eChapters

1. The first Indian scientist who won the ‘World Food Prize’ is:

 a) Sanjay Rajaram b) M.S. Swaminathan

 c) Vergese Kurien d) G.S. Khus

 2. Seed rate of paddy (kg/ha) in SRI (System of Rice Intensification) method of cultivation is:

 a) 5-6 b) 8-10

 c) 12-14 d) 18-20

 3. AVRDC is situated at:

 a) Phillipines b Taiwan

 c) Japan d) India

“Activities which develop individual knowledge, talents, skills, and behaviour and improve institutional structures and processes so that the organization may efficiently accomplish its mission and goals in a sustainable manner” it refers as a capacity building. One of the crucial elements of capacity building is training.

Training for Development

Training is becoming an integral component of HRD. It has developed into one of the elements that allows any institution to produce its personnel who are the most productive and qualified.

Introduction
Next-generation sequencing (NGS), a High Throughput Sequencing (HTS) methodology, sometimes referred to as deep sequencing or massively parallel sequencing, has completely changed genomic research and DNA sequencing. Compared to the traditional Sanger sequencing approach, which took more than ten years to finish the human genome project, this state-of-the-arttechnology allows scientists to sequence a full human genome in a single day (Behjati and Tarpey, 2013). Although Sanger sequencing has mostly been replaced by NGS in research areas, it is still not widely used in clinical areas (Slatko et al., 2018). High-throughput DNA sequencing techniques have developed quickly over the past 20 years, and new approaches are constantly being developed. A greater range of applications in the basic and applied sciences become available as these technologies advance (Reis-Filho, 2009).
Overfishing, pollution, and climate change are putting the world’s aquatic ecosystems, which are home to a wide variety of fish species under previously unheard-of strain (Prakash, 2021). For effective conservation and management, accurate and efficient monitoring of fish diversity is therefore essential (Meinam et al., 2023). Techniques like physical capture and morphological identification have been used historically, but they can be intrusive, time-consuming, and labor-intensive. A new age of fish diversity monitoring has been brought about by the development of NGS technologies, which provide a potent and noninvasive substitute (Kumar and Kocour, 2017). Rapid and thorough genetic material analysis is made possible by NGS, which offers previously unheardof insights into the distribution, composition, and population dynamics of species.

Introduction

The increasingly precarious situation facing the world’s hill regions has been the focus of a growing level of awareness over the past two decades. The high altitude regions offer a challenge to agricultural development agencies which is shared by many hill areas of the world characterized by marginality, extreme diversity, environmental fragility and complex smallholder farming systems. There is justifiable concern relating to the conservation of hill and mountain ecosystems, to the extent that the concept of sustainability has been adopted as a broad slogan by the environmental movement (Lele, 1991).

Conditions specific to mountain regions, such as inaccessibility and diversity have placed a high premium on large families, encouraging population growth. Children are essential to family subsistence strategies offering free labour, and they are consequently considered to be a source of wealth. Population control measures in these regions have ignored this scenario (Sharma and Banskota 1990; Jodha, 1991).

Summary

ISFM is important, cost-effective and has the potential of improving farming efficiency and crop productivity. This is only possible when farmers understand the concept and follow recommended practices in the ISFM approach.
 
The challenge is how to effectively disseminate ISFM practices to farmers for sustainable crop production.

Major Families

This chapeter deals with indigenous knowledge on use of various plant species in traditional medicine, food, dye, wood and in tanning etc.

Malvaceae

The family Malvaceae is also known as Mallow family, characterised by mainly shrubs and herbs. The plants of this family frequent have stellate trichomes, persistant sepals, epicalyx present, stamens numerous and monadelphous, anthers monothecous, carpels 5 or more.

Abroma angusta (Devil’s Cotton)

Paste of the leaf is applied to heal wounds and to relieve joint pain or back pain. Young shoots are used as food. Roots are used to cure itching.

Abutilon indicum (Kanghi)

The whole plant is used to make brooms. Plant also has medicinal value and its sap is used against ulcer, leprosy, piles, dysentery and fever.

Introduction

One of the main properties of fermented foods whether alkaline or acidic is the presence and activity of beneficial organisms which themselves make these foods functional. These functional micro organisms have varied roles like conversion of the native constituents of raw materials to forms in which they are more bioavailable, formation of taste, colour and flavouring compounds thereby imparting pleasantness to foods, removal of anti-nutritive factors in food by converting them into much less harmful compounds or degrade certain native toxic elements present in food, formation of biopreservatives which will extend the shelf life of foods and provide microbial security, as pathogens and spoilage microorganisms fail to readily grow in such hostile conditions. These functional microorganisms also produce in foods certain health-promoting bioactive compounds like enzymes, vitamins, minerals or increase the digestibility which may not have been in the original food or raw material before fermentation. In other words they improve the nutrition profile of the foods or naturally fortify foods. Some of these beneficial effects may also lead to the formation of certain compounds which show antioxidant properties in foods. These very roles played by these functional micro-organisms form criteria in their selection for use in food fermentations when they are intentionally added to foods both to initiate and accomplish desired fermentations.

1. The end product of glycolysis is:

 a) Malic acid b) Citric acid

 c) Pyruvic acid d) Oxalic acid

 2. Tag colour of certified seed is:

 a) White b) Purple

 c) Blue d) Golden yellow

 3. Which of the following varietyiesof sweet potato is rich in carotene content?

 a) Gauri b) Rajendra Shakarkand-35

 c) Pusa Sundri d) Rajendra Shakarkand-43

INTRODUCTION

Functional genomics is the science where genes are employed to determine their function. The gene expression is an approach to analyze the functional changes in the genes. The expression level for a gene across different experimental conditions are cumulatively called the gene expression profile and the expression levels for all the genes under an experimental condition are cumulatively called the sample expression profile. Different techniques for gene expression analysis have been used so far. cDNA-AFLP (Bachem et al., 1996), SAGE (Serial Analysis of Gene Expression) (Neto, Neto & Costa, 2012) and MPSS (Massive Parallel Signature Sequencing) (Brenner et al., 2000) are the techniques for expression analysis where the genomic or transcriptome sequence of the organism is not needed. Some advanced and largely used techniques are Microarrays (Schena et al., 1995) and Real-time PCR (Higuchi et al., 1993) where the previous knowledge of the sequence is required. These two techniques are most frequently used for gene expression analysis (Perez-Torres et al., 2009). DNA microarray technology has made it possible to simultaneously monitor the expression levels of thousands of genes during important biological processes and across collections of related samples (Jiang, Tang & Zhang, 2004).

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.

Introduction

Over the past few decades, probiotics have become the most promising and emerging field in human nutrition and health across the world including India and other developing countries. The global profit generated from the probiotic market is expected to reach approximately 12,753.4 million US$ by the end of 2026 (Probiotic market report, 2018). The factor fueling the demand for probiotics is the growing awareness among consumers about their health benefits. The association of probiotics with health benefits stretches back to a time before microbes were discovered. However, the scientific evidence of the health benefits of probiotic microorganisms on the wellbeing of the host was firstly proposed by Russian Nobel laureate Ellie Metchnikoff in 1905. He reported that consumption of fermented milk containing Lactobacillus spp. is responsible for the healthy and long life of Bulgarian people (Anukam & Reid, 2007). Afterward, several of scientific progressions were made to reach the current status where probiotics are not only the subject of food and medical research but also the source of a multi-billion dollar global industry.

The term probiotic is derived from the Greek words, which means ‘for life’. According to the Food and Agriculture Association of the United Nations (FAO) and World Health Organization (WHO), probiotics are defined as “live microorganisms which when administered in adequate amount promote the health of the host” (Joint, FAO, 2002). In 2014, International Scientific Association for Probiotics and Prebiotics (IPPA) did minor correction in the definition given by FAO-WHO and defined them as “Live microorganisms that, when administered in adequate amounts, confer a health benefit on the host”

1. Which of the following is a variety of black carrot?

 a) Pusa Meghali b) Pusa Asita

 c) Pusa Rudhira d) Pusa Vasuda

 2. NRC for orchid is situated at:

 a) Pakyong b) Gangtok

 c) Lachen d) Aritar

 3. Bonneville variety of pea has been introduced from:

 a) USA b) Germany

 c) Sweden d) UK

3.1 Entrepreneurship

3.1.1 The Concept and Definitions

Entrepreneurship is the active search for possibilities using originality and innovation. Taking prudent risks, effectively mobilising and managing resources, and adjusting to shifting market conditions are all part of it. By adding value and having a beneficial effect, entrepreneurs want to expand both commercially and socially.

3.1.2 Meaning of Entrepreneur

The French word "Entrepredre," which means "to undertake" is where the name "Entrepreneur" got its etymological roots. It was originally used to refer to a commander or planner of military missions in France during the 16th century when the phrase first gained popularity.

An entrepreneur is someone who has the knowledge, drive, and vision necessary to launch, run, and succeed in a new business venture while accepting the risks involved in doing so with the intention of making a profit. A common illustration of entrepreneurship is the act of founding a new company. Entrepreneurs are acknowledged as sources of innovation since they bring new concepts and creations to market, frequently displacing preexisting ones.

Introduction

The main reliance is on the use of insecticides to reduce the losses. The insecticides are the major component of “Integrated Pest Management” (IPM) in almost all the agro-ecosystem. Cotton, paddy, vegetables and fruits are grown in 32% of the cultivated area and account for over 80% of the pesticide consumption in the country. From a modest beginning in 1947, when DDT was first used for malaria control, pesticide consumption in India has grown to a total market size of over Rs. 45000 million in 2003. The total installed capacity of technical grade pesticides is approximately 140,000 tpa. Out of the 204 pesticides registered in the country, 66 technical grade pesticides are manufactured in India.

Summary

Reaching large-scale implementation should be the overriding objective of all projects that have successfully ISFM practices to share provide markets support them. All too often ISFM results are only reported in peer-reviewed journals that are not accessible outside the research community.
 
Funding agencies often fail to make the production of extension materials an integral and mandatory requirement of research projects.
Unfortunately, in the past, adoption of economically proven technology has often been poor. Some of the reasons include:

Computer played a distinctive role in the growth of most advanced, precise and highly sensitive instruments especially in medical and analytical instrumentation technology. Due to the development of different kinds of software the instrumentation analysis has become easy, rapid and result oriented. Auto sampling, development of new methods for detection analysis and the validity of new developed method have been possible with no trouble. Once the standardization of method is over and saved, it can be applied at any time to integrate the unknown samples and their data calculation. Thus, it avoids repetition in calculation and the end result is time saving technique due to the development of computer-organized system in analysis.

The results produced are more reliable and reproducible through various computer based instruments e.g. scanning machines, blood analyzer, gas chromatography (GC), amino acid analyzer (AAA), atomic absorption spectrophotometer (AAS) and high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) etc.

HPLC is a technology or a system that works on the basis of software. There have been many definitions of computer shielded HPLC, such as high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), high-pressure liquid chromatography (HPLC), high-speed liquid chromatography (HSLC), high efficiency liquid chromatography (HELC), and simply liquid chromatography (LC).

Abstract

Carbohydrates are the primary product of photosynthesis and key source of energy in plant and therefore play important role in plant growth and development. Plant carbohydrates are classified into two categories structural carbohydrates and Non-structural carbohydrates (NSCs). NSCs are main component of vegetative tissue and inside the cell they are present in plastids, cytosol, apoplast and vacuoles. Starch is the storage carbohydrate and is used in unfavorable condition on other hand soluble sugars support functions like supporting new growth and defense as they are intermediary metabolites, osmolytes, and substrates for transport. Under unfavorable condition carbon assimilation is less than the plant demand and under such condition these NSC act as “food pantry” which allow sessile plants to cope up unfavorable condition. Pattern of NSC accumulation may also differ for canopy/distal branches, stems and roots, depending on how drought has affected transport of NSC within the plant. These NSCs protect plants during desiccation and against freezing damage by stabilizing proteins complexes and membranes. Thus, NSCs are important carbohydrates for the growth and development of plant during normal as well as in stressed condition.

Salt-affected soils (SASs) are an important ecological entity in world agriculture. It varies with time and space depending on soil, rainfall, irrigation, microtopography, groundwater quality, and depth. Weathering of rocks and minerals, higher rates of evapotranspiration, deposition of wind-blown salt sediments, and seawater ingress are the significant factors contributing to the formation of SASs. Large acreage in canal-irrigated tracts of arid and semi arid areas, which suffers from water logging, is also responsible for secondary salinization. According to an estimate, about 33% of irrigated lands worldwide are affected by varying salinity and sodicity. Other reasons other than improper irrigation that cause soil salinization include deforestation, which results in salt resettling at upper and lower levels, chemical contamination, and air-borne and water-borne salts from industrial outpouring. In addition to soil salinity, the problem of poor-quality water would also significantly increase in the foreseeable future due to planned expansion in irrigated areas and intensive use of natural resources to fulfill the increasing population’s food and other livelihood requirements. Groundwater salinity under irrigated agricultural lands may or may not increase over time. The groundwater salinity will remain the same if the natural river water is used for irrigation. However, if the irrigation water is polluted and contains salts, the salinity of groundwater may show an increasing trend. The rate at which groundwater salinity may increase would depend upon the quality and quantity of recharge water, the depth of the hardpan/barrier layer under the groundwater table, and the substrate’s porosity.

INTRODUCTION

The current food crisis has put the agriculture production on a tight leash, not allowing the producers any lassitude whatsoever. Even though we have outgrown from our ‘ship to mouth existence’; our least negligence can torpedo our efforts to maintain the steady state of progress achieved in food grain production. Around 35% of what is produced is lost due to pest and diseases. In this situation, plant protection assumes significance. Unfortunately our plant protection regime begins and ends with pesticides. It is the default option in the plant protection menu and all the other options more or less remain defunct and unused. Even though, our major thrust areas of plant protection are promotion of Integrated Pest Management: ensuring availability of safe and quality pesticides for sustaining food production from the ravages of pests and diseases, streamlining the quarantine measures for accelerating the introduction of new high yielding crop varieties, besides eliminating the chances of entry of exotic pests; we remain largely insulated from these aspects in IPM.

With the Globolization and liberalization in International trade of plants and plant material in the wake of Sanitary and Phytosanitory (SPS) Agreement under WTO, the plant quarantine measures have become more imperative. Liberalization of trade policies have helped the world agriculture trade to prosper which is key sector for many countries like India whose economies are dependent on agrarian industry. But the likehood of the presence of disease/pest inherent in the import material can very well geopardize the trade. Activities are meant to help agricultural development and Plant quarantine service are charged with the responsibility of preventing the entry of hazardous pests, pathogens and weeds, but to deny entry of valuable genetic re-sources would be against national interest. These activities are meant to help agricultural development and they are complementary to each other and therefore are necessary, and we on our parts need to be fairly vigilant. As has been very truly said-An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.

Abstract

Runoff from rainfall is an important component of the hydrological cycle. Estimation of runoff is critical for the design of hydrological structures and drainage systems in watersheds. Different soils, land use, and water management practices affect runoff differently. In real watersheds, land use, soils and weather conditions vary spatially over the geographical area of the watershed leading to spatial variations in runoff. Also, most watersheds form a part of larger drainage basin or a large watershed consisting of several such subwatersheds. Each subwatershed is hydrologically connected to the other subwatersheds of the basin. A comprehensive GIS based decision support system (DSS) for estimation of runoff that includes the spatial variations in rainfall and natural resources is presented. The DSS is developed as a deployable application by integrating independent GIS layers of watershed features created in ArcGIS with MapObjects in VB, for a case study watershed - the KK3 watershed in Mahbubnagar district of Andhra Pradesh, India. The DSS generates thematic maps of spatial variations in runoff on individual rainy days for the subwatersheds.

Keywords : GIS, GUI, Land use, Rainfall, Remote Sensing, Runoff, Soil, Sub-watershed, Watershed 228 Geospatial Technologies for Natural Resources Management