eChapters

Advancement of both biological sciences and computer technology gave birth today’s one of the hottest area known as bioinformatics. Gradually bioinformatics analysis has become an essential component to the continued improvement and development of any kind of biological research work. It has various applications in medicine, biotechnology, agriculture etc. Some of the applications of bioinformatics related to biological information analysis are as follows [1]
    
·    Information related to bio-molecules can be mapped (e.g.), the sequences can be parsed to find sites where so-called “restriction enzymes” will cut them.
    
·    Sequences can be compared, usually by aligning corresponding segments and looking for matching and mismatching letters in their sequences. Genes or proteins that are sufficiently similar are likely to be related and are therefore said to be “homologous” to each other.
    
·    If a homologous exists then a newly discovered protein may be modeled - that is 3D structure of the gene product can be predicted without doing laboratory experiments.
    
·    Bioinformatics is used to attempt to predict the function of actual gene products.

The advances in science and technology are deeply intertwined. Researchers can use the semiconductor manufacturing techniques that underlie miniaturization to build radios and exceptionally small mechanical structures that sense fields and forces in the physical world. These inexpensive, low-power communication devices can be deployed throughout a physical space, providing dense sensing close to physical phenomena, processing and communicating this information, and coordinating actions with other nodes. These multifunction devices are battery operated and are connected wirelessly with sensing, processing and communicating capabilities and are known as the wireless sensors. If we use these sensors with biological issues or Biotechnology, then we can find the new concepts biosensors. If we really implement these concepts in real life we can get rid of many diseases like heart attack, blood sugar level, gene reaction and other changes that happens in our body much before its shows to outside.

Introduction
 
Safety is one of the first, and most important, things to consider when we decide to apply the pesticides indoors to treat or prevent a pest infestation. If proper safety measures are not followed, the outcome may be harmful or fatal. Perhaps all of us more or less aware about the fact that there is no pesticide which is “absolutely safe” to human or other non target organisms. But we may call some are safer than others.

We usually use pesticide of various kinds in and around our home. We use these products to control insects (insecticides), termites (termiticides), rodents (rodenticides), fungi (fungicides) and microbes (disinfectants).

Horticulture value chains are facing growing consumer expectations for variety, food safety and security. Most horticulture supply chains operate in a push-based approach rather than demand driven or pull based, which leads to a mismatch between demand expectations and supply side capabilities. In developed markets in, India, horticulture supply chains are experiencing by excess capacity, lack of differentiation and lower prices and ultimately leading to glut. Last year the 326 MT of Horticultural production for year ending 2019-20, emerging market challenges are more related to supply shortage, lack of product variety, and safety and quality of the produce. All this leads to low income among hortipreneurs, who lack visioning and strategy for production and value addition opportunities in horticulture.

Water is most essential thing to sustain life for plants, human and animals. In fact, land and water are the two important natural resources, which play an important role in horticulture production. Irrigation is the lifeline for any crop production. As Pomegranate is mostly grown under water scarce regions of India, so utilization of available water more effective and efficient irrigation system is need along micro-irrigation system offers the way of using water in a most judicious fashion for irrigation purpose. It is based on the elementary concept on irrigating root zone rather than entire land surface which results in higher water use efficiency and improved crop yield. This technique is now being used to mitigate water scare situation in the pomegranate growing regions of the country in enormous way.

16.1    Banana Alcohol
    
16.2    Banana Pseudostem Fibre and Fibre Reinforced Products
    
16.3    Banana Pseudostem Juice
    
16.4    Banana Starch
    
16.5    Banana Waste for Mushroom Production
    
16.6    Paper and Pulp from Banana Waste
    
16.7    Vermicompost and Vermiwash from Banana Waste
    
16.8    Animal Feed from Banana Waste
    
16.9    Banana Leaf

ABSTRACT
The annual accumulating organic wastes generated through milling, brewing and various other agro-industrial and agri-processing activities in India amount to about 500 MMT. Most of these contain three major structural biopolymers, viz., cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin, a large proportion of which is carbohydrate and phenolic in nature. Massive accumulations of this kind of recalcitrant biomass not only deteriorate the environment, but also generate huge amount of potentially useful materials. Biological transformation has globally become increasingly popular among researchers and academicians in treating agricultural, industrial, organic and toxic wastes these days. About 60% by weight of the original pineapple fruit in forms of peeled skin, core, crown end, etc. resulting from the pineapple processing remains unutilised being discharged as waste, causing disposal and pollution owes. Of the 10% dry matter content of such waste, about 96% is organic and 4% is inorganic. Being rich in cellulose and hemicellulose, it can be a valuable resource for numerous value-added products by bioconverting it to valuable products, including bioenergy. Biomethane is one such energy resource that can be produced by valorizing pineapple wastes by employing various bioconversion technologies. This chapter focuses on the bioconverstion technologies to produce biomethane from pineapple wastes.

Introduction

Horticulture plays a significant role in Indian Agriculture. It contributes 30% GDP from 11.73 % of its arable land area. India is the second largest producer of both fruits and vegetables in the world (52.85 Mt and 108.20 Mt respectively). Being rich source of carbohydrates, minerals, vitamins and dietary fibres these constitute an important part of our daily diet. The dietary fibres have several direct and indirect advantages. Not only this, fruits and vegetables provide a variety in taste, interest and aesthetic appeal. Their significance in human life is being recognised increasingly in societies with the objective of minimizing the occurrence of the diseases related with an affluent life style.

1.    Introduction
    
2.    Different Forms of Value Added Products
    
3.    Production of Fish Steaks
    
4.    Battered and Breaded Products
    
5.    Minced Fish Based Products
    5.1    Fish cakes
    5.2    Fish cutlets
    5.3    Fish sausage
    5.4    Dehydrated salted fish cakes
    5.5    Fish fingers
    5.6    Fish burgers
    5.7    Fish balls
    5.8    Fish wafers
    5.9    Fish soup powder
    
6.    Surimi and Surimi Based Products
    6.1    Kamaboko
    6.2    Chikuwa
    6.3    Tempura
    6.4    Hampen
    
7.    Modern Seafood Analog Products
    7.1    Imitation crab meat
    
8.    Marinated Fish Products
    
9.    Fermented Fish Products
    9.1    Fish pickle
    
10.    Sous Vide Cook-Chill Products
    
11.    Precooked Seafood Entrees
    
12.    Future Needs
    
References

Principal Scientist and I/c Head, Division of Social Sciences and Training IIHR, Hessaraghatta Lake Post, Bangalore – 560 089, Karnataka

A value chain is a series of consecutive steps that go into the creation of a finished product, from its initial design to its arrival at a customer’s door. The chain identifies each step in the process at which value is added, including the sourcing, manufacturing, and marketing stages of its production. A company conducts a value-chain analysis by evaluating the detailed procedures involved in each step of its business. The purpose of a value-chain analysis is to increase production efficiency so that a company can deliver maximum value for the least possible cost.

Edible bananas are classified into several main groups and subgroups. In the first place is the diploid M. acuminata group which originated in Malaya, Indonesia, the Philippines, Southern India, East Africa, Burma, Thailand, the West Indies, Colombia and Brazil. This group is characterized by dark-brown sheaths of pseudostem,  and the leaves are nearly free from wax. The bunches are small and the fruits small, thin-skinned and sweet. Cultivars of this group are more important in New Guinea than any where else. Lady Finger which was popular in Queensland and New South Wales belonged to this group.

In second place, there was a group represented by the prominent and widely cultivated ‘Gros Michel’ originally from Burma, Thailand, Malaya, Indonesia and Ceylon. It was introduced into Martinique early in the 19th Century by a French naval officer and, a few years later, was taken to Jamaica; from there it was carried to Fiji, Nicaragua, Hawaii and Australia, in that sequence. It is a large, tall plant bearing long bunches of large, yellow fruits, and it was formerly the leading commercial cultivar in Central Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean, but has been phased out because of its great susceptibility to Panama disease. It has given rise to several named sports or mutants (Mortan, 1987). 

10.1 Plasmids
    
10.2 Retrovirus

1.    Vegetables for Nutritional and Health Security
    
2.    Status of Vegetable Production
    
3.    Classification of Vegetable Crops
    
4.    Influence of Environment on Vegetable Production
    
5.    Management of Seedlings in Nursery
    
6.    Vegetables Based Cropping System
    
7.    Water Management
    
8.    Plant Nutrients and Integrated Nutrients Management
    
9.    Micro-Irrigation and Fertigation
    
10.    Pollination Management
    
11.    Integrated Pest Management
    
12.    Biological Management of Diseases
    
13.    Mechanisms of Biocontrol
    
14.    Weed Management
    
15.    Management of Vegetable Crops Under Polyhouse
    
16.    Post Harvest Handling and Storage of Vegetables
    
17.    Marketing and Export of Vegetables
    
18.    Export Trade of Vegetables in India
    
19.    Seed Technology
        
References

Abstract

India is primarily agrarian country and this sector provides livelihood to a major part of the population. The indiscriminate use of agro chemicals since green revolution resulted in adverse effect on the soil fertility; crop productivity; quality of produce and more specifically on the environment system. Organic cultivation is the form of agriculture that relies on techniques such as crop rotation, green manure, compost, and biofertilizers which helps to maintain soil productivity. Organic farming excludes or strictly limits the use of chemical fertilizers, pesticides (herbicide, insecticides and fungicides), plant growth regulators, livestock feed additives, antibiotics and genetically modified organisms. Thus, the importance of organic sources of nutrients was recognized in current scenario in order to get higher yield without disturbing soil health. In this context integrated use of inorganic and organic sources of nutrients in crop production is becoming very crucial for assurance of food security on sustainable basis, which in turn not only improve the soil fertility for sustained crop productivity but also to reduce the cost of inorganic fertilizers.

INTRODUCTION

Persian walnut (Juglans regia L.) is of great importance across worldwide where nuts are harvested from wild stands, backyard gardens and rarely from commercial orchards that vary considerably in their size and degree of management. Nuts are collected for home consumption, sale at local roadside stands and markets and for shipping to cities. Walnut trees are further utilized for their high quality timber to make a wide array of products. The leaves, bark and other plant parts are used for medicinal remedies and trees are grown and maintained for soil conservation purposes (Mamadjanov, 2006b). A diverse mix of seedlings, local selections, and advanced cultivars are grown for nut production, many with unknown origins, including some of which are the direct result of selection from the wild.

The UN designation of 2013 as the International Year of Water Cooperation aptly demonstrates growing gap between water supply and demand. These symptoms, which are already visible in a few regions around India, are soon to assume a national proportion and may become permanent feature of the water sector in the country, unless suitable policies are adopted quickly to manage water demand and supply at different levels. Water demand is growing fast due to a rapid population growth and economic activity, but water supply is not growing at the same rate because of serious ûnancial and physical limits for supply augmentation. Water resources developed at present amount to about 680 km³, which constitutes 61% of the utilizable potential of 1122 km³. However, it is difficult to add supply beyond this level due to heavy costs, environmental concerns and interstate water conûicts. In contrast, the total demand for water is projected to reach 784–843 km3 by 2025 and 973–1180 km³ by 2050 (Ministry of Water Resources, 2000). Recent research studies predict that, if the demand– supply gap continues to increase, nine basins that have over four-ûfths of the total water use in India will face physical water scarcity by 2050 (see Amarasinghe et al., 2007). For a heavily populated, monsoon-dependent and rural-based country, such as India, water scarcity of this magnitude will not only lead to serious water conûicts among sectors and regions, but also have a devastating effect on the food and livelihood fronts.

Introduction

Arid lands are among the world’s most fragile ecosystems, made more so by periodic droughts and increasing over exploitation of meagre resources. Arid and semi-arid lands cover around one-third of the world’s land area and are inhabited by about one billion people, a large proportion of whom are among the poorest in the world (Malagnoux et al. 2007). Arid environments are extremely diverse in terms of their land forms, soils, fauna, flora, water, and human activities. Aridity is usually expressed as ratio of mean annual precipitation (P) to the mean annual potential evapotranspiration (EPT) where potential evapotranspiration is calculated by method of Penman, taking into account atmospheric humidity, solar radiation, and wind speed. UNEP (1997) has recognized four main classes of aridity: hyper-arid (P/EPT < 0.03), arid (0.03 < P/EPT < 0.20), semi-arid (0.20 < P/EPT < 0.50), and dry sub-humid (0.50 < P/EPT < 0.65). Of the total land area of the world, the hyper-arid zone covers 4.2 %, the arid zone 14.6 %, and the semi-arid zone 12.2 % (FAO 1989). Therefore, almost one-third of the total area of the world is “arid land”. 

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

Water is one of the most important inputs essential for tree growth, development and fruit production. Fruit trees need it continuously during their life in optimum quantities. It profoundly influences photosynthesis, respiration, absorption, translocation and utilization of mineral nutrients, and cell division besides some other processes. Both its shortage and excess affect the growth and development of a plant directly and, consequently, its yield and quality. In India, however, rainfall is notoriously capricious, causing floods and droughts alternately. Its frequency distribution and amount are not in accordance with the needs of the particular fruit crops. Artificial water supplies through irrigation on one occasion, and the removal of excess water through drainage on another occasion, therefore, become imperative, if the fruit crops are to be raised successfully. Water management in India, thus, comprises irrigation or drainage or both, depending considerably on the environmental conditions, soil, crops and climate. Applying the proper amount of water at the right time is important for reducing costs and maximizing profits. It is essential, therefore, that there be a scientifically sound method for determining when to irrigate and how much water to apply for optimum crop response and efficient use of resources.