eChapters

Introduction

Nature provides a wealth of genetic variation in both wild and cultivated plants. In the advanced selections conducted in developing superior crop varieties cultivated today agriculture represent only a small portion of the available gene pool. However wild species remain a reservoir of valuable genetic variation and represents a valuable source for exploitation of unexplored genetic variation for improvement of various agronomic traits. Most success has come from introgression of specific single gene controlled traits largely for disease resistance (Tomleyson, 2000 and Sergio et al., 2000). The identification of genes and co-adapted gene complexes that control complex agronomic traits such as adaptation to specific environmental stresses, crop quality, yield, plant architecture, flowering time (especially important for vegetable crops) has been less effectively addressed so far and remains a major and immediate challenge. Also, existence of low genetic diversity in breeding lines of many species used in various plant breeding programs is often resulting in development of insignificant improvement of the trait under investigation (Christopher, 2000). Understanding the spectrum, frequency and distribution of allelic variation in genes controlling such multiple genes controlled complex traits will improve our knowledge of exploitation of natural variation and promotes effective management and exploitation of functional biodiversity. In India efforts have been initiated in the exploitation, conservation of crop germplasm and technologies that are needed to fully exploit this natural diversity available in our major crop plants and their wild relatives. For example, centers that maintain diverse germplasm collections (both by ICAR and State Agricultural Universities nation wild are well established.

Introduction

Indian subcontinent has a rich and varied heritage of bioresources, encompassing a wide spectrum of habitats from tropical rain forests to alpine vegetation and from temperate forests to coastal wetlands. It is one of the eight centres of origin and one of the 12 mega centres of the world. It possess 11.9 % of world flora and about 33% of the country’s recorded flora are endemic to the region and are concentrated mainly in the North-East, Western Ghats, North-West Himalayas and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. Of the 49,219 higher plant species, 5,725 are endemic and belong to 141 genera under 47 families. Of theses 3,500 are found in the Himalayas and adjoining regions and 1,600 in the Western Ghats alone. India has 26 recognized endemic centres that are homeland

Introduction

The WTO was established on 1^st January 1995 and is responsible for making and enforcing rules for trade between nations. WTO marks a major change in global trade rules. As an organization, it replaces the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trades (GATT), which had been in existence since 1947. The Eighth Round of Multilateral Trade Negotiations under GATT, which started in Uruguay in 1986, was concluded in 1994, leading to the creation of WTO as the new permanent international trade organization. The role of WTO is much more extensive than that of GATT, which dealt with trade in goods. Apart from goods, the two other broad areas that WTO covers are services and intellectual property, which previously belonged to the domestic domain. Accordingly, WTO administers not only the Multilateral Trade Agreements (MTAs) in goods but also the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS) and the Agreement on Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS), which came into existence with WTO. All the agreements annexed to the Agreement establishing the WTO were signed as part of a package deal. Member countries did not have the option of choosing some and rejecting others. Another important difference with the erstwhile GATT is that WTO has a stronger compliance mechanism (Chawla, 2007a).

As one of the WTO agreements, TRIPS is binding on all member countries of WTO. TRIPS aims at establishing strong minimum standards for intellectual property rights (IPRs). Apart from patents, intellectual property includes copyrights, trademarks, geographical indications, industrial designs, integrated circuits and trade secrets. The protection of IPRs is binding and legally enforceable. Intellectual property (IP) is a product of the mind. Intellectual property is intangible in contrast to real property (land) or physical property, which one can see, feel and use. With any type of property there are property rights. When IPs are expressed in a tangible form, they can also be protected. Intellectual property rights (IPRs) have been created to protect the right of individuals to enjoy their creations and discoveries. In fact, IPRs can be traced back to the fourteenth century, when European monarchs granted proprietary rights to writers for their literary works.

Introduction

Plant genetic resources management essentially consists of two phases; its conservation and utilization. Germplasm conservation includes acquisition, in which germplasm is safeguarded in situ (by establishing reserves) or ex situ (by assembling collections through exchange or exploration). It also involves maintenance, protecting germplasm in situ in reserves or storing it ex situ under controlled conditions, propagating it while preserving its original genetic profile with maximum fidelity, monitoring its viability and health in storage or in situ and maintaining associated passport information and other data. Germplasm conservation also involves characterization, assessing highly heritable morphological and molecular traits for taxonomic, genetic, quality assurance and other management purposes. The second phase of germplasm management, encouraging utilization, includes evaluation, assessing agronomically or horticulturally important traits with relatively low heritability and high components of environmental variance e.g. yield adaptation and host-plant resistance to certain abiotic/biotic stress. It also includes genetic enhancement, making particular genes more accessible and usable to breeders by adopting exotic germplasm to local environments without losing its essential exotic genetic profile and/or introgressing high value traits from exotic germplasm into adapted varieties. Genetic enhancement can be subdivided into introgression i.e. backcrossing a few genes controlling desired characters into adapted stocks and incorporation i.e. the large scale development of locally adapted populations good enough to enter the adapted genetic bases of the crops concerned.

Introduction

Vegetable crops include a large number of species, mainly used as an essential complement to the daily diet, providing vitamins, minerals, fiber, specific amino-acids and other active metabolites. Largely emphasizing the need to accumulate and conserve in gene banks the genetic diversity that is most useful to breeders. One of the primary reasons to sustain conservation of plant genetic resources in gene banks is to prevent the loss of genetic diversity. The great diversity of types in cultivation is also considered a genetic resource itself, to be maintained or increased, since it adds to the diversity of vegetables being grown and consumed and could serve to replace more established but similar crops in case of need (Crisp and Astley, 1985). The risk of genetic erosion due to the introduction of single new cultivars was considered especially high by Crisp and Astley (1985) for those vegetables that are built on a narrow genetic base, such as garlic, broccoli, tomato, cucumber, etc. Genetic erosion is difficult to document with solid data available in vegetable crops. On a global level, efforts of the International Board for Plant Genetic Resources (IBPGR, now IPGRI) to conserve vegetable crop germplasm began in 1980, with the definition of a number of priority crops for conservation, according to their importance for rural development and to their economic value for farmers in the tropics (Abelmoschus esculentus and related species, Allium spp., Amaranthus spp., Brassica spp., Capsicum spp., Cucurbita spp., Lycopersicon esculentum, Momordica charantia and related species, and Solanum melongena). During last six–seven decades, germplasm of promising and profitable varieties have been built up and developed by different agencies, initially assembling local types and selecting from them and by introducing promising types from other parts of the world. The introduction and acclimatization of vegetable germplasm from within the country and all over the world is important for exploitation and incorporation of useful characters such as early maturity, high yielding capacity, resistance to diseases and pests and tolerance to different climatic hazards, viz., drought, heat, cold and flood situations.

Introduction

Plant genetic resources represent a huge reservoir of genes of economic importance, which acts as buffer against environment fluctuations. These genes are largely spread in the land races and traditional cultivars, which have been conserved by virtue of their specific merits. The human and natural selection interventions have resulted in establishment, improvement and differentiation of numerous types, which represent genetic wealth of the crop species and are commonly referred as plant genetic resources (PGR).

Genetic Erosion and Need for Conservation

In view of the availability of high yielding varieties/hybrids, the traditional cultivars/ land races have been disregarded by the farmers due to their low economic potential. Sustaining the green revolution, changing cultivation practices and intensification of land use pattern have been the potential threats for rapid erosion of plant genetic diversity. The erosion of these resources has resulted into the extinction of several valuable genetic materials. Realizing the consequences of genetic erosion and importance of plant genetic resources, more diversity needs to be conserved for future. Prior to conservation the collection and characterization of germplasm through morphological and molecular markers for establishing the identity of genotype is essentially required. For effective utilization of PGR in vegetable improvement programme, the proper characterization and evaluation of genotypes for breeder driven traits including biotic and abiotic stresses in target environments is urgently needed. In addition, value addition is an important area of concern especially in vegetable crops. After implementation of recommendations of Convention on Biodiversity (CBD), the major thrust has been given on conservation of bio-resources. In view of the globalization and emerging IPR regimes (UPOV, TRIPS, ITPGFRA etc.), there is a need for having suitable mechanisms for the protection of bio-resources.

Introduction

Plant Genetic Resources (PGR) are uniquely placed within the overall ambit of biodiversity and play an important role in providing food, fuel, clothing, medicine and shelter for the whole mankind. The value of plant genetic resources or the plant germplasm can be visualized from the fact that Sir Joseph Banks, the Director of Kew Botanical Gardens accompanied Captain Cook on a plant collecting voyage. Plant genetic resources are going to occupy the centre stage in plant breeding and seed industry development in India as will be the case with other countries. However, despite the great importance of plant genetic resources in crop improvement programmes, there is ever increasing threat to the PGR due to degradation of their habitats, changes in ecology, cropping systems, modernization of agriculture, rapid replacement of locally adapted indigenous cultivars by modern high yielding varieties and the effect of massive urbanization. This calls for a sustained and scientific management of plant genetic resources. The issue of PGR management remains basically the same whether we are dealing with field crops, vegetable crops or perennials with slight changes in specific cases. For an effective management of PGR, all the CGIAR funded international agricultural research centres have independent units/divisions on PGR management. IPGRI is coordinating and strengthening the PGR management programmes at the international level. In India, National Bureau of Plant Genetic Resources, New Delhi is the nodal organization on PGR management. This article shall deal with the core components of PGR management in vegetable crops.

Introduction

National Gene Banks are now entering into an era of increased activity and responsibility, particularly for managing their own indigenous germplasm activities extending from collection to actual use of the genetic variation in crop improvement programmes. However, these tasks must be achieved with limited resources in best possible time frame. The core collection offers a potential opportunity to meet these challenges. Recognising that the sheer size of a germplasm collection could deter its use, Frankel (1984) proposed that it could be pruned to a ‘core collection’, which would represent, “with minimum repetitiveness, the genetic diversity of a crop species and its relatives”. The core collection consist of a limited set of accessions derived from a germplasm collection, chosen to represent the genetic spectrum in the whole collection, and including as much as possible of its genetic diversity (Brown, 1995). The remaining accessions would not necessarily be discarded but would be managed as a ‘reserve collection’. The proposal, the rationale, purposes and general principles of core collections have been critically examined (Brown, 1989 a and b). As to the size of a core collection, sampling theory of selective neutral alleles in finite populations indicate that about 10 % drawn randomly from the whole collection was relatively efficient in retaining its allelic variation (about 70 % retained). The core collection concept has attracted considerable discussion and debate in the past and has met criticism in many areas. Most of these concerns appear to arise from misuse or misunderstanding of the core approach and a number of core collections have been established during the past decade.

Introduction

Vegetable crops are a big group of crop plants, consisting of diverse kinds with differing breeding systems and varying consumer preferences. In India there are native vegetables like eggplant (Solanum melongena), beans (Lablab purpureus), cucumber (Cucumis sativus) and a few gourds, namely smooth gourd (Luffa cylindrica), ridge gourd (Luffa acutangula), snake gourd (Trichosanthes anguina) and pointed gourd (Trichosanthes dioica), while there are several introduced crops and which have long history of domestication and adaptation like garden pea (Pisum sativum), onion (Allium cepa), bottle gourd (Lagenaria siceraria), watermelon (Citrullus lanatus), cowpea (Vigna unguiculata), okra (Abelmoschus esculentus) etc. and also some others like tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum), cauliflower (Brassica oleracea var.botrytis), cabbage (Brassica oleracea var. capitata), chillies, (including Capsicum), frenchbean (Phaseolus vulgaris) etc, which have been introduced during the last 4 or 5 centuries. With such a diversity of crops, characterization and evaluation of genetic resources in each of them become a stupendous responsibility requiring extensive infrastructure facilities and varying methods of evaluation. The National Bureau of Plant Genetic Resources (NBPGR), New Delhi with its Regional Stations at Shimla, Bhowali, Akola, Thrissur, Jodhpur, Hyderabad, Umiam-Barapani, Base Stations at Ranchi, Cuttack and Satellite centre at Amravati and Indian Institute of Vegetable Research (IIVR), Varanasi-designated as National Active Germplasm Site (NAGS) for vegetable crops and Indian Institute of Horticultural Research (IIHR), Bangalore, are holding over 40,000 germplasm collections in different vegetable crops.

A large number of lines have been collected from various parts of the country. A number of varieties have developed either through selection from local landraces or through hybridization resulting in development of a large number of open pollinated varieties with resistance to some important diseases, such as wilt. Also, a number of hybrid varieties have been developed both by public and private institutions, however there is a scope to increase further yield and nutritional quality using some of the modern techniques, such as molecular marker aided selection. The promising genetic resources utilized in vegetable improvement work have been described under following three heads

Introduction

The term ‘biodiversity’ comes from the words biological diversity and quite simply means the variety of all living things, including microbes, plants and animals– from single-celled organisms to the largest mammals and trees. Biodiversity also refers to genetic diversity within a species (essential for evolution) and also the diversity of the woodlands, wetlands and other habitats which provide the food, water and shelter for these species. Human life itself depends upon healthy ecosystems (e.g. wetlands, forests and grasslands) and the biodiversity that they contain. Biodiversity gives us many of the essentials of life – water, oxygen, food, clothing, and medicines, without which we could not survive, and therefore contributes greatly to our economy. Access to nature is also a popular form of relaxation that greatly enriches our lives and helps to keep us healthy. Species are linked in an infinite number of ways via food-webs and the habitats they share. If one species becomes extinct, it may affect many more. If too many species become extinct then whole ecosystems can collapse, with severe consequences for the way we live. Across the world, biodiversity is under threat from human activity such as over-intensive or inappropriate farming, large-scale commercial forestry, forest clearance, mineral extraction, pollution and urban development. Conservation of plant diversity assumes greater importance when the world is facing unprecedented loss of biological diversity. As per an estimate about 60,000 out of 2, 87, 655 species of plants known in the world are facing the threat of extinction.

Agro-ecosystems are defined as ecological and socio-economic system comprising domesticated plants and/or animals and the people who husband them, intended for the purpose of producing food, fiber, or other agricultural products. Agro-ecosystems are ecological systems transformed and simplified for the purpose of agriculture. In the case of agro-ecosystems productivity, these systems have Holling resilience if, in some state, they are able to maintain productivity and withstand stress or external shocks (e.g., due to lower rainfall and droughts). In many situations, biodiversity provides the link between stress and loss of resilience is a system (Perrings et al., 1995). Genetic variation within species and within population increases the ability to respond to the challenges of environmental stress (Mainwaring, 2001).

The various adverse effects of Shifting cultivation, the need for its replacement have been widely discussed at various levels. It has been a matter of concern not only for the Government of India and the Planning Commission but also to the various state governments and the union territories of the region. Although considerable data on the extent of Shifting cultivation and its various adverse effects including its effect on agricultural production have been discussed in various forums, yet detailed scientific studies on shifting cultivation from various angles were not taken up until recently. The prevalence of shifting cultivation is so extensive in the region that it would not be possible to tackle the problem within a short period of time whatever, large the efforts may be. It will, thus, be necessary to approach the problem so that alternative systems of farming can be introduced in areas where the cycle of rotation has been greatly reduced.

Agriculture is an important economic activity for a large population of the developing world. The view that industrialization is the main hope of the developing countries has undergone remarkable changes in more recent times. Today, agriculture and rural development are viewed as the sine qua non of national development. A reorientation where in rural development is well balanced with industrial growth is now considered essential to correct serious imbalances in the economy, for equitable distribution of wealth and for social justice. It is against this background that increases in agricultural production in the developing world need to be viewed and evaluated.

Introduction

Shifting cultivation, developed over centuries of experience is known as “Swidden”, “Slash-and–burn agriculture”, “Rotational bush-fallow agriculture.’ or by a variety of local names; in India, it is commonly referred to as Jhum cultivation. This farming system is believed to have originated in the Neolithic period around 7000 B.C. This is the most primitive form of agriculture and is still common amongst the tribal people in various pockets. Shifting cultivation is mainly confined to medium to high rainfall zones between 100 meters and 2,000 meters above sea level. It is practised in three types of vegetation, such as forests, bush and grasslands.

Since seed deterioration is irreversible process and the rate of deterioration might be arrested using proper packaging material, moisture proof packaging material are very effective for preserving seed viability, germination ability, vigour and other quality traits of orthodox seed. For the locations, with inadequate storage facilities and high humidity, moisture proof material is favoured. The use of high cost material is justified considering the advantage under such conditions in terms of maintaining the quality of the seeds.

In hills, farmers usually store their own seed for sowing in the next season. The uncertainty about the availability of good quality seed at proper time in the remote hilly areas develops a habit in the farmers for storing their own seed. This chapter attempts to highlight the different methods/sources of packaging of seed and their relevant advantages and limitations.

Among different containers polyethylene bags appear to be promising packaging material for storage since it is effective in preserving seed viability longer, are easily available, less expensive and need less space for storage.

“Biodiversity, the planet’s most valuable resource, is on loan to us from our children.”

The significance of Plant Genetic Resources (PGR’s) is on top of agenda of all those who are concerned with food, nutritional and environmental security by using the Earth’s plant - biodiversity judiciously in a vital form. Agro-biodiversity is the backbone of a nation’s food security and the basis of economic development as a whole. The top-down system of agricultural research, where farmers are seen merely as recipients of research rather than as participants in it, has contributed to an increased dependence on a relatively few plant varieties. Global cooperation from farmers to agricultural scientist is critical for maintaining the balance across the agricultural landscape. Over the years this diversity in India is under pressure due to the massive commercialization of agriculture leading to the almost extinction of traditional farming systems and plant- biodiversity is under immediate threat. Behind this commercialization there lies the interest of the breeders for obtaining intellectual property rights. Around 1.6 billion people depend on farm-saved seed, yet up to 75 per cent of varieties of some key crops have already been lost this century. The rate of loss may well increase as global trade rules, intellectual property rights regimes, the concentration of agricultural research and development on inappropriate technological‘solutions’, and now the introduction and promotion of genetically engineered products, all combine to erode local resources from the fields of smallholder farmers. At the moment, it should call for a balancing on research into modern biotechnology, in favour of a redirection of research and development resources into sustainable, environmentally-friendly technologies that, sustain poor people’s livelihoods, agricultural biodiversity and agro-ecosystem functions. In this context, the importance of farmer-derived Agricultural Biodiversity that includes the variety and variability of plants and micro-organisms which are necessary to maintain the structure, processes and key functions of the agricultural ecosystem for, and in support of, food production and food security.

Underutilized crops can be found in many different agricultural ecosystems, but they are mainly grown by small landholders in the marginal areas especially in hill agriculture. Some crops remain underutilized because they are in some way not competitive with other species in the same agricultural environment. They are usually characterized by having local importance in consumption and production systems, requiring relatively low inputs, adapting to specific agro-ecological niches, receiving scarce attention by national agricultural and biodiversity conservation efforts, mainly consisting of local types or landraces, and being cultivated with indigenous knowledge. Many underutilized species are adapted to low-input agriculture and depended on by a large number of people in marginal areas in hill agriculture of developing countries.

This chapter attempts to provide a detail picture of one such underutilized crop i.e. Grain Amaranth. In an effort to explain the decrease in grain amaranth cultivation, fanciful myths have arisen. The mystery is especially intriguing when one considers that maize, with which amaranth co-evolved, was selected and developed into a major world crop. The small seed size of amaranth may have been a partial cause for the reduction in amaranth cultivation. A small seeded crop, such as amaranth, requires greater attention to detail in the early parts of the growing season than does a larger seeded crop, such as maize.

This chapter discussed all the factors related to its cultivation, the constraints in the production and importance of grain amaranth in the economy of hill agriculture etc.

Sustainability in agriculture is the prime importance for maintains its productivity particularly for crops over time and space. Sustainable agriculture is a system of farming as well as a philosophy which has its roots in a set of values that reflects an awareness of both ecological and socialrealities. It includes design and management procedures that work with natural processes to conserve all resources for maintaining or improving farm profitability keeping least waste and environmental damage.

The influence of environment on Indian farming revealed that future agricultural growth and productivity will have to occur simultaneously with environmental sustainability. The environmental challenges (land degradation, groundwater depletion, water logging and excessive use of chemical inputs) are posing problems for the future of Indian agriculture. Organic farming included in the policies has emphasized the sustainability in agriculture. Various other approaches and policy instruments, however, will be required to address these problems. The shift from input-intensive to sustainable, particularly organic farming is a difficult task as it involves a number of policy measures dealing with a variety of issues ranging from the transfer of information and technology to the development of markets. Another difficult task, and perhaps more difficult, relates to marginal and small farmers – which comprise a substantial part of Indian agriculture. Although, the marginal and small farmers considered as organic by ‘default’, severe resource constraints makes the shift to the modern sense of organic farming prohibitive.

Livestock manure is principally composed of organic material. When this organic material decomposes in an anaerobic environment, methanogenic bacteria produce methane. These conditions often occur when large numbers of animals are managed in confined areas (e.g. dairy, swine, and poultry farms, and beef feedlots, where manure is typically stored in large piles or disposed off in storage of lagoons or tanks).

Manure management will always be a part of livestock production. Management practices will have a significant impact on the environment regardless of the size of the operation. Producers who make wise manure management decisions help to maintain a healthy environment now and for generations to come. To reduce the risk of air or water quality damage from manure, understand how manure impacts air and water quality, keep the public in mind when locating, expanding or maintaining a facility, reduce the amount of material entering the waste stream, collect and store manure to preserve nutrients and minimize gas/odour emissions, apply manure to fields in a way that most fully utilizes the available nutrients, follow compositing to increase manure value, establish bio-gas unit as an alternate energy source and for the electricity generation and if possible integrate with fish production to augment income.

Based on the observations a model system of waste management was designed by systematic and scientific integration of a bio-fuel unit, settlement and slurry processing unit, aerobic composting, traditional composting, and preparation of value added products like Panchagavya, Jeevamritham, packed dried dung and fresh cow urine. There were no reports of odour or water pollution from nearby water sources. The overall results of the waste management indicated that this integrated system can be recommended as a model for waste management in dairy enterprises with beneficial effects on economic efficiency, environmental hygiene and quality control.

Although the efforts to develop hill agriculture were initiated in early fifties, planned development programme came to be evolved only in the late sixties. The phenomenal increase in food grains called the ‘Green revolution’ bye passed these hilly regions because of paraphernalia of constraints. Furthermore severity of soil erosion and soil degradation is much more and widespread in hill agriculture due to fragile ecosystem and its impact on plains through downstream sedimentation and flooding. Because of these constraints, traditional agriculture cannot be the lead sector for development. Thus the country faces the challenge of promoting livelihoods to minimize migration through local employment and income generation, and to enhance the quality of life of people living in villages. The positive features of these hilly areas are that they are rich in biodiversity, have enormous potential for tourism, a suitable climate for high value crops that can be harnessed for a development strategy.

In order to improve the existing system and to harvest newer opportunities in the hill agricultural system, a proper understanding of the composition of agri-horti-silvi-pastoral farming system and livestock based farming system is necessary. There is a considerable scope for development of agro-ecological zone specific farming along with horticultural interventions in the hill agriculture. At the same time there is an urgent need to give top priority to land use pattern, soil and water conservation and environmental sustainability. Agri tourism can be exploited in hill agriculture. What Hill agriculture needs is the appropriate technology, emerging markets, investment and risk cover.

The Agreement on Agriculture, the AoA, was negotiated to cover loopholes in the agriculture sections of the original GATT and was signed in April 1994 at Marrakesh, Morocco. Its first step was to get all countries to replace the various quota and other non-tariff restrictions on agricultural imports with equivalent-level tariffs; then countries would progressively cut those tariffs (by 36% over six years for developed countries, 24% over 10 years for developing countries). Restrictions were also mandated in other areas, such as export subsidies and in the AMS, the “aggregate measure of support”, which measured all the assistance going to a country’s farm sector. However, developing countries already had low levels of agricultural support, while developed countries had very high levels, meaning the field was still tilted in favour of the rich countries.

The WTO’s Agreement on Agriculture which came into effect on 1^st January 1995 brought world agriculture production and trade under multilateral trade rules. It was supposed to herald a new era of trade liberalization in the agriculture sector, as hitherto agriculture had been mainly exempted from the disciplines of GATT.

The adoption and use of a new technology causes disruptions in the sociocultural system of a nation and induces a change from established practices to distinctly different and complex forms of social practice. The deployment of ICT into the predominantly traditional societies of developing countries is therefore very disruptive. In view of this, a seamless integration of both the technical and socio-cultural systems of societies where technology transfer takes place is necessary for a thriving ICT deployment. Unfortunately, technological transfer to developing countries is driven by a perspective that is based on the development experience of Western industrialized nations.

It is indeed highly inspiring to see that in India, people are gradually getting aware of the multiple roles of Information Technology in the overall growth of the country. The bureaucrats and policy makers have equally emphasized the significance of exploring and exploiting the benefits of IT. Moreover, the governance has also realized that with availability of vital infrastructure Information and Communication Technologies can be used to improve the lives of the rural and underprivileged section of the Indian society, especially the ones living below the poverty line (BPL). Nonetheless, the Government will have to play the role of a catalyst in this huge integration project. A strategic framework including actors from Central & State Governments and Civil Society Organizations to capture the benefits of ICT and make it reach the countryside can do wonders in this regard.

Recent advances in information technology are making it more feasible to provide farmers with marketing information they need. However, farmers are still lagging behind in getting the information as accessibility to this technology is not available to them for various reasons. The major reason for this is abundance of small and marginal farmers without formal education and training in proper decision making. This problem is more acute for North Western (NW) hill farmers as besides above constraints, accessibility to information centers is very difficult due to undulating topography and lack of communication and transport facilities.

In the North-Western hill states, not many initiatives have so far been taken to use the information technology for the rural/agricultural development. Presently, use of radio and television for acquiring the information is limited as these media do not give focused information for different target areas. Even newspapers, in their local versions, do not provide regular updates for different major mandis regarding vegetables. This area has also been neglected by AGMARKNET (www.agmarknet.nic.in) for the market information regarding hill crops. For Himachal Pradesh and Uttaranchal, only one and three markets, respectively, has been covered. This shows the apathy of agricultural development departments towards incorporating ICT into the day-to-day activities of hill farmers.