eChapters

Introduction

Increase in atmospheric carbondioxide (CO₂) and other green house gases viz. methane (CH₄), nitrous oxide (N₂O) and CFC (Chloro-Flouro- Carbon) due to fossil fuel burning, rapid industrialization and deforestation, which reduces the amount of earth’s radiation, that escapes to space. Role of these gases to change in climate over a longer period of time is the key issue of climate change. Climate change is a change in climate over time, whether due to natural variability or as a result of human activity (IPCC 2007).

IPCC :The UNEP (United Nations Environment Programme) and WMO (World Meteorological Organization) jointly established IPCC (Inter-governmental Panel on Climate Change) to assess available scientific information on climate change as well as to study its impact during 1988. Since establishment, IPCC has produced five major assessment reports. According to IPCC, climate change is defined as a movement in climate system as a result of internal changes within climate or interaction among its components. Frequency of extreme events (viz. heat waves, intense rain, floods, droughts etc.) are reported to follow increasing trend. Fig.1 is showing natural climatological cycle in the earth throughout different seasons as various components of climate system (IPCC 1996).

India has shown to the world that with 2.4 % of the land and 4 % of the water resources available at the global level, it can provide the food security to its millions. A record production of almost 265 million tonnes in 2013-14 is a testimony to the strides taken in the field of agriculture. However, the agriculture sector faces many new challenges in the future and climate change (global warming) is perhaps the most formidable one.

The new emerging demands of the relatively more-affluent Indian population, particularly its middle class, coupled with a net cultivated area unlikely to exceed 143 Mha in 2050 as well as an estimated rainfed agriculture to cover around 45 % of the net sown area, are further compounded with the harsh reality that highly productive agricultural land is being continuously lost out to the industry and urban sectors. How will the country meet the target of 400 Mt of food grain production is the mute question, in a situation where natural resource base is continuously degrading and climate change with its attendant impact is adversely affecting the agricultural production system (Singh, 2014).

Introduction

Global food production, already under the credit crunch, must double by 2050 to level off hunger. According to the UN World Food Programme (WFP), this will be possible only if food security is given top priority. The food security has become a complex issue influenced by climate and non-climate induced stressors which operate independently or in combinations are tackled appropriately. This climate induced stress is further augmented by climate change which affects agriculture and food production in complex ways. It affects food production directly through changes in agro-ecological conditions and indirectly by affecting growth and distribution of incomes, and thus demand for agricultural produce. Climate change has emerged as a major challenge in achieving goals of sustainable agriculture. Climate change refers to any change in climate over time, whether due to natural variability or/and as a result of human activity (IPCC, 2007). Agriculture impacts climate change with greenhouse gas emissions, and is at the same time impacted by effects of climate change as well. Amongst elements of climate change, the most important relate to increasing uncertainty in availability of water due to increasing frequency of drought and/or excess water events resulting in uneven water availability over time and space. Drought is a normal, recurring feature of the climate in most parts of the world. Drought is defined as the absence of rainfall or supplemental irrigation for a period of time sufficient to deplete soil moisture and injure plants. According to USDA drought occurs when annual precipitation is 75 percent of normal, or monthly precipitation is 60 per cent of normal. Drought stress results when water loss from the plant exceeds the ability of roots to absorb water and when the plant’s water content is reduced enough to interfere with normal plant processes.

Introduction

Ground water (GW) resources in most areas of world are shrinking at an alarming rate and may not meet the ever increasing demands from agriculture and industry in future. Large decreases in GW levels (up to 200 m in some places) have been observed due to over exploitation (Toze, 2006). It accounts for more than 65% irrigation water and 85% of drinking water supplies lies in a critical state. Many areas of the world, already experiencing stress on water availability, which placed severe strains on existing resources with resulting environmental impacts. Half of the population of the developing world suffers from at least one disease caused by insufficient water supply and sanitation.

Introduction

North Eastern Himalaya region of India comprises of the states of Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim and Tripura (Kukreti, 2000) lies between 21.5° N to 29.5° N latitude and 85.5° E to 97.5° E longitude. The total area of the region is 1,83,753 km2 thousand hectares of which about 9,729 ha (52.95%) is estimated to be under various type of forest including fallow land under regeneration in shifting cultivation with 220 different ethnic groups (Moral, 1997) and a total population of 1,01,39,990 (Table 1.) Northeast India is mountainous and a unique ethnic region with typical land tenure system with climate ranging from tropical to alpine type and altitudinal variation from 15 m to 5000 m amsl. Sustainable realizations of equitable livelihood in the region call upon conservation of bio-resources, environmental externalities, management of fragility and social sensitivities. Traditionally several niche based agroforestry systems of harmonizing woody biomass growth, crop production, livestock rearing and micro-enterprising have been evolved and indigenous technical knowledge generated to enhance income, employment and subsistence.

Recent increase in extreme climate events threatens disruptive impacts on both animal and agriculture (Battisti and Naylor, 2009). Climate change is a global phenomenon, but its negative impacts are more severely felt by the poor people in developing countries. Moreover, rural poor communities rely greatly for their survival on animal and agriculture which belong to the most climate-sensitive economic sectors. Climate change is expected to intensify existing problems and create new combinations of risks. The incidences of droughts, snow-storms and blizzard like events have increased rapidly. The situation has further worsened due to factors such as widespread poverty, over dependence on rain-fed agriculture, inequitable land distribution, limited access to capital and technology, inadequate infrastructure, long term weather forecasts and inadequate research and extension. The impact of climate change is expected to heighten the vulnerability of animal systems and reinforce existing factors that are affecting animal production systems in many parts of the world.

The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) defines Climate Change as a change the weather parameters attributed directly or indirectly to human activity, altering the composition of the global atmosphere. Human activity includes the pollution that arises from industrial activity and other sources that produce greenhouse gases. These gases, such as carbon dioxide, have the ability to absorb the spectrum of infrared light and contribute to the warming of our atmosphere. Once produced, these gases can remain trapped in the atmosphere for tens or hundreds of years.

Abstract

Abiotic stresses have been a serious challenge for sustainable agriculture particularly vegetable cultivation characterized by decreased endurance against stresses like drought, temperature fluctuation and salinity. In India, drought and salinity being major abiotic stresses affect an area of 16% and 4.28%, respectively. Plant Breeders have to face many impediments while developing stress tolerant varieties. Developing tolerant varieties is quite difficult as tolerance varies with the developmental stages and has complex inheritance. This can be understood well by studying ontogeny of plants. Drought varies in time of occurrence, severity and duration. Field screening for tolerance is very difficult because of various interactions like drought × high temperature, high temperature × salinity interactions etc. Artificial screening in different stresses could be an alternative approach. The varieties developed with higher inputs at research stations fail to perform at farmers’ fields due to high genotype × environment interactions. Cultivated species have less genetic variability for abiotic stress tolerance but tolerance can be enhanced by using diverse and heterogeneous population. Though wild species possess genes for tolerance but these genes are closely linked with the undesirable gene(s) e.g. in tomato where S. cheesmanii, S. peruvianum, S. pimpinellifolium and S. sitiens have undesirable traits which affect yield and quality adversely.

Introduction

The hills and mountains are one of the most important agro-ecosystems that supports life of half of the mankind either directly or indirectly. In India, hills are rich source of bio-diversity and possess enormous potential for sustaining agriculture, including horticulture and animal husbandry. The ecological fragility and vulnerability of the Himalayas to climatic aberrations, increasing demand for land to grow more food have been issues of concern for quite some time. Nearly 59% of the total work force in the Himalayas is engaged in subsistence agriculture which is barely enough to feed the growing population for 5-6 months in a year (Raizada et al., 2009). The North-West Himalayas (NWH) consisting of Jammu & Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand spreads to 33 million ha, habited by 25 million humans and 19 million livestock. Though, the whole economy of the region is based on agriculture, the total cultivable land is only 3.2 million ha of the total geographical area of the region (Srivastva et al., 2009).

Introduction

Development, refinement and adoption of machinery for a range of soil and cropping situations will be fundamental in any success to promote conservation agriculture systems. This chapter reports on the performance of machinery for minimum/zero tillage, bed cultivation system and crop residues management in different cropping system and outlines the need for continuing efforts. Particularly, the focus will be on developing equipments/implements for fixed path / controlled traffic to minimize the ill effects of wheels in the longer terms.

Introduction

Crop regulation is also known as flowering/ fruiting cycle management. It can also be termed as management of vegetative-reproductive balance. Some of the fruit crops bloom throughout the year without any resting period and produces two or three crops (bahar) in a year but yield and quality is not so good in all crop harvest. It is very essential to understand the flowering and fruiting behavior of crops and which bahar will give good crop with considering all the factors associated with a particular bahar. It is important for the available time to be partitioned to give an appropriate balance between the making of sources of resources which capture and utilized resources efficiently in generating harvestable yield and the filling of sinks for resources; and sink must mature in desired time for harvest. Apart from their importance in the determination of crop yield

Introduction

Pests and diseases are very serious issues in vegetable crops and account for nearly 25-30% damage to the expected yields across different crops inspite of high amount of chemical use. Excessive reliance on chemicals has created problems of pest resistance to pesticides, decimated useful fauna and flora as well as imperilled the delicate ecological balance. In addition, pesticide treadmill lures the farmers for ever increasing use of pesticide dosages, thereby encouraging a vicious cycle of environmental pollution. Vegetable crops are one of the major groups of crops that contribute heavily in this regard, being the third major consumers of pesticides after cotton and rice in our country. Insect pests and diseases inflict the horticultural crops especially vegetable crops more than others because of their supple nature, intensive cultivation under high moisture and input regimes, short duration and denser canopy of the crops.

Introduction

The fruit crop acreage in Kashmir is rapidly increasing and is developing into perennial stretches of monocropping systems. The area of apple in Kashmir 143790 ha. Parallely this has led to increased pests and use of chemical pesticides. As a result, pest resurgence, pesticide residue in fruits, deleterious effect on biological agents and resistance build-up in insects have all complicated pest management (Smith, 1970).In view of the rising export potential of residue free fruits and the crisis situation created by indiscriminate use of pesticides, fruit crops need much more attention in terms of IPM input than what is getting now. It is therefore, necessary to develop and follow a rational approach with greater reliance on IPM to promote sustainability and to reduce the number of application of hazardous chemicals. Integrated pest management requires thorough preplanning even before establishing the fruit orchard which includes selection of suitable site,siol type, improved and pest free scion varieties, resistant rootstock compatible with scion, regular pest and weather monitoring in the orchard, balanced use of fertilizers, water management, proper training and pruning, improved cultural practices,augementation and conservation of parasitoids and predators and need based application of selective insecticides.The various strategies for successful management of economically important pests of temperate fruits are thoroughly discussed.

Introduction

In the environment of dwindling water resources and contention of the other sectors, the share of water allocated to irrigation is likely to be decreased by 10 to 15 per cent in the next two decades. One of the ways of improving water scarcity is by enhancing its use efficiency or productivity. Water use efficiency (WUE) is a broad concept that can be defined in many ways. For farmers or farm irrigators, WUE is the yield of harvested crop produce achieved from the available water to the crop from irrigation, rainfall and soil water storage. Improving WUE in pomegranate will be required an increasing in pomegranate water productivity (i.e. an increasing marketable yield per unit of water used by plants and reduction in water losses from the root zone (Chopde and Gorantiwar, 1998; Chopde et al., 2001; Intrigoli et al., 2011). For comprehensive improvement of WUE, it is necessary to raise the following ratios to their maximum: stored soil water content/water received through rainfall and irrigation, transpiration/water consumption, biomass yield/transpiration, water consumption/soil water storage and economic benefit/biomass yield (Frederick, 1993).

1.1    Introduction

1.2    Histories and Development
    
1.3    Components of Drip Irrigation System
    
1.4    Types of Drip System
    
1.5     Advantages and Disadvantages
    
1.6    Evaluation and Futuristic Approach of Drip Irrigation in India Questions & Problems
        
References

Appendix-'K'    :    Supreme Court Directions on School Safety
    
Case Study    :    Kumbakonam School Fire Tragedy

4.1. Substrate quality
    Litter quality
    Soil organic matter (SOM) quality

4.2. Decomposer community
    Soil animals
    Soil microorganisms
    Terrestrial fungi
    Actinomycetes    
    Bacteria

Introduction

Fisheries represent an important and fast growing food production sector in India that contributes more than 1% to the National GDP and 4.7% to the agricultural GDP. With an annual production of about 7 million tonnes from marine and inland waters, the country is the 3rd fish producer in the world and the 2nd largest producer of inland fish, next only to China. With a coastline of 8,129 km and EEZ of 2.02 sq km, our marine fish production is to the tune of 2.95 million tonnes. Similarly, the inland fisheries resources comprising 29,000 km of rivers, 0.3 million ha of estuaries, 0.19 million ha of backwaters and lagoons, 3.15 million ha of reservoirs, 0.2 million ha of floodplain wetlands. 0.72 million ha of upland lakes and 2.34 million ha of ponds and tanks produce 3.76 million tonnes annually. Annual export earnings from fish and shellfish are about Rs.8.357 crore, accounting for nearly 20% of the agricultural export. Fish is a health food that is relatively cheap and affordable to the poor. Fisheries and aquaculture provides income, food and livelihood to more than 14 million people directly or indirectly. The annual per capita availability of fish in the country is 9 kg that sustains the domestic market price of fish and the sector has registered an impressive overall annual growth rate of over 4% over the years, with growth in some farming activities going beyond 5%. However, stagnating growth in marine and inland capture fisheries is a cause of concern.

Introduction

Hormones may be defined as specific chemical molecules produced in certain specific organs called specialized cells or endocrine glands. They are delivered into the blood stream or some other body fluid in minute amounts by the circulatory system of the body and their they exerts a physiological effect at a site of action remote from its origin, regulating numerous biological activities including growth, development, reproduction, water & electrolyte balance, storage & usage of energy etc.

Introduction

The diverse cluster of naturally occurring organic compounds including fats, oils, fatty acids, waxes, phospholipids, eicosanoids, terpenes, steroids and fat soluble vitamins that do not prefer to interact with water but soluble in non-polar organic solvents like ether, chloroform, benzene, acetone, are called as lipids. The main functions of lipids in biological system include storage and transport of metabolic fuel, structural component of cell membranes, insulation & protection of vital organs from shock and carrier of fat soluble vitamins. Contradictory to proteins,lipids are not polymers in nature and are hydrophobic due to presence of a long hydrophobic chain. Apart from this, lipids also act as precursor molecules for several pigments, hormones and signaling molecules.

Introduction

The word ‘Statistics’ is probably derived from the Latin word ‘status’ (means a political state) or the Italian word ‘statista’ or the German word ‘statistik’, each of which means a ‘political state’. It is used in singular as well as in plural sense. In singular sense, statistics is used as a subject that deals with the principles and methods employed in collection, presentation, analysis and interpretation of data. In plural sense, statistics is considered as numerical description of quantitative information.

Statistics (Definition), Scope and Limitations

Different persons defined Statistics in different ways. Some of the popular definitions of Statistics are given below.

According to Croxton and Cowden, “Statistics may be defined as the collection, presentation, analysis and interpretation of numerical data”.

According to Sir R.A. Fisher “The science of Statistics is essentially a branch of applied mathematics and may be regarded as mathematics applied to observational data”.

Fisher’s definition is most exact in the sense that it covers all aspects and fields of Statistics. On the basis of above ideas, Statistics can be defined as a science which deals with collection, presentation, analysis of data and interpretation of results.

A semiconductor is a material that has an electrical resistivity between that of a conductor and an insulator.

A semiconductor is a substance, usually a solid chemical element or compound that can conduct electricity under some conditions but not others, making it a good medium for the control of electrical current. Its conductance varies depending on the current or voltage applied to a control electrode, or on the intensity of irradiation by infrared (IR), visible light, ultraviolet (UV), or X rays.

An external electrical field changes a semiconductor’s resistivity. Devices made from semiconductor materials are the foundation of modern electronics, including radio, computers, telephones, and many other devices. Semiconductor devices include the transistor, solar cells, many kinds of diodes including the light–emitting diode, the silicon controlled rectifier, and digital and analog integrated circuits. Solar photovoltaic panels are large semiconductor devices that directly convert light energy into electrical energy. In a metallic conductor, current is carried by the flow of electrons. In semiconductors, current can be carried either by the flow of electrons or by the flow of positively–charged “holes” in the electron structure of the material.

A fullerene is any molecule composed entirely of carbon, in the form of a hollow sphere, ellipsoid, or tube. Spherical fullerenes are also called buckyballs, and cylindrical ones are called carbon nanotubes or buckytubes. Fullerenes are similar in structure to graphite, which is composed of stacked graphene sheets of linked hexagonal rings; but they may also contain pentagonal (or sometimes heptagonal) rings.

The first fullerene to be discovered, and the family’s namesake, was buckminsterfullerene C₆₀, made in 1985 by Robert Curl, Harold Kroto and Richard Smalley. The name was homage to Richard Buckminster Fuller, whose geodesic domesit resembles. Fullereneshave since been found to occur (if rarely) in nature.

The discovery of fullerenes greatly expandedthe numberof known carbon allotropes, which until recently were limited to graphite, diamond, and amorphous carbon such as soot and charcoal. Buckyballs and buckytubes have been the subject of intense research, both for their unique chemistry and for their technological applications, especially in materials science, electronics, and nanotechnology.

2.1. INTRODUCTION

The purpose of collecting data is to collect evidence for reaching a sound and clear solution to a problem. In this chapter we will study the sources of data, mode of data collection and its techniques.

Sources and Types of Data

Statistical data can be obtained from two sources:

Primary and

Secondary

A buffer is an aqueous solution consisting of a mixture of a weak acid and its conjugate base or a weak base and its conjugate acid. Its pH changes very little when a small amount of strong acid or base is added to it and thus it is used to prevent changes in the pH of a solution. Buffer solutions are used as a means of keeping pH at a nearly constant value in a wide variety of chemical applications. Many life forms thrive only in a relatively small pH range so they utilize a buffer solution to maintain a constant pH. One example of a buffer solution found in nature is blood.

Water, of its very nature, as it occurs automatically in the process of cosmic evolution, is fit, with a fitness no less marvelous and varied than that fitness of the organism which has been won by the process of adaptation in the course of organic evolution.

WATER IS ABSOLUTELY ESSENTIAL FOR ALL LIVING ORGANISMS

The evidence:

Most organisms are comprised of at least 70% or more water. Some plants, like a head of lettuce, are made up of nearly 95% water;

When organisms go dormant, they loose most of their water. For example, seeds and buds are typically less than 10% water, as are desiccated rotifers, nematodes and yeast cells;

Earth is the water planet (that’s why astronomers get so excited about finding water in space).

Water is the limiting resource for crop productivity in most agricultural systems.

1.1 Introduction

Greenhouse effect, regulated by the presence of greenhouse gases in the earth’s atmosphere, is a natural process that plays a major part in shaping the earth’s climate. A continued rise in concentration of the greenhouse gases has led to enhanced greenhouse effect resulting in global warming and global climate change. The impact of human activities on greenhouse gases (GHGs) emission through fossil fuel burning, agriculture and industrial processes is important and familiar to people. This chapter addresses basic principles and physics of greenhouse effect and the role of Indian agriculture in GHG emissions. Agriculture is a potential source and sink to GHGs in atmosphere. It is a source for three primary GHGs: CO₂, N₂O and CH4 and sink for atmospheric CO₂ . Management of agricultural land, land use change and forestry has a profound influence on atmospheric GHGs concentration. The two broad anthropogenic sources of GHGs emission from agriculture are the energy use in agriculture (manufacture and use of agricultural inputs and farm machinery) and the management of agricultural land. Large sections of the India’s population depend on biomass resources like wood, crop residues and cattle dung for energy. In the agriculture sector, besides the CO₂ emissions due to burning of crop and animal waste, India’s large ruminant population and rice fields are significant contributors to CH₄ emissions. An understanding of GHG emissions by sources and removal by sinks in agriculture is important to take appropriate mitigation and adaptation strategies and to estimate and create inventory of GHGs.

11.1 Introduction

Agriculture sector contributes 19% to the total greenhouse gas (GHG) emission in India. Combined with land use change and forestry (LUCF), it is the second largest source of GHG emission in India. Initial efforts at dealing with the problem of global warming concentrated on mitigation, with the aim of reducing and possibly stabilizing the GHG concentrations in the atmosphere (UNFCCC, 1992). Even if this stabilization was achieved, sea level rise and global warming would continue to increase over centuries because of the inertia of the earth systems. Mitigation activities are traditionally employed as natural resources conservation measures, but they generally serve the dual purposes of reducing the emission of GHG from anthropogen sources, and enhancing carbon ‘‘sink’’. Forestry sector holds the key to the success of mitigation efforts, and has great potential to sequester carbon through reduced emissions from deforestation and degradation (REDD), afforestation and reforestation, and forest management. India’s vast area of croplands, through cropland management, could be an important area for sequestering carbon in soils. India being the largest producer of rice and livestock in the world, appropriate management can contribute to a reduction of methane emission from rice production and enteric fermentation.

12.1 Introduction

The concentration of greenhouse gases (GHGs) in the atmosphere has been rising from historical levels, primarily due to fossil-fuel burning and land-use changes. These gases have the potential to trap energy from the sun, which may result in global warming, and this has sparked a world-wide concern that emissions of these gases should be reduced below the 1990 levels by the year 2012 (Kyoto Protocol). The international community has recognized the need to stabilize/reduce CO₂ and other GHG emission. The types of farm power, farm equipment and machinery have a significant influence on intensification and optimization outcomes, and on profit. However, until now, agricultural intensification generally had a negative effect on the quality of many of the essential resources such as soil, water, land, biodiversity and the ecosystem services which caused a decline in the yield and factor productivity growth rates. Another challenge to agriculture is its environmental food print and climate change. Agriculture is responsible for about 30% of the total greenhouse gas emissions, while being directly affected by the consequences of a changing climate. It is estimated that global conversion of all croplands to conservation tillage (CT) could sequester 5 billion tones of carbon annually.

In India significant efforts are underway to develop and popularize agricultural machinery and tools for resource conservation through the combined efforts of several State and National Institutions, particularly Rice-Wheat Consortium for Indo Gangetic Plains. The new technologies are encouraging the farmers to take up innovative ways of managing their resources for higher productivity and also providing a way to the scientific community to solve emerging problems of climate change. The farm machinery in conservation agriculture (CA) can reduce the emissions of fossil fuels compared to conventional agriculture by up to 60%. However, the largest contribution to mitigate climate change with CA can be obtained from carbon (C) sequestration and the storage of atmospheric carbon in the soil. The C -sink potential of soils varies depending on climate and production system. On an average 0.1-0.5 t. ha^-l y^-l of organic carbon can be sequestered under humid temperate conditions. Farm equipments like straw shavers and rotavators play a role in residue incorporation in the soil.

13.1 Section-A : Write True / False

Q.1 The square of a standard normal variate is known as Chi-square variate with one d.f.

Q.2 If X ~ N(μ, σ²) and Z = (x - μ)/σ then Z² is known as Chi-square variate with 1.d.f.

Q.3 If Xi ~ N(μi, σi), i = 1,2,...., n are n independent normal variates then

Introduction

Traditionally, Indian economy was characterised as an agrarian economy for the reasons that majority of the population were dependant on agriculture and allied activities and more than fifty per cent of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) was derived from agricultural sector. However, paradoxically, despite a drastic decline in the share of agricultural sector to GDP wherein it declined from 56.5 per cent in 1950-51 to 15.11 per cent in 2016-17 (Statisticstimes.com) Indian economy is still characterised as an agrarian economy. But, it would not be inappropriate to state that Indian agricultural sector is at crossroads, or it would be rather safe to comment that for any further advancement of the agricultural sector, value addition is imperative. During the post independence period, the sector had witnessed commendable progress attributing to a shift from an undesirable situation of ‘ship to mouth’ to ‘farm to mouth’. It is obvious that as a result of various programmes, projects and schemes tailored for development of agricultural sector, India had attained self sufficiency in food crops and other agricultural/horticultural products. However, the darker side is that the Indian peasants are still deprived of a remunerative price for their products as well as a respected status in the society which in turn is arresting further advancement and progress of the sector. Thus, it could be concluded that future of agricultural sector in India vests on the adoption of appropriate marketing strategies, supply chain management and value addition initiatives for the prosperity of our farming community in specific and agricultural sector in general. It is in this backdrop, the NITI Aayog has proposed various reforms in India’s agriculture sector, including liberal contract farming, direct purchase from farmers by private players, direct sale by farmers to consumers, and single trader license, among other measures, in order to double rural income in the next five years. Ministry of Agriculture, Government of India, has been conducting various consultations and seeking suggestions from numerous stakeholders in agriculture sector, in order to devise a strategy to double the income of farmers by 2022.

Introduction

Rice is the major staple food for more than 70 percent of the Indian population. India cultivates more than 4,000 varieties and hybrids of rice to cater to varied consumer preferences. A portion of the total cultivated rice is also used for processed products like snacks, savouries and bakery items. India was the largest exporter of rice in 2015-16 followed by Thailand, Vietnam and Pakistan. Rice production forecast is higher at 105 MMT in 2016/17 compared to 2015/16 production of 103 MMT (India Grain and Feed Annual, 2016). Rice milling is the oldest and the leading agro processing industry of the country. Paddy grain is milled either in raw condition or after parboiling, mostly by single hullers of which over 82,000 are registered in the country. Further, over the years, there has been a steady growth of improved rice mills in the country. Most of these have capacities ranging from 2 tons /hr to 10 tons/ hour. At present, it has a turnover of more than 25,500 crore per annum. It processes about 85 million tons of paddy per year and provides staple food grain and other valuable products required by over 60% of the population. Though, rice milling is a wide spread business undertaken in India, commercializing value added products is now gaining customer attraction paving way to merge milling and value addition under a single roof. The desirability of the working population to get foods, particularly rice based products in RTE and RTC forms has thrown a positive approach to new and emerging entrepreneurs to take up a venture in commencing rice based food processing industry.

Introduction

Soybean (Glycine max) is also known as the wonder bean or miracle bean or “golden grain” due to its diversified applicability. Soybean has an important place in world’s oilseed cultivation scenario, due to its high productivity, profitability and vital contribution towards maintaining soil fertility. The crop also has a prominent place as the world’s most important seed legume, which contributes 25% to the global vegetable oil production, about two thirds of the world’s protein concentrate for livestock feeding and is a valuable ingredient in formulated feeds for poultry and fish. The major soybean producing nations are United States, Brazil and Argentina. These three countries dominate in global production, accounting for 80% of the world’s soybean supply. Global production of soybean has grown at a CAGR of 2.78% from 215.69 million metric tons in 2004-05 to 283.79 million metric tons in 2013-14.

India stands 5^th in global production of soybean. In India, soybean cultivation started in early 1970s, but it has emerged as number one among oilseed crops covering around 11 m ha area with total production of around 11.5 m tons. At present, the average productivity of soybean is about 1.3 tons/ha and it can be easily doubled in near future. Production of soybean in India is dominated by Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh which contribute 89% of the total production. Rajasthan, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Chhattisgarh and Gujarat contribute the remaining 11% production.

About 85% of world’s soybeans are processed annually into soybean meal and oil. Approximately 98% of soybean meal is crushed and further processed into animal feed with the balance used to make soy flour and proteins. Of the oil fraction, 95% is consumed as edible oil; the rest is used for industrial products such as fatty acids, soaps and biodiesel.

The manuscript was completed in February 2020. The book was supposed to be out in print form in April 2020. In between the pandemic changed the world. Obviously, world changing events can’t be left out of the book, particularly if the book is about the future of science, engineering, technology and humanity. I, therefore, requested the publisher of the book for the inclusion of a chapter COVID crisis and its impact on the future of the world. He readily agreed.

I am sincerely grateful to the publisher for allowing me to include issues relevant for the present book, as an additional chapter at the end of the book. The subject at the moment looks unending and it has so many dimensions. I have tried to cover them as briefly as possible, in the context of the book. In spite of the several difficulties due to this last minute inclusion the publisher has taken pains to include it. I am grateful to him for his gesture.

The pandemic of this proportion is expected to get the views/suggestions from equally large number of people. Everyone is eager to see the end of the pandemic. And everyone has realised that the world will be a much different place. Some people are hopeful that the problems will be resolved, of course using multi-dimensional approaches. Not many are sure of the time frame. There is also pessimism among common people. One of my aunt’s asks me - what kind of research we have been doing all these years that we can’t even face the challenges posed by a mere virus? Has the balloon of the technology busted by a miniscule virus? In this fluid time many questions are being asked, and as many answers are also emerging. It is a big issue. It is as big as that emerged after the Second World War. Some are calling it the ‘birth of a new power’.

Indigenous culture

Indigenous means originating where it is found. If knowledge originates from, and is bound to local experiences, taking its local world not perhaps as the only one, but as the most relevant of all they know may be called indigenous. Indigenous knowledge is human lifeexperience in a distinct natural and cultural amalgamation within a unique local and timely setting. It is an authentic appropriation of being, meaning that this very process happens exclusively in a given locality at a given time. In the field of medicine, Chinese culture (indigenous) developed Acupuncture technique. An acupunturist places needles into the skin to balance out the flow of chi which is believed to be the energy that flows through the human body. In theory, Chi runs along 14 pathways called meridains and when a patient is injured, stressed, or ill, their chi is supposedly being blocked. By placing needles in the Meridians the patients chi is thought to be put back into balance. Like Chinese culture, indigenous culture of different places/countries occurs and have their own belief and methods.

Indigenous cultures speak in various ways, for example we could speak from the perspective of our so-called ‘civilizations’ but how do we know that this perception is not contrary to the truth. We could speak on the basis of our traditional religious concepts but again these concepts may in reality be the opposite of what we believe. If we speak about the indigenous from the point of view of an anthropologist we arrive at a cold and empty language, a study that only pays attention to external and superficial matters, in the same way an anatomist analyses our inner organs or our bones but they are still a long way from knowing the reality. We believe that it is better to speak about indigenous cultures on the basis of their own reality, in relation to how they were as much as how they are now because in the course of time from yesterday to today many things have happened that are worth examining.

Introduction

Expert system can be defined as a tool for information generation from knowledge. Information is either found in various forms or generated from data and/or knowledge. Text, images, video, audio are forms of media on which information can be found, and the role of information technology is to invent, and devise tools to store and retrieve this information. Statistical information is a good example of information generated from data while advises generated by an expert system is a good example of information generated from knowledge.

At the beginning, the concentration was mainly on textual information. Information technology used for textual information ranged from paper archiving tool to the sophisticated electronic computer software tools such as data base management systems, and hypertext tools. Images were very difficult to be included in an information system just few years ago till the scanners technology has been advanced together with the invention of the optical storage devises which have the capacity to store hundreds of mega bytes. This technology has enabled the developers to include images in their systems. Input peripherals to capture video and audio information have been also commercialized and are now available in the market. Storage of audio and video would be impossible unless large storage media were invented.

ABSTRACT

Indian farming community is facing a multitude of problems to maximize crop productivity. In spite of successful research on new agricultural practices concerning crop cultivation, the majority of farmers is not getting upper-bound yield due to several reasons. One of the reasons is that expert/scientific advice regarding crop cultivation is not reaching farming community in a timely manner. It is true that India possesses a valuable agricultural knowledge and expertise. However, a wide information gap exists between the research level and practice. Indian farmers need timely expert advice to make them more productive and competitive. In this paper, we made an effort to present a solution to bridge the information gap by exploiting advances in Information Technology (IT). We propose a framework of a cost-effective agricultural information dissemination system (AgrIDS) to disseminate expert agriculture knowledge to the farming community to improve the crop productivity. Some of the crucial benefits of AgrIDS are as follows. It is a scalable system which can be incrementally developed and extended to cover all the farmers (crops) of India in a cost effective manner. It enables the farmer to cultivate a crop with expertise, as that of an agricultural expert, by disseminating both crop and location specific expert advice in a personalized and timely manner. With AgrIDS, the lag period between research effort to practice can be reduced significantly. Finally, the proposed system assumes a great importance due to the trend of globalization, as it aims to provide expert advice which is crucial to for the Indian farmer to harvest different kinds of crop varieties based on the demand in the world market.

In 1908, Metchnikoff, the father of modern Immunology, wrote “Prolongation of Life” and created the incredible ongoing revolution known as the “Probiotic Revolution”. He proposed that “Lactic Acid Bacteria” (LAB) could render a great service in the fight against intestinal putrefaction and might postpone and ameliorate old age. Till then today, some 95 years later, dozens of the worlds most brilliant minds carry on the astonishing work that has scientifically been proven to generate restorative and healing effects in the body.

In the late 19^th century, microbiologists identified microflora in the gastrointestinal (GI) tracts of healthy individuals that differed from those found in diseased individuals. These beneficial microflora found in the GI tract were termed probiotics. The term ‘Probiotics’ is originally a Greek word meaning ‘for life’. Parker (1974) for the first time used this word. He defined Probiotics as “organisms and substances, which contribute to intestinal microbial balance”. But the most accepted definition of Probiotics was given byFuller (1989). He redefined Probiotics as “a live microbial feed supplement, which beneficially affects the host animal by improving its microbial balance”. Fuller’s definition since been broaden to state “a probiotic is a mono or mixed culture of live microorganisms which, when applied to animal or man, affect the host beneficially by improving the properties of the indigenous microflora”. This definition stresses the importance of live microorganisms that improve the health status of either man or animal and that occur in the mouth, gastrointestinal tracts (GIT), or upper respiratory or urogenital tracts (Havenaar et al, 1992).

To understand how probiotics work, it is important to understand a little about the physiology, microbiology of GI tract and the digestive process. The digestive process begins as soon as food enters the mouth and to stomach, the microbes present in the GI tract have the potential to act in a favourable, a deleterious or a natural manner. Microbes in small intestine and in large intestine complete the digestion process.

3.1 Introduction

Optical sources are a key element in many fiber optic systems. This component converts the electrical signal into a corresponding light signal that can be injected into the fiber. Several factors such as wavelength, source output and spectral bandwidth are important when selecting light source to achieve the best performance of the sensor. The optical sources used for sensors range from hot filament lamps to semiconductor lasers. These sources can be placed into two groups - incoherent and coherent sources. The tungsten lamp and light-emitting diode (LED) are some of the incoherent sources while the lasers come in the category of coherent sources. The LED is normally preferred if the multimode fiber is used for the sensor. If the optical power requirement is high then the laser with multimode optical fiber is used. For the sensors based on interference phenomenon, coherent sources with single mode fibers are used. In the case of distributed sensing, short pulse high power lasers are used. In a laboratory demonstration experiment, a visible laser such as a simple He-Ne laser may be the preferred source while in commercial applications a compact and rugged source such as laser diode or an LED is preferred. Before using the source it is very essential to know its maximum power output, wavelength of emission, linewidth, radiation pattern and modulation bandwidth. The purpose of this chapter is to provide the physics of some of the light sources and their important operating characteristics that are used in sensors.

Introduction

Developments in both hardware and software sectors of computer science raised high expectations and strong vision to solve number of problems in all sectors of economy. Introduction of personal computers (PC) in 1970’s created vision of paperless offices, simplified computing, automated process control, management information system, expert system etc. Initially, it had greater impact on agricultural research and development in developed countries in the form of Information and Communication Technology (ICT). Growth of companies with promises to provide specialist software to farmers and growers during 1980’s is a clear indicator of the high expectation and visualization of ICT in the field agricultural research and development. A review of agricultural software availability and use has been made by an international team in 1997 called FARMSOFT. This review covered on eight countries viz. Belgium, France, Germany, Israel, Italy, Portugal, Spain and The Netherlands. It was found that in 1996 out of 1315 software related to agriculture, 39% were in category of management, 26% were in category of animal husbandry, 8.9% in category of crop production, 7.0% in category of machinery and process control, 0.1% in category of irrigation and 19% in others category. Comparison of change in software inventory in 1996 with respect to 1994 revealed that there is around 15% growth in the agricultural software development. The higher positive growth was in the category of management software (38.40%) followed by animal husbandry (10.45%) and others (10.44%). However, highest negative growth was observed in the category of irrigation (-163.15%) followed by crop production (-53.85%) and machinery and process control (-30.95%). This indicates that overall agricultural software inventory was growing but while growth in the software related to agricultural management was sufficiently high, there was sharp decline in categories of irrigation and crop production. This change in pattern may be attributed to saturation of software and bottlenecks due to limitation of related technological innovations, socio-economic adoption and infrastructural facilities.

INTRODUCTION

The chrysanthemum is one of the most beautiful and perhaps the oldest flowering plant, commercially grown in different parts of the world. It is commonly known as Queen of East, Autumn Queen and Guldaudi. It is im ortant both as cut flower and as potted plant in the international market. In Dutch cut flower auction, chrysanthemum ranks second after rose. It is preferred practically due to vast range of shapes and sizes of flowers, brilliance of colour tones, long lasting floret life, diversity of height and growth habit of the plant, exceptionally hardy nature, relative ease to grow all the year round and versatility of use.

It is one of the most important traditional flowers of India mainly used as a potted plant, loose flower, cut flower and as border plant in the garden. Chrysanthemum cinerariifolium inflorescences are of considerable importance in the manufacture of pyrethrin insecticides. The leaves of Chrysanthemum balsamita become leathery on drying and can be used as bookmarks. Fresh young customary leaves can be used in salads and to add a balsam flavour in beer, soups and bread. Now programmed blooming of chrysanthemum all the year around is possible by environmental manipulations.

INTRODUCTION

Gerbera is a herbaceous flower crop with leafless stalk and daisy like flowers. It is popularly known as Barberton daisy, Transvaal daisy, Veldt daisy, African daisy and Hilton daisy. Gerbera is a popular cut flower grown throughout the world. It is ideally suited for flower beds, borders, pots, window boxes and gardens. The gerbera plant is also used in the preparation of traditional Chinese medicine i.e. Tu-er-feng, derived from whole plant of gerbera, is used for curing cold with cough and for rheumatism. Gerberas have wide range of bright, vivid and clear colours. Some of the flower colours available today are pink, yellow, red, scarlet, orange, salmon, lavender, violet, rose, cream and white. They are great plants for adding colour to any room or garden to create festive and elegant display. These spectacular, eye catching flowers are a complement to any kind of flower arrangement or bouquet and have a longer vase life. Their daisy shaped flowers have a velvet texture with green or dark centers and are cherished by florists and the cut flower industry.

It grows well in open tropical and sub tropical regions but in a temperate climate should be protected from frost and cultivated in greenhouses. Production of quality flowers of gerberas can be done under protected conditions, since they require partial shade. In California and Florida, it is grown in outdoors and is becoming increasingly popular as potted plant and bedding plant, whereas in other parts of United States it is cultivated in greenhouses. Gerbera cultivation has emerged as a very important option to progressive farmers in many parts of India, especially in Maharashtra, Karnataka, north-eastern states, U.P. and Uttaranchal.

INTRODUCTION

Gladiolus is very popular bulbous flowering plant. It is an important commercial flower crop and having pivotal place as cut flower both in domestic and international market. Gladiolus was introduced into cultivation towards the end of the sixteenth century. It is relatively easy to grow and is ideal for bedding and exhibition. The fascinating spikes bear a large number of florets, which exhibit varying sizes and forms with smooth, ruffled or deeply crinkled tepals. Except true blue and green, practically all colours are available in gladiolus. The flowers are used in flower arrangement, in bouquets and for indoor decorations. Now it ranks next to tulip in the Netherlands and other European countries in trade for use as cut flowers of bulbous crops and fourth in international trade of ornamental for cut flowers. Its keeping quality makes it a very popular commercial cut flower after rose. Gladiolus occupies first place in terms of returns as compared to other cut flowers. Gladiolus, a potential floral crop forms part of Rs. 200 crores floriculture industry in the country. It is estimated that throughout India gladiolus is grown in about 1270 ha, producing about 127 million cut spikes. In India, gladiolus is commercially grown in West Bengal, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Uttaranchal, Punjab, Haryana, Sikkim, Jammu and Kashmir, Karnataka, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Madhya Pradesh, Delhi and Rajasthan. The area of the states of U.P., Uttaranchal, Haryana, Punjab, Rajasthan and H.P. and surrounding Delhi grow gladiolus mostly for Delhi flower market. Important pockets of commercial gladiolus cultivation are Lucknow, Meerut, Bulandsahar, Ghaziabad and Uttaranchal. In Delhi market, gladiolus is available virtually throughout the year as growers stagger the corm planting from July to December to harvest the flowers from September to May. During the period between June to December, the supply of gladiolus spikes to Delhi market comes from Jammu and Kashmir, Uttaranchal and Himachal Pradesh. The high remuneration in this market is obtained from winter grown gladiolus.

Abstract

Fertilizer inputs are increasing the cost of production in inputintensive crops, so nutrient efficientcultivar is need oftoday. More demands for food by increasing world populations further enhance the importance of nutrient efficient crop cultivars that are higher producers. Breedingtechniques havebeenimplemented significantlyto breed highnutrientefficient crop cultivars to achieve the targets. However, molecular mechanism of nutrient metabolism has been understood to some extent in many crops through quantitative genetic approaches. This minireview outlines an update on recent progress on the genetic approaches of QTL/candidate genes controlling nutrient metabolism pathways in the crop plants.

Abstract

Issues regarding intellectual property rights and their protection are heralded nowadays in the scientific arena both in developed and developing countries. IPR is being given greater attention and importance due to the projected idea that it is a dependable means through which greater skills and knowledge can be utilised to serve as a reliable resource for the upliftment of the economy as well as knowledge dissemination. In context of microorganisms, India does not allow patenting of microbes whichalready exists in nature assuch but genetically modified version of the same microorganism with enhanced and improved efficacy can be patented. The deposition of microorganisms in a culture collection recognized as an international depository authority (IDA) is necessary if intellectual property rights regarding these microbes are to be claimed. An action plan for developing countries towards creating IDAs and preserving the natural gene pool has been evolved. It is likely that IDAs will transform into ‘biological resource centres’ and further into‘global common genetic resources’, with an internationally agreed legal basis for benefit sharing. This chapter is an effort to highlight the genesis of patenting and legalities of patenting microorganism in India.

1.    The organic molecules which increase the rate of metabolic reactions are referred as

(a) Coenzymes

(b) Enzymes

(c) Reactants

(d) Apoenzymes

2.    Enzymes are

(a) Organic compounds produced by living organism

(b) Inorganic compounds

(c) Both (a) & (b)

(d) None of these

1.    The outer layer of cereals is called

(a) Pericarp

(b) Germ

(c) Seed coat

(d) Endosperm

2.    The grain or edible seed of a cereal is known botanically as a

(a) Testa

(b) Caryopsis

(c) Seed coat

(d) Endocarp

1.    HACCP was developed by

(a) Pillsbury and NASA

(b) FDA (Food and Drug Administration)

(c) USDA (United States Department of Agriculture)

(d) FSIS (Food Service Inspection Service)

2.    Which is not one of the hazards in HACCP?

(a) Biological

(b) Physical

(c) Bodily

(d) Chemical

3.    Which is not a physical hazard?

(a) Staples

(b) Fingernails

(c) Bandages

(d) Parasites

3.1 Introduction

The production of food grains in India is around 200 million tonnes and most of the grains are converted to primary products after primary processing such as threshing, dehulling, de-branning. Some of the grains are converted to secondary products such as flour or grits. The yields of primary and secondary products range between 65-80% indicating a wastage of 20-35%. These wastes lead to unclean surroundings and air pollution due to fine dust. Hence, proper waste management/utilization of food grain processing industries has become a societal need for a clean environment.

The term ‘waste’ has different meanings to different people. It can be retractions from the main process or less utilizable by-products or undesirable waste material depending on the commodity. All food-processing industries generate wastes and create problems for its management. The best way the food processing industry can treat its waste is to avoid producing it. Much of the waste now being produced or generated in some food processing plants can become a managed resource for producing economic credits. In fact, waste utilization is one of the world’s prominent industries and its activities cut across the normal divisions into which industries are placed. Similarly, there will be wastes from agriculture, animal and meat industries, textile, rubber etc. Even the local governmental activities that collect and dispose the household wastes become apparent in terms of the huge size of it.

Abstract

Overall geological histories of the Quaternary deltas of all over the world have been studied considerably, to understand the evolution, eustatic – isostatic changes, land – ocean interactive phenomenon, resources, environment etc. But tectonic signatures of these deltas have been less studied, though these have significance in understanding the natural resources, environment and evaluation of natural disasters. In this context, as the state of Tamil Nadu is a low easterly gradient plain, all the easterly flowing rivers have developed well evolved geomorphic features related to youthful, mature and old stages. Such old stages of the rivers are marked by the spectacular development of deltas. These deltas of Tamil Nadu have been studied in detail for understanding the tectonics with the help of visibly seen tectonic and geomorphic features in satellite based remote sensing and ground based data sets. The study has revealed that the upper age limit / ages of these deltas are probably of Middle to Late Holocene and the various tectonic and geomorphic anomalies observed in these deltas obviously indicate the tectonic processes/ phenomena that prevailed during Middle Holocene - till date. The Proto Cauvery delta of Chennai region is witnessing ongoing NE–SW sinistral, NW–SE dextral and E–W vertical tectonic activities. The streams in Ponnaiyar delta are showing persistent southerly migration due to the probable ongoing land subsidence along NE–SW faults in the southern part of the delta. The Cauvery river which has originally developed a broad bird-foot shaped – arcuate delta, has undergone a phase of anticlockwise rotational migration and stabilized in the northern rim of the delta as Coleroon river during 2300–750 Y.B.P. due to the ongoing tectonic emergence in the south of the delta almost since the last 6000 years or so. The Vellar river, in deltaic regime, shows northerly migration due to E–W grabening in the northern part of the delta. Vaigai and Manimuttar rivers are again migrating northerly in their deltaic regions due to the probable land arching to the south of their present day flow. Thus, the paper discusses the post deltaic / Middle -Late Holocene geological processes of Tamil Nadu deltas which are predominated by tectonic activities.