eChapters

3.1. Types of communication network

There are different situations in which different kind of communication is required for transfer of technology. An Extension expert works in an organization.

Q. 1 The question below consists of a pair of related words followed by four pairs of words. Select the pair that best expresses the relation in the original pair. 

Unemployed : Worker
(A) Fallow : land     (B) Unaware : sleeper
(C) Wit : jester        (D) Renovated : house

Abstract: Verbena, popular annual is suitable for landscapes, hanging baskets and ground cover as bedding type. Due to seed propagation and out crossing, progeny can segregate widely for traits due to heterozygosity. Important traits for landscape use include flower colour and extended bloom time, large and highly showy flowers, plant architecture (matting habit), environmental adaptation to stressful condition (heat tolerance) and disease resistance. Genetic information and trait heritability is almost unknown for this crop. The use of interspecific hybridization, polyploid, breeding for disease resistance and mutation breeding are presented. Tissue banks and genetic evolutionary race history have been maintained. Transgenic plants have been developed.

Keywords: Phylogeny, breeding, F₁ hybrids, transgenic.

A family of about 86 genera and 3,000 species distributed chiefly in tropics and sub-tropics. About 22 genera and over 30 species have been reported from India. Some of the genera along with their number of approximately reported species and common names of them are Clerodendron (400, glory-flower), Verbena (250, vervain), Vitex (250, chaste tree), Lippia (220, Frogfruit), Lantana (150), Callicarpa (140, beauty-berry), Stachytarpheta (100) and Tectona (3, teak).
Verbena is popular ornamental plant suitable for flower gardens, hanging baskets, and balcony boxes. They are excellent both as ground cover for rockeries, and as bedding types. These plants abundantly flower in the seedin year and, thus, are grown as annual plants.
Selected Indian Genera
Clerodendron, Duranta, Lantana, Tectona, Verbena, Vitex.
Economic Importance
1. Timber yielding plants: Teak, one of the most famous timber-yielding plants of the world, belongs to Verbenaceae. It is used for high quality furnitures, heavy constructions, ship building, musical instruments and several other similar purposes. Some other timber-yielding plants are Gmelina arborea, Premna benghalensis and Vitex altissima.

1.0. Objectives

• To make out the definition of verb and its kinds
• To enable the students to show the correct usage of verbs
• To train learners to identify appropriate verbs for subjects
• To practise to use different types of verbs suitable, in sentence, to express the intension

2.0 What is a Verb

“A verb is a word that implies an action, state of being”. It is a very important part of a sentence as it operates sentences in particular tense. It is called the soul of the English language.

3.0 Kinds of Verb

To understand the kinds of the verb see the chart given below-

Use of veterinary drugs in prevention, control and treatment is becoming inevitable with the intensification of livestock production system. Food animals given veterinary drugs contain residues of parent compounds and/ or their metabolites may remain in edible products for a period of time after treatment. In such scenario if withdrawal period of the drug is not observed, then there is every chance for that residue to become a part of the human diet. Subsequently, people consuming such veterinary drug residue-containing foods may suffer from different adverse health effects like increasing incidence of AMR, in addition to hypersensitivity and allergic reactions in some sensitive individuals. On the other hand, some veterinary drugs like nitrofurans and its metabolites (SEM, AHD, AOZ & AMOZ) represents major concern in food due to their carcinogenic nature and their use in food animals have been banned in most countries. Responsible and prudent use of veterinary drugs in food animals is must to promote animal health and to ensure food safety. On that front, veterinarians who is holding the prescription decision, indeed play a crucial role in the mission for attainment of judicious use of veterinary drugs in food producing animals and complying the regulatory requirement to produce safe animal sourced foods.

Introduction

Earthworms have been exists on the earth from over 20 million years. Decomposition of organic material that may be plant or animal origin by earthworms is called vermicompost. The earthworm is a natural resource of fertility of soil. Earthworm is lives in the soil. They feed on decaying organic material. After digestion, the undigested material moves through the alimentary canal of the earthworm; and a thin layer of oil is deposited on the castings. This layer corrodes over a period of 2 months. Although, the plant nutrients are immediately available, they are slowly released to last longer period. The digestive process in the alimentary canal of the earthworm can transforms organic wastes to natural fertilizer. Vermicompost is an odorless, clean, organic material containing adequate quantities of N, P, K and several micronutrients essential for plant growth. Vermicompost is an ideal nutrient source for organic farming. It is eco-friendly, non-toxic, consumes low energy input for composting and is a recycled biological product. Vermicomposting has gained popularity in both industrial and domestic scenery because as compared with conventional composting, it provides a way to treat organic wastes more quickly. It generates a product which has a lower salinity levels, and therefore more beneficial to plant mediums. Vermicompost is nutrient rich organic fertilizers which also contain water soluble nutrients and soil conditioner in a form that is relatively easy to absorb for plants. Worm castings are nothing but organic fertilizers because the earthworms grind and uniformly mix minerals in simple forms. Plants need least efforts to obtain these nutrients from vermicompost. The worm digestive system creates environment that allow certain species of microbes to flourish to help for creating the “living soil environments for plants”.

The chemical changes in organic wastes undergo include deodorizing and neutralizing. The pH of the casting is 7 (neutral) and the casting is odorless. The worm casting contains bacteria, so microbial activity is promoted. Excellent quality of compost can be produced in ambient temperature condition in a short period of time by using proper species of earthworm. The earthworms promote faster decomposition of organic material as compared to compost pits without earthworms.

Introduction

After introduction  of Green Revolution and White  Revolution in our country, India had high growth in food and milk production but farmers of our country had  applying more chemical fertilizers, insecticides  pesticides, weedicides and various medicines  in injudicious way  to increase grain, vegetable, fruit, flower, milk, meat and egg production . Due to this reason soil fertilely and soil health is deteriorating continuously. The soil  of food bowl states of our country viz. Punjab, Haryana, Western Uttar Pradesh and plain area of Uttarakhand deficient in organic matter, macro and micro and trace elements. Now soil became non living due to death of earthworms and beneficial micro organism. Farmers are using mainly nitrogen, phosphorus and potash in crop production. However there are 15 essential plant nutrition’s for growing of crops. Due to more application of chemical fertilizers in crop production these days’ farmers are not properly using organic, green and compost manures in crop husbandry. Soil fertility and ground water level has been declined very fast by adopting intensive farming.

Vermicompost is the result of the biooxidation and stabilization process of organic wastes by joint action of earthworms and microbial decomposers. In this process all nutrients present in organic wastes are transformed to plant available forms. Earthworms also secret various plant growth hormones along with polysaccharides, proteins and other nitrogenous compounds. Vermicompost, therefore, improves aeration, soil structure, nutrient availability, water holding capacity, ground biodiversity and nutrient efficiency, enhancing germination, growth and yield of crops. As compaired to farm yard manure, vermicompost contains 40 to 60% higher levels of humic substances and is superior in quality than conventional composts. The effect of humic substances is more prominent in stimulating root respiration, formation and growth, which in turn improves upper growth including the shoots, leaves, flowers and fruits (Theunissen et al., 2010).

Vermicompost is a nutrient-rich, microbiologically-active organic amendment that results from the interaction between earthworms and microorganisms during the breakdown of organic matter. It is a stabilised, finely divided peat-like material with a low C:N ratio, high porosity and high water-holding capacity, in which, most nutrients are present in forms that are readily taken up by plants. Earthworms act as mechanical blenders, and by fragmenting the organic matter, they modify its physical and chemical status by gradually reducing the ratio of C:N and increasing the surface area exposed to microorganisms, thus making it much more favourable for microbial activity and further decomposition.

Introduction

Earth worm bring about fertility in the soil was first highlighted by Charles Darwin in 1881 when he published his book on the “Fermentation of vegetables mould through the action of worms. Since then, the vermiculture has become an important aspect of biological or organic farming. Vermicompost aspect involves the use of earthworm as multifaceted bioreactors which effectively recycle the nontoxic organic wastes into the soil. They effeciently utilize the friendly soil microflora, demolish the soil pathogens and converts organic wastes into valueable products such as biofertilizers, biopesticides, vitamins, enzymes, antibiotics, growth hormones and proteinaceous biomass. Earthworms play an important role in soil farming in different ways as:

1) They influences soil pH.2) They act as agents of physical decomposition. 3) They promote humus formation in soil. 4) They improve soil structure 5) They enrich the soil. Vermicompost is the excellent form of organic manure and is practically 100 percent humus.

Ever increasing use of chemical fertilizers without an adequate organics has deteriorated the fertility and productivity of soil and also aggravated multi-nutrient deficiencies in soil and plant system (Gupta and Singh, 2006). Further, change in the cropping pattern, intensive cultivation and indiscriminate use of pesticides with an objective to obtain more and more crop yield, has not only made agriculture a profitable commercial venture but has also brought in several problems of pests and diseases, and ecological crises. As the nitrogenous fertilizers are soluble and as such they may leach down into ground water as for example presence of nitrate in underground waters of some parts of UP, Haryana, Punjab, Gujarat, has become a potent source of blue baby disease (Gupta, 2005).

Introduction

Vermicompost is an organic manure (bio-fertilizer) produced as the vermicast by earth worm feeding on biological waste material and plant residues. This compost is an odorless and clean organic material containing adequate quantities of N, P, K and several micronutrients essential for plant growth. Vermicompost is a preferred nutrient source for organic farming. It is eco-friendly, non-toxic, consumes low energy input for composting and is a recycled biological product. Earthworms are soil invertebrates well known for their contribution to soil transformation and turnover, by breaking down of organic material. The effect of earthworms on soils can take three main forms: effects on biological, physical, or chemical soil properties and processes. These can operate eother directly or indirectly.
 
Farmers are aware that earthworms are generally beneficial.  However, few are familiar with the important species they have on their land and the amount or number of earthworm required for their soil is also a big question to them. It is important that farmers must identify and familiarize with the species of earthworms so that they can be utilized for the purpose of vermicomposting.

INTRODUCTION

Generation of solid wastes has a universal problem which are facing by most of the countries in present scenario. These wastes are generated due to several human accomplishments as well as natural disaster. It is estimated that in India nearly 700 million tons of organic wastes is generated annually included leaves, husk, sawdust, steam bark, flowers etc. Vermicomposting is a simple biotechnological process of composting, in which certain species of earthworms are used to enhance the process of waste conversion and produce a better end product. Vermicompost is nutritionally rich natural organic fertilizer, which releases nutrients relatively slowly in the soil and improves quality of the plants along with physical and biological properties of soil. It has a more beneficial impact on plants than soil.

During vermicomposting, earthworms eat and grind substrates, convening with anaerobic micro flora to increase the surface area for microbial colonization and enzymatic action. Screening of locally available earthworm species and their suitability for vermicomposting during summer and winter seasons is very much required for effective recycling of available bio-waste for production of quality organic manure – vermicompost. Earthworm’s vermicompost is proving to be highly nutritive ‘organic fertilizer’ and more powerful ‘growth promoter’ over the conventional composts and a ‘protective’ farm input (increasing the physical, chemical and biological properties of soil, restoring and improving its natural fertility) against the ‘destructive’ chemical fertilizers which has destroyed the soil properties and decreased its natural fertility over the years.

Vermicompost is rich in NKP (nitrogen 2-3%, potassium 1.85-2.25% and phosphorus 1.55-2.25%), micronutrients, beneficial soil microbes and also contain ‘plant growth hormones and enzymes’. It is scientifically proving as ‘miracle growth promoter and also plant protector’ from pests and diseases. Vermicompost retains nutrients for long time but the conventional compost fails to deliver the required amount of macro and micronutrients including the vital NKP to plants.

Municipal solid wastes (MSW), the wastes generated in municipality area, are complex heterogenous in nature due to its collection from different places like residence, markets, institutes, hotels, etc., together before disposal. As per Hazardous waste (Management & Handling) Rules, 1989 and Bio medical wastes (Management & Handling) Rules, 1998, the industrial wastes generated in various factories and biomedical wastes generated in hospitals and nursing homes should not be dumped in MSW collection site as disposal process for those wastes are different as directed by Government of India in those rules. But those wastes produced by smaller units are discarded in street dustbin, which make disposal problematic.

Abstract
Vermicomposting, the process of producing organic manure through earthworm activity, offers a sustainable solution for enhancing soil fertility and agricultural productivity. Vermicompost, often termed "Black Gold," is rich in plant nutrients, growth-promoting hormones, enzymes, and beneficial microorganisms, improving soil's physicochemical and biological properties. In Chhirauta village, Banda district, a group of eight farmers adopted vermicomposting as a livelihood, producing 20 tons of vermicompost and 1 ton of vermiculture annually after training from Banda University of Agriculture & Technology in 2019. By incorporating leguminous crop residues and maintaining optimal moisture (45- 65%) and neutral pH, they enhanced compost quality. Vermiwash, a nutrient-rich liquid byproduct, is also produced and sold. This initiative not only addresses waste management but also promotes organic farming, reduces greenhouse gas emissions, and provides economic opportunities for rural youth. The success of this model highlights vermicomposting's potential for agri-entrepreneurship and sustainable agriculture.
Keywords: Vermicompost, Vermiwash, Organic Farming, Earthworms, Soil Fertility, Agri-Entrepreneurship, Sustainable Agriculture, Waste Management, Black Gold, Chhirauta Village

Introduction

For the majority of people on the planet, especially in developing and undeveloped nations, agriculture is their main source of income (Barragan Ocana and Del-Valle-Rivera, 2016; Guo and Liu, 2022). Additionally, agriculture provides majority of the world’s food and waste (Fróna et al., 2019). The environment, the agriculture sector, and ultimately the food chain are suffering irreversible harm due to the fast eroding agricultural soil (Chalise et al., 2019). Excessive waste production is one of the main issues of this sector (Bahrololoum et al., 2022). Failure to promptly manage this organic waste can lead to environmental contamination, endangering not only human health but also the well-being of other organisms. Additionally, its wastes resources nutrients, water, and land (Munir et al., 2018).

Abstract
The widespread use of chemical fertilizers since the Green Revolution has boosted food production but at the cost of environmental degradation, reduced soil fertility, and compromised food safety. Indiscriminate application has led to groundwater contamination, loss of beneficial soil organisms, and increased crop susceptibility to pests, posing health risks. Organic farming, particularly vermicomposting, emerges as a sustainable solution, utilizing biological nutrients to enhance soil fertility and produce safe, high-quality food. Vermicomposting offers social, economic, and environmental benefits, creating low-skill jobs, requiring minimal investment, and reducing waste through recycling. Techniques like Rhino Vermi Bed and Matka Vermicomposting enable small-scale farmers, women, and rural youth to engage in profitable agripreneurship, fostering economic growth and ecological sustainability despite challenges like market awareness and infrastructure limitations.
Keywords: Vermicomposting, Organic Farming, Food Safety, Environmental Sustainability, Agripreneurship, Soil Fertility, Rural Development, Waste Recycling, Small-Scale Farming, Economic Growth

Vermicomposting is the process of turning organic debris into worm castings by earthworms.

Earthworms feed on decaying material, pass through alimentary canals and excreted as castings.

pH of the castings is 7 (neutral) and the castings are odourless.

Contain high amounts of nitrogen, potassium, phosphorus, calcium, and magnesium.

Contains 5 times the available nitrogen, 7 times the available potash, and 1 ½ times more calcium and rich in humus.

Improves aeration, porosity, structure, drainage, and moisture holding capacity.

Vermicompost is the product of the decomposition process using various species of earthworms, to create a mixture of decomposing bedding materials and vermicast.

This process is called vermicomposting, while the rearing of worms for this purpose is called vermiculture. Vermicast is also called worm casting, worm humus, worm manure or worm faeces and are the end product of the breakdown of organic matter by earthworms. It is a mesophilic process and certain species of earthworms are used to enhance the process of organic waste conversion and produce a better end product. Vermicompost is an excellent organic fertilizer having water soluble macro as well as micronutrients, growth promoters, enzymes and soil conditioner, helpful for growth and development of plants. It helps to improve biological, chemical and physical properties of the soil.

Vermicomposting is the rapid aerobic non-thermophilic composting technique for decomposition of various biodegradable wastes using epigeic earthworms in comparison to other conventional pit or heap composting techniques. Earthworms fragment the half decomposed organic material, mix and promote microbial activity. Worm utilizes 5-10% of food for its body growth and excretes remaining portion as vermicompost. The action of earthworm is both mechanical and biochemical. Mechanical fragmentation of the half decomposed organic material to finer particles by earthworm in its gizzard helps to increase surface area of action by microbes and aeration inside bed. Biochemical action improves the enzymatic digestion, nutrient enrichment and change in organic and inorganic contents.

Earthworms have been on the earth for over 20 million years. In this time they have faithfully done their part to keep the cycle of life continuously moving. Their purpose is simple but very important. They are nature’s way of recycling organic nutrients from dead tissues back to living organisms. Many have recognized the value of these worms. Ancient civilizations, including Greece and Egypt valued the role earthworms played in soil. The Egyptian Pharaoh, Cleopatra said, “Earthworms are sacred.”

As long ago as 1881 Charles Darwin wrote: “It may be doubted whether there are many other animals which have played so important a part in the history of the world, as have these lowly organized creatures”.

The soil of the food bowl states of our country viz. Punjab, Haryana, Western Uttar Pradesh and plains of Uttarakhand have become deficient in organic matter, macro and micro nutrients and trace elements. Now soil has become non living due to death of earthworms and beneficial micro organism. Farmers are using mainly nitrogen and phosphorus in crop production. However 17 elements are essential for plants nutrition for growing of crops. To get maximum yield and output from the crop plants, a vicious cycle of using the maximum amount of chemical amendments is going on. In the chemical amendments, indiscriminate use of both fertilizers and pesticides are included. Due to this indiscriminate use of these fertilizers and pesticides, our environment is being polluted and living organisms on this planet are experiencing the deleterious effects of all this on their health. These chemicals also exert their influence on soil flora and fauna, therefore the balance of macro and micronutrients release in soil is being disturbed and as a consequence soil fertility and productivity is decreasing day by day. Therefore, for sustainable agriculture healthy farming is fast becoming an urgent necessity.

The problems being faced are the destruction of the soil health leading to reduction in production potential, failure of pest control strategies due to the development of pesticide resistance, biomagnification of pesticides such as reside problems in food and water. The food grain produced and assessed with attributes of fertilizers, the fertilizer efficiency seems to be decreasing. In 1970-71 it was 17.1%, declined in 1980-81 to 10.3% and in 1988-89 reached to 8.1%. Now a day, farmers are not properly using organic, green and compost manures in crop husbandry. Soil fertility and ground water level has been declining very fast by adopting intensive farming. If soil health of any country has been depleted, then the food grain production will also tend to decrease.

Production of any selected species of earthworm in a particular place adopting semi-natural condition is called vermiculturing. As discussed earlier in chapter 2 and 4, commercial production of certain earthworm species is essential to meet up the huge demand of earthworms for vermicomposting of organic wastes, for production of earthworm meal for pet animals, poultry and fish farming, for preparation of medicine and for their use in reducing toxic chemicals from soil and water, etc. Since during vermicomposting, earthworm multiplies in vermicompost beds, many people confuse between this two terms – vermiculturing and vermicomposing.

The importance of earthworms in agriculture and human health has been realized since prehistoric times. The famous Greek philosopher, Aristotle (384-322 B.C.) first described the importance of earthworm by calling them as “The intestines of the Earth”. The question, ‘How lime and charcoal from soil surface gets into lower layers?’ in the mind of Sir Charles Darwin (1809-1882 A.D.) ended up with the findings in 1837 that earthworms took those materials to lower layers and it played a significant role in formation of humified soil layer. He wrote in his book, “The formation of vegetable mould through the actions of worms” in 1881 that ‘The plough is one of the most ancient and most valuable of man’s inventions; but long before he existed the land was in fact regularly ploughed, and still continues to be thus ploughed by earthworms.

1. The rearing of earthworms for composting wastes into valuable nutrients

is known as …. . .

 a) Organic farming b) Organic manuring

 c) Vermitechnology d) Sustainable technology

 2. Vermitechnology provide …. . .

 a) Vermiwash b) Vermicompost

 c) Organic fertilizer d) All of these

 3. Vermicompost improves …. . . property of soil.

 a) Physical b) Chemical

 c) Biological d) All of these

 4. In class oligochaeta …. . .

 a) Parapodia  absent b) Clitellum present

 c) Pharynx without jaws d) All of these

 5. In which order earthworm is placed?

 a) Oilgochaeta b) Frrantia

 c) Neooligochaeta d) Sedentaria

4.1. Promotion of Kitchen Gardening 4.1.1. Essential Guide Lines for Kitchen Gardening • The location should be in the backyard of the house. As far as practicable, kitchen garden plot should be located near to the well, water tap or other source of irrigation. It should never be located in the shady area of home, which is generally not suitable for most of the vegetables. There should be enough of sunlight for major part of day. • It should be fenced with boundary wall or fruit crop or live fence all around. • The layout should be such as to make the garden look attractive and allow access to all its parts. The land should be laid out in small paths and plots. • The garden should preferably be rectangular in shape. • About 200 m2 area is sufficient for a five members family to supply about 1.5 kg vegetable per day

3.1 Introduction

The world population will grow by another 2 billion people by 2025 and feeding them will be a big challenge. Rapid industrial development and fast urbanization, the arable lands are continuously shrinking. Many scientists and researchers reported that the Earth had lost a third of its arable lands over the last 40 years¹. In the current scenario, the most challenging task for agricultural sciences is to ensure for continuous and enough supply of food to growing human civilization. Presently, all available arable land on the earth are using extensive pesticides and fertilizers in various ways that are not sustainable as well as harmful to the environment.

There is an urgent need to think about sustainable farming options as arable land for farming is continuously reducing to fulfil the food material demand of growing population. Vertical farming can produce more food from fewer land and water resources. Though it takes out many of the risks inherent in outdoor crop production. With the control of light exposure, indoor temperature, relative humidity and watering levels, growers can grow food very efficiently. Vertical farming has the potential to produce food with less energy, less water, less waste and in less space than traditional methods. It also negates the need for harmful chemical fertilizers and pesticides. Developing and installing vertical farm in those areas where people need good quality healthy food, tackle the shortage of nutritive food material at a local level. Vertical farming can be defined as it is the practice of growing crops in vertically stacked layers where controlled-environment agriculture practices usually incorporated with the aims to optimize plant growth. The soilless farming techniques such as hydroponics, aquaponics, and aeroponics also incorporated in vertical farming as shown in Fig. 3.1. Vertical farming is a very old idea, and indigenous peoples used vertically layered growing techniques like the rice terraces of East Asia. The term vertical farming was coined by American geologist Gilbert Ellis Bailey in 1915. In 1999, Dickson Despommier, a professor at New York’s Columbia University, popularized the modern idea of vertical farming, building upon the idea together with his students.

With the advent of modernization and urbanization, people are shifting from rural to urban areas, thereby, urban population is increasing day by day resulting in congested cities and towns. All around the world, a huge number of buildings are being constructed adding many more in future. Throughout the years, replacement of vegetated surfaces with paved and impervious surfaces in the urban areas have increased the temperature as compared to rural areas, because the paved surfaces absorbs, retain and reradiate more solar energy than vegetation. The ambient temperature in urban area can be as much as 6oC higher than the air in rural areas.

This is a special kind of garden made with help of vertical structures and plants are grown / trained in special manner. Besides, roofs can also be converted into green roof. Restricted availability of ground space, modification of residential places and quest for growing plants have given birth of vertical gardening. Practically, this type of gardening has widened the scope of growing plants. Small spaces can also be converted into a lively place with proper design. Even bare walls can be converted into an attractive green wall with proper structure and designing with plants.

Advantages

Vertical gardening is ideal for urban areas especially for people living in the apartments. Following advantages have been recorded.

Foliage diversity of a forest stand has an important role in providing food for tropical forest birds. This feature adds to the ability of tropical forests to harbour high bird diversity. Studies on forest bird communities mainly examined the parameters like structure of forest bird communities (Nilson, 1983); distributions (Howe et al., 1981) and community organisation (Landers and Mac Mohan, 1980). The pioneering, studies of Mac Arthur and Mac Arthur (1961) established the relationship between bird diversity and foliage density. Mac Arthur et al. (1962) and Mac Arthur et al. (1966) supported the above hypothesis. Some studies have showed negative relationship also (Wiens, 1983). Other vegetation characters, which have significant effect on bird diversity are foliage volume, percentage vegetation cover (Karr and Roth, 1971), percentage canopy cover (Crawford et al., 1981; Wiens and Rottenberry, 1981; James and Wamer, 1982). In India Ramakrishnan (1983) examined many bird community parameters at Silent Valley. Diversity and structure of birds were also studied by Johnsingh et al. (1987), Katti (1989), Daniels (1989), Sundaramoorthy (1991), Johnsingh and Joshua (1994), Gokula and Vijayan (1996). Even though many studies have been reported on the forest bird communities from South India, relation between foliage abundance and bird diversity have not been dealt in detail. The correlation between the abundance of birds in different height classes of tropical forest canopy with foliage abundance is reported in this chapter. The study forms part of a major investigation (Jayson, 1994), which determined many ecological aspects of two bird communities. Seasonal changes in these bird communities were reported earlier (Jayson and Mathew, 2000).

ABSTRACT

Vesicular arbuscular mycorrhizal (VAM) fungi are known to improve the mineral nutrient and water status of the plants even under various abiotic stresses. During present investigations VAM fungus Glomus fasciculatum was used for developing mycorrhizal association with Sesbania sesban (L.) Merrill. In general mycorrhizal (M) plants exhibited better growth and development and showed significantly higher chlorophyll content, better PS II as well as PS I activities when compared to NM plants.

In general, both M and NM plants invariably showed reduced growth and development upon exposure to drought stress. However, the M plants could confront this abiotic stress more effectively than the NM plants. This was vindicated by the faster decline in the chlorophyll content and the photochemical activities in NM plants in comparison to the M plants upon exposure to drought stress. The higher photosynthetic efficiency of the M plants under drought stress indicate the presence of certain adaptive strategies in the form of osmotic adjustment operational in these plants through VAM association. The osmotic potential of the leaf cell sap in M plants was significantly lower than that of NM plants of Sesbania sesban, when exposed to either drought stress. The lower y of M plants as compared to NM plants under drought stress could be due to the accumulation of compatible solutes such as proline and sugars. A higher level of proline accumulation in the leaves of M plants than NM plants exposed to drought stress help them to counteract the adverse effects of stress better than NM plants.

Introduction

Vesicular arbuscular mycorrhizae are fungi that exhibit symbiosis with roots of higher plants. The term vesicular arbuscular is derived from characteristic structure i.e. ‘branched hyphae or arbuscles’ that are formed with in the root cortical cells and vesicles or ‘swollen lipid storing organs’ that occur with in or between them.

Histology

Cell: Structural and functional unit of an organism

M. Schleiden & Theodor Schwan – proposed cell theory

- All living being made up of cell

Tissue: Group of cell and their extracellular product organized to perform a particular function

M. Malpighii – Father of histology

Administration

Term Administration is derived from a Latin word Administaire which means to serve. The word administration is also derived from the English word administracioun, which is in turn is derived from the French word administration, which itself has its root from the Latin word administratio, which means ad (to) and ministratio (give service). The term administration is a more general and comprehensive connotation and may be defined as the universal process of organizing people and resources efficiently so as to direct activities toward common goals and objectives. Administration is a distinct skill and directed towards the guidance, leadership and control of the efforts of a group of individuals towards some common goal.

Administration is the art of guiding, coordinating and integrating policies established for any organizational unit to effectively and efficiently achieve the purpose of the organization.

1665 Robert Hooke had successfully invented the microscope. Because of this discovery, Robert Hooke was the first one to have a close look of a cell appears to be. His description of these cells was published in Micrographia. However, the cell walls observed by Hooke gave no indication of the nucleus and other organelles found in most living cells.

1674 Anton van Leeuwenhoek witnessed a live cell (plant) under a microscope.

1775 Antoine Lavoisier first proposed a mechanism for photosynthesis, a process wherein plants plants take in carbon dioxide and release oxygen. Lavoisier was also the first to investigate cell respiration in animals.

1777-83 Chemistry became dominated by the phlogiston theory, or the hypothetical principle of fire wherein all the combustible material was part composed. In this principle, burning (oxidation) was caused by liberating phlogiston, with ash as the dephlogistigated substance.

1836 The proponent of the cell theory in Biology, Theodore Schwann, proposed that the process of fermentation is solely limited to living yeast cells in 1836. Liebig did not agree to this and instead, he proposed another alternative theory of fermentation.

1856 Louis Pasteur opposed Liebig’s chemical theory. In his experiment, he showed that fermentation depends highly on the physiological functions that occur in bacteria and in living yeast cells. This work of Pasteur in 1856 received general recognition.

1860s The view on the chemistry of life highly different from the chemistry of nonliving things. During this period, the view is that the gelatinous and homogenous form of matter in organisms or more commonly known as the protoplasm carries out all the intracellular processes. These include respiration, biosynthesis of molecules, and the breakdown of matter.

Embry Transfer Technology (ETT)

Definition: The process of removing one or more embryos from the reproductive tract of a donor female and transferring them to one or more recipient females.

A Hospital Management System not only provides an opportunity to the hospital to enhance their patient care but can also increase the profitability of the organization. These kinds of applications enable hospitals and doctors to serve their patients better. Computers are being extensively used for routine administrative purposes by health care professionals.

In veterinary medicine, hospital management software is designed for all types of practices, ranging from small, single-vet ones to large ones with multiple locations and vets, and covers a wide range of hospital administration and management processes. It is an integrated end–to-end management system that provides relevant information across the hospital to support effective decision making for patient care, administration & critical financial accounting in a seamless flow. Specific areas of application include scheduling of appointments, registration of cases including client and patient data, case history and electronic medical records, health care reports, reminders, inventory controls, reports and accounting.

Foot-and-Mouth Disease

Loeffler and Frosch in 1897. Apthovirus of Picornaviridae. Strain O, A, C, Asia-1, SAT-1, 2, 3.

Cattle as Indicator host, Pig as amplifier, Sheep as maintenance host.

Musculature of heart in calves will have striped appearance termed as TIGER HEART.

Panting is common feature or sequel following FMD due to disturb endocrine function.

Preferred cell line for virus isolation in BHK-21.

Our general environment is loaded with tiny invisible living things that influence us consistently. Microbiology is a specialized area of science that deals with living things typicallytoo little to be seen without magnification. Suchmicroscopic life forms are collectively referred to as microorganisms. Microbial kingdom incorporates the study of bacteria, rickettsiae, viruses, fungi, algae and protozo a. Virology the study of viruses, mycology study of fungi and protozoology deals with protozoa.Credit for prologue to microbial world goes to ‘Antony van Leeuwenhoek’ and to vistas of microbial activities to ‘Louis Pasteur’ and ‘Robert Koch’. This period is reffered as the “Golden Era” of microbiology on account of the significant discoveries viz: microbial fermentations, discovery of various disease-causing agents, microbes’ cultivations, differences in metabolic activities, development of attenuated strains and their use as immunoprophylactic agents. The techniques used to study bacteria and different microorganisms embody direct microscopic examination, cultivation, biochemical tests, animal inoculation, serological reactivity and recent molecular biological techniques.Definitive evidence for the cause of a given infection is established by Koch that are still used to this day to definitively prove that a microorganism causes a particular disease. Koch’s four postulates are:

Veterinary Nuclear Medicine (VNM)

Veterinary Nuclear Medicine (VNM) is a specialized field that uses radioisotopes to detect, diagnose, and treat diseases. Gamma scintigraphy involves injecting radioactive tracer pharmaceuticals into the animal’s body and imaging them as they move through the body using a gamma radiation-sensitive camera. This technique provides a 2D or 3D image of the whole body or a specific organ, allowing for the estimation of the quantitative distribution within the region of interest (ROI). Advancements in gamma scintigraphy have allowed for the acquisition of information about both static and dynamic high-resolution images, such as heart wall motion, blood flow, and myocardial perfusion. Unlike other diagnostic modalities viz X-rays, ultrasonography, and CT; gamma scintigraphy offers functional information of specific organs. The most commonly used gamma radiation-emitting isotope is 99m-Technetium (99mTc), which emits a gamma energy of 98% 140-keV photon with only 10% internal conversion. Other radionuclides used in veterinary nuclear medicine facilities include iodine (123I and 131I), Gallium (67Ga), and Thallium (201Ti).

This chapter explores the essential techniques used in veterinary parasitology to collect, identify, and diagnose parasitic infections. These methods are crucial for understanding general animal health, the complex relationships between parasites and their hosts and for tracking disease outbreaks, that will ultimately allow the development of effective control strategies. Whether in a research lab or a clinical setting, the techniques discussed here are widely used to detect and study parasites that impact both domestic and wild animals.
2.1 Collection of Specimens for Parasitological Examinations
Different species of parasites affects almost all parts of the host. These organisms can inhabit virtually every organ system of the host animal, from the brain and lungs to the digestive tract and skin. Therefore, a thorough examination of both living animals and post-mortem cases is essential for collecting parasites and determining cause of death (when applicable). When collecting from live animals, samples should be collected after through exanimation of the animals and following the standard procedure. The collection of correct samples, use of appropriate transport media and proper handling of specimens are crucial factors that directly influence diagnostic accuracy.
The type of specimen collected depends on the methods of identification and diagnosis. For example, diagnosis of blood parasites requires specific types of samples: peripheral blood smears for microscopic examination of hemoprotozoans, serum or plasma for ELISA and other serological tests, and unclotted whole blood for molecular diagnostic methods such as PCR and qPCR.

Parasite- The word parasite is derived from the Greek. Para- beside and sitos- food. Parasites are those living organism which reside on or inside the body of some other species of living organism.

Host- Those organisms which provide food shelter and conducive environment to parasite for their growth, development and reproduction. e.g. Tape worm in small intestine of man and animals.

Disease = dis + aise (see + ease) old French word

Transmission- Movement of biological agents (Virus, Bacteria, Rickettsial, Fungi & Parasites) from one place to another place via vector or vehicle/ tools

Vector- Latin word- bearer

Vector is a living organism (usually an arthropod) which transfers infective forms of a parasite from one host to the other.

Pathology is derived from Greek word (Pathos=disease + logos=study). It is study of structure and function of body in disease.

Veterinary Pathology is the study of anatomical, chemical and physiological alterations in comparison to normal due to disease in animals. Pathology has responsibility to forms a vital bridge between preclinical sciences (Anatomy, Physiology, Biochemistry) and clinical branches of medicine and surgery.

General Pathology deals with the basic alterations of tissues as a result of disease. e.g. fatty changes, thrombosis, amyloidosis, embolism, necrosis etc.

Systemic Pathology is related to the alterations in tissues/organs of a particular system. e.g. respiratory system, genital system etc.

Special Pathology is the application of the basic reactions of gene general pathology to various specific diseases.

Gross or Macroscopic Pathology is the examination of tissue without the help of a microscope.