain the present livestock population.

Introduction

The agriculture remains largest public sector wherein 60% of labor forces are engaged. The farmer-based website aims at providing a hassle-free platform to the farmers who don’t have any organized to sell their agricultural products at the most effective prices are hosted. The crop production and agricultural production system has wide diversity to converge the merchandise or byproduct to the top users in novel manner in terms of profit generated by the farmers. The hassle has given to the agricultural system from Government side from growers to the consumers for fresh with standard price. The agricultural produce is accessible online for customer easiness to obtain the produce. All the agricultural produce i.e. fruits, vegetable, cereals and pulses and plenty of more is obtainable online in preset day agriculture. The farming produces including harvested moreover as dairy based products directory developed by different company’s direct purchases from farmers. The positioning propounds e-commerce in agriculture and has tremendous value to farmers, wholesalers or retailers. “This could be a cutting-edge technologies using social computer far superior to anything within the marketplace,” the web site is under continuous process of improvement and development to form it the most effective and user-friendly, and therefore the makers are hospitable any reasonably suggestions. Indian Gross Domestic Product (GDP) grew at 7.3 percent at the moment (2016-17), the agriculture sector remained stagnant at 0.2 percent, with the farm production trailing at 1.7 percent only. This clearly observed the underlying rural distress and farmers facing difficult times. In such a scenario, such a large amount of attempts like ‘doubling the farmers income’, Kisan Bazar so on are the initiative within the right direction, providing farmers with a platform of agri-marketing sector to achieve the buyer directly, without a requirement of an intermediary. They will now sell their products at the simplest prices and this may bolster the agricultural economy without intervention of middle-man.

Many farmers/ wholesalers / retail chains of agri-based industries are trying to find this type of solutions within the country and abroad.

World Scenario

The world climatic conditions are divided into Tropical; Sub-Tropical and Temperate climates. Fruits and Vegetables suited to these climatic conditions are grown successfully. Considering the nutritional and economic importance of fruits and vegetables, there is tremendous increase in area and production of fruits and vegetables throughout the world. The present global scenario of fruit and vegetable crops (areas harvested, production and productivity (yield) has been given in Table 1. It shows that the fruits 865.88 million tones has been harvested from 65.24 million Ha land with productivity 13.27 t/ha (Table 1) where as vegetables produced 1075.20 million tonnes from area 57.00 million ha with yield 18.86 tonnes/ha (Table 1) during 2016.

Introduction

Mangroves are commonly characterized as halophytic arboreal plant groups that are found in tropical and subtropical coastal regions (Biswas et al., 2012). As stated by Tomlinson (1986), a genuine mangrove species is characterized by its unwavering commitment to the mangrove ecosystem, its capacity to establish exclusive populations, its possession of distinct morphological and physiological traits that facilitate adaptation to the mangrove habitat, and its typical taxonomic separating from terrestrial counterparts.

Introduction

The total Livestock population is 535.78 million in the country showing an increase of 4.6 % over Livestock census-2012. Total Bovine population (Cattle, Buffalo, Mithun and Yak) is 302.79 million in 2019 which shows an increase of above 1% over the previous census. The total number of cattle in the country in 2019 is 192.49 million showing an increase of 0.8% over the previous census. The female cattle (Cow population) is 145.12 million, increased by 18 % over the previous census (2012). The exotic/cross bred population in India is 50.42 million. Indigenous /non destript female population has increased by 10% in 2019 as compared to previous census. The population of the total exotic/ crossbred cattle has increased by 26.9% as compared to previous census. However, the pace of decline of indigenous/non-descript cattle population during 2012-2019 is much lesser than as compared to the 2007-12 which was about 9%. The buffalo in the country is 109.85 million showing an increase of 6.0% over the previous census. The sheep population in the country is 74.26 million in 2019, increased by 14.1% over the previous census. The goat population in the country in 2019 is 148.88 million showing an increase of 10.1 % over the previous census. The total pigs in the country is 9.06 million in the country census, decline by 12.03% over the previous census. The other livestock including Mithun, Yak, Horses, Ponies, Mule, Donkeys, Camel together contribute around 0.23% of the total livestock and their total count is 1.24 million.

Introduction

Mankind has been utilizing different animal species from the dawn of civilization for a variety of purposes viz., production of milk, meat, wool, egg and leather. Apart from these, various animal species are also used for draught power, companionship, entertainment, research experimentation, sports, security etc. Livestock sector plays a crucial role in rural economy and livelihood. As per report of the working group on animal husbandry and dairying, 11th five year plan: 2007-12, the livestock sector employs eight percent of the countries labour force, including many small and marginal farmers, women and landless agricultural workers. Milk production alone involves more than 30 million small producers, each raising one or two cows or buffaloes. The organic fertilizer produced by the sector is an important input to crop production and dung from livestock is widely used as fuel in rural areas. Livestock also serves as an insurance substitute, especially for poor rural households; it can easily be sold during time of distress.

Introduction

Beauty, purity, love and passion are some of the emotions symbolized by the flowers. The feelings of love, affection and joy are conveyed effectively with these non-speaking beauties of nature, for example a lotus conveys purity, rose love, pansy thoughts and narcissus egotism. Flowers have a definite role to play at almost all occasions of human affairs like birth, marriage, worship, adornments and death. Besides flowers, other ornamental plants also play an important role in environmental planning of urban and rural areas and from wasteland development to overcoming pollution. An important aspect of floriculture is that it is a good avenue to generate gainful employment for youth and women of peri-urban and rural areas.

India, the progenitor of the present day chicken, is a vast country having varying climatic zones such as the high altitude Himalayan regions, the Indo-Gangatic plains, the Deccan plateau in the south and hot and humid coastal areas. Although, no exact data is available, factual information suggest that poultry raising in this sub continent is as old as its civilization. Owing to the long widespread chicken raising in the vast territory of this country and manifold ecological niches at different places, many native breeds were evolved over the years some of the documented breeds and ecotypes are Aseel, Ankaleshwar, Busra, Brown Desi, Chittagong, Daothigir, Denki,  Ghagus,  Haringhatta black, Kadakanath,  Kalasthi, Kashamir faverolla,  Miri,  Naked neck, Frizzle, Punjab brown, Tellichery, Titri, Teni and Nicobari.