Globally, mangroves are one of the most productive and threatened ecosystems situated within the intertidal zones of tropics and subtropics. Mangrove ecosystem of India is unique with the highest record of biodiversity, gifted with the mangrove genetic bliss at Bhitarkanika, and wildlife threatened species in the Sundarbans. They act as a guardian of juvenile stock and important source of livelihood for coastal communities and protect from storm surges and tsunami. Mangroves are also a great source for carbon sinks and sequester the high amount of CO₂. Mangrove ecosystems are vulnerable to various anthropogenic actions such as industry, agriculture, solid waste dumping, aquaculture ponds, construction of buildings and infrastructures. In recent years, the conservation of mangrove reserves and habitats has assumed great significance in developing countries. This article deals with the present status of mangroves biodiversity, conservation and management strategies for restoration of these fragile ecosystems.

Udai Ram Gurjar^*

ICAR-Central Institute of Fisheries Education, Mumbai, Maharashtra (400 061), India

Suman Takar

Fisheries College and Research Institute, Thoothukudi, Tamil Nadu (628 008), India

Khemraj Bunkar

ICAR-Central Institute of Fisheries Education, Mumbai, Maharashtra (400 061), India

Vikas Pathak

ICAR-Central Institute of Fisheries Education, Mumbai, Maharashtra (400 061), India

Jaspreet Singh

ICAR-Research Complex for Eastern Region, Patna, Bihar (800 014), India

The crop production of our country has increased manifold since the sixties by using improved agricultural technology like seeds, fertilizers, agricultural pesticides. At present, special importance is given to gene-technology, hybrid seeds and tissue culture, etc. for crop production. There is a limit to crop production through the use of agricultural technology. Increasing food production for a changing population is a difficult question for today's world. To cope up with such emerging problems use of hormones in crop production are showing very good results.

Joy Kumar Dey^*

Krishi Vigyan Kendra-Sepahijala, Central Agricultural University (Imphal), Latiacherra, Sepahijala, Tripura (799 103), India

Airdeep Debbarma

Krishi Vigyan Kendra-Sepahijala, Central Agricultural University (Imphal), Latiacherra, Sepahijala, Tripura (799 103), India

Shatabhisa Sarkar

Krishi Vigyan Kendra-Sepahijala, Central Agricultural University (Imphal), Latiacherra, Sepahijala, Tripura (799 103), India

Climate changes are rapidly occurring due to anthropogenic activities. Human activities contribute to global warming by increasing greenhouse gases which are the main factors of extreme climate change. This change increases competition between weeds and crops. Most troublesome weeds are responsive to grow with increasing CO₂ gas then crop. Also, high atmospheric temperature helps to reduce uptake of herbicide due to more diffusion and rapidly dry droplets. There is an inevitable need to study how changing climate conditions are affecting crop-weed competition, weed life and herbicide effectiveness in order to create adaptation and mitigation plans for changing climatic scenario. The overall objective of this article is to portray smart weed management approaches under climate change scenario resulting high productivity of crops and more returns for farmers alongwith an effective maintenance of the weeds.

Suhrid Teli^*

Dept. of Agronomy, College of Agriculture Tripura, Lembucherra, West Tripura (799 210), India

Abhijit Saha

Dept. of Agronomy, College of Agriculture Tripura, Lembucherra, West Tripura (799 210), India

Bobilan Debbarma

Dept. of Agronomy, College of Agriculture Tripura, Lembucherra, West Tripura (799 210), India

Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) is a widely employed pest management biocontrol agent in the agriculture and forestry ecosystem. In nature, this gram-positive bacterium is found in soil that produces spore-crystal inclusion bodies. This gram-positive bacterium produces a broad spectrum of insecticidal proteins, which are found to be extremely toxic to different groups of insect pests. Bt toxin genes are very selective and specific to pests; they are not toxic to other than the target organisms such as human, animals, and birds, and they are safer for the environment. The Bt toxin is often employed in organic farming as an insecticide spray to manage insect pests. Additionally, it is one of the sources for the insecticidal genes deployed to genetically modify food crops so that they can naturally impart resistance against numerous insect pests.

Gothandaraman Rajadurai^*

Dept. of Plant Biotechnology, CPMB&B, TNAU, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu (641 003), India

Selvaraj Anandakumar

Dept. of Crop Physiology, CCM, TNAU, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu (641 003), India

Rajasekaran Raghu

Dept. of Plant Biotechnology, CPMB&B, TNAU, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu (641 003), India

The fungus has various type of association with spider. They can be pathogenic or symbiotic or commensal in relationship to spiders they live on. In the current study the diversity of fungi in association with Nephila pilipes spider were recorded. The fungi were isolated from its legs and saliva. The microscopic and macroscopic characters were obtained. The measurements of hyphae, conidia and conidiophore were recorded. The fungal growth was more on legs compared to saliva. The legs of the adult spider carried more fungi than saliva as they are associated with soil, carrying microflora on their legs. Further the four different fungus isolated as Aspergillus, Penicillium, Trichoderma and Cladosporium. The penicillium colony had abundant growth, aspergillus had moderate growth and Cladosporium had less growth compared to Trichoderma.

Jalajakshi, S.^*

Dept. of Genetics, Vijaya College, Basavanagudi, Bengaluru, Karnataka (560 004), India

Anagha, J.

Dept. of Genetics, Vijaya College, Basavanagudi, Bengaluru, Karnataka (560 004), India

Buwaneshwari, S.

Dept. of Genetics, Vijaya College, Basavanagudi, Bengaluru, Karnataka (560 004), India

Kalpana, R.

Dept. of Genetics, Vijaya College, Basavanagudi, Bengaluru, Karnataka (560 004), India

Poojitha, P.L.

Dept. of Genetics, Vijaya College, Basavanagudi, Bengaluru, Karnataka (560 004), India

Sowmya Murthy

Dept. of Genetics, Vijaya College, Basavanagudi, Bengaluru, Karnataka (560 004), India

The tea mosquito bug (Hemiptera: Miridae) is the recognized pest of fruits and plantations across the world. In India, three species viz. Helopeltis antonii, H. bradyi and H. theivora are dominant among different species and found attacking a wide range of crops. Several alternate host plants of the tea mosquito bug have been recorded, especially in Africa and Asia. The nymphs and adults of the tea mosquito bug suck the sap from leaves, buds and shoots, which results in heavy crop losses. The pest is posing a serious challenge in domestic and overseas trades. For better management decisions, it is very much important to know about pest status, bionomics, distribution, host range, etc. The focus on the management of tea mosquito bug has to emphasize from chemical to traditional, indigenous technical knowledge and integrated pest management using the accessible resources to reduce the resistance development and limit the residual effects. This review highlights the significant works conducted on tea mosquito bug with detailed management strategies. The information on current status, host preference, incidence and early detection of this pest are discussed.

Sankarganesh, E.^*

Plant Biosecurity Division, National Institute of Plant Health Management (NIPHM), Rajendranagar, Hyderabad, Telangana (500 030), India

Lavanya Sravani, B.

Dept. of Agricultural Entomology, Bidhan Chandra Krishi Viswavidyalaya (BCKV), Mohanpur, West Bengal (741 252), India

Rajeshwaran, B.

Dept. of Agricultural Entomology, Kerala Agricultural University (KAU), Vellayani, Kerala (695 522), India

Mounika, M.N.

Dept. of Agricultural Entomology, Bidhan Chandra Krishi Viswavidyalaya (BCKV), Mohanpur, West Bengal (741 252), India

The current research was carried out at the ICAR-Research Complex for the North Eastern Hill Region (NEH) in Umiam, Meghalaya to investigate the diversity and abundance of insect pollinators of cucurbits at mid-hills of Meghalaya. Ridge gourd, sponge guard, pumpkin, teasel gourd, chow-chow, bottle guard and cucumber were taken as a target crop to observe the data on diversity and abundance. Total twenty-five (25) pollinators were observed in different cucurbits belongs to order Hymenoptera, Diptera and Lepidoptera which represents that mid-hills of Meghalaya have rich pollinator fauna. Out of 25 insect pollinators 3 pollinators identified from ridge gourd, 6 from sponge gourd, 4 from pumpkin, 3 from bottle gourd, 4 from cucumber, 3 from chow-chow and 2 from teasel gourd. Efficient pollinator was nominated on the basis of their abundance. During investigation it was found that bumble bee emerged as the most abundant pollinator in ridge gourd, pumpkin and sponge gourd. In sponge gourd carpenter bee also showed almost equal abundance. Indian honey bee abundance was high in cucumber and in chow-chow. Among collected pollinators, hymenopterans were the abundant with 80% relative abundance. It is clear from the recorded observation that native bees are equally contributing in pollination service so conservation of these bees is also a demand of nature. Activity time period of pollinators on flowers guided the farmers to avoid pesticide spray during particular time period.

Rachna Pande^*

Division of Crop Protection, ICAR-Central Institute for Cotton Research, Nagpur, Maharashtra (441 108), India

V.K. Verma

Division of Horticulture, ICAR-Research Complex for NEH Region, Umroi Road, Umiam, Meghalaya (793 103), India

Application of nanotechnology in agriculture especially in the form of nano agrochemicals is increasing nowadays. Agrochemicals such as fertilizers, soil amendments, soil conditioners, pesticides and plant growth promoting hormones have both pros and cons. To overcome the constraints of conventional agrochemicals researchers are focusing on nano agrochemicals. Apart from the high potential and effectiveness these chemicals also have some threats to the human health, environment and ecological balances. With proper assessment of risks associated to these nano agrochemicals threats can be minimised and the potential of nanotechnology in agriculture can be explored to the greater extent. After assessment the risks could be managed by applying three thumb rules as risk prevention, risk mitigation and risk communication. In depth research is required to explore the potential of nanotechnology in agriculture.

Mahendra Prasad

Crop Production Division, ICAR-Indian Grassland and Fodder Research Institute, Jhansi, Uttar Pradesh (284 003), India

Sonu Kumar Mahawer^*

Crop Production Division, ICAR-Indian Grassland and Fodder Research Institute, Jhansi, Uttar Pradesh (284 003), India

Sustainable food production for a rapidly growing human population is one of the major challenges faced by the agriculture sector globally. Plant pests and pathogens cause significant reductions in crop production, with estimated global losses of 20-40% year^-1, resulting in an increased use of environmentally toxic pesticides & fertilizers. The growing numbers of studies in nanotechnology are producing novel applications in many fields of science, especially in plant biotechnology and agriculture. Nanomaterials (NMs) have been used in breakdown of pollutants and reported worldwide for several different environmental applications. They play an important role in agriculture as nano-fertilizers and nano-pesticides, prepared by many methods such as physical, green synthesis or chemical synthesis methods. Green synthesis involves use of biological resources as microorganisms or plant extracts and doesn’t permit the use of any toxic chemicals, hence less bio-hazardous. Rate of reduction of metal ions using phytosynthesis has been observed to be much faster than microbial synthesis. Thus, it is considered as an accessible alternative for large scale production of nanomaterials, without use of chemicals. Phytosynthesized nanomaterials show excellent antibacterial effects, antifungal effects and anti-pest activity. Ocimum sanctum, Azadiracta indica, Paederia foetida, etc. had been successfully reported to be used in synthesis of many NMs of silver, gold, zinc, etc. Botanical nanomaterials offer considerable potential for increasing agricultural productivity and protection while reducing negative impacts on the environment and human health simultaneously.

Anwesha Sharma^*

School of Crop Protection, College of Post Graduate Studies in Agricultural Sciences, Central Agricultural University (Imphal), Umiam, Meghalaya (793 103), India

Pranab Dutta

School of Crop Protection, College of Post Graduate Studies in Agricultural Sciences, Central Agricultural University (Imphal), Umiam, Meghalaya (793 103), India

Madhusmita Mahanta

School of Crop Protection, College of Post Graduate Studies in Agricultural Sciences, Central Agricultural University (Imphal), Umiam, Meghalaya (793 103), India

Arti Kumari

School of Crop Protection, College of Post Graduate Studies in Agricultural Sciences, Central Agricultural University (Imphal), Umiam, Meghalaya (793 103), India

Alinaj Yasin

School of Crop Protection, College of Post Graduate Studies in Agricultural Sciences, Central Agricultural University (Imphal), Umiam, Meghalaya (793 103), India

An experiment was conducted to study the influence of weather parameters on trap catches of Helicoverpa armigera (Hubner) in redgram Cajanus cajan (L.) ecosystem during kharif 2017 at experimental farm of NPRC, Vamban and farmer’s field at Vadakaddu with green colour funnel pheromone traps containing Heli lure. The highest catch (98 moths/ 5 traps) was recorded on January 2^nd SMW at Vamban and on 52^nd SMW of December at Vadakaddu. In both the locations lowest catch of 20 moths/ 5 traps and 30 moths/ 5 traps were recorded on 35^th SMW. The moth catches had highly significant negative correlation with maximum temperature (r = -0.79^**), (r = -0.79^**), minimum temperature (r = -0.66^**), (r = -0.68^**), wind speed (r = -0.71^**), (r = -0.73^**), rainfall (r = -0.54^**), (r = -0.51^**), rainy days (r = - 0.54^**), (r = -0.52^**) and sunshine hours (r = - 0.44^**), (r = -0.42^**) at Vamban and Vadakaddu, respectively. But there was highly significant positive correlation with relative humidity (r = 0.78^**) and (r = 0.76^**) at Vamban and Vadakaddu, respectively. The regression analysis resulted with an R² value of 0.791, which indicates that 79.1% catches depends on all the weather parameters at Vamban and R² value of 0.829 indicating that 82.9% of catches depends on all the weather parameters at Vadakaddu.

S. Lekha Priyanka^*

Dept. of Agricultural Entomology, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu (641 003), India

V.R. Saminathan

Dept. of Agricultural Entomology, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu (641 003), India

N. Manivannan

Dept. of Plant Breeding and Genetics, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu (641 003), India

V. Ambethgar

Dept. of Agricultural Entomology, Anbil Dharmalingam Agricultural College and Research Institute, Trichy, Tamil Nadu (620 009), India

U. Pirithiraj

Dept. of Agricultural Entomology, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu (641 003), India

Pests and diseases cause 20-40% of crops to be wiped out annually. Currently existing plant disease management strategies solely employ harmful pesticides, which are harmful for the environment and for people. When it comes to decreasing toxicity, extending the shelf life and making poorly water-soluble pesticides more soluble, nanotechnology is a blessing that may have a favorable effect on the environment. The fundamental unit of nanotechnology, nanoparticles, can be used in phytopathology to manage plant diseases in a variety of ways. They can be used as RNA-interference molecules, pesticide nanocarriers, or protectants. Furthermore, beyond their role as carriers for genetic material, probes and agrichemicals, nanoparticles hold potential as tailored biosensors, serving as diagnostic instruments. These days, biological organisms are a novel source for nanoparticle manufacturing. The nano-bioformulations are made up of the biological systems used to synthesize nanoparticles. Because of their exceptional efficiency and affordability, the adoption of plant extracts or microbial enzymes for the biosynthesis of nano-formulations is rapidly gaining momentum within the realm of nano-bioformulations. Owing to their tiny size (1-100 nm), an environmental risk assessment is necessary, especially when it comes to ingestion as food or feed. Agricultural applications have seen the commercialization of exiguous nanoparticle-based solutions, despite the numerous potential benefits linked to their use. Therefore, this demands nanotechnology be applied in farmer's fields to fill the voids in scientific research.

Pranab Dutta

School of Crop Protection, College of Post Graduate Studies in Agricultural Sciences, Central Agricultural University (Imphal), Umiam, Meghalaya (793 103), India

Alinaj Yasin^*

School of Crop Protection, College of Post Graduate Studies in Agricultural Sciences, Central Agricultural University (Imphal), Umiam, Meghalaya (793 103), India

Arti Kumari

School of Crop Protection, College of Post Graduate Studies in Agricultural Sciences, Central Agricultural University (Imphal), Umiam, Meghalaya (793 103), India

Madhusmita Mahanta

School of Crop Protection, College of Post Graduate Studies in Agricultural Sciences, Central Agricultural University (Imphal), Umiam, Meghalaya (793 103), India

Anwesha Sharma

School of Crop Protection, College of Post Graduate Studies in Agricultural Sciences, Central Agricultural University (Imphal), Umiam, Meghalaya (793 103), India

This study intends to evaluate the influence of microflora in various types of banana fruits on moisture content and health risks related to bacterial growth at different fruit ages. Over four weeks, 120 banana fruit samples were gathered from three marketplaces in Kano State, Nigeria and dissected for pH, moisture content and microbiota. These three samples were then dissected to perform tests on pH, moisture content and microbiota. Some were subject to a moisture content that ranged from 77.22% to 80.29% and the samples' pH values ranged from 4.60 to 5.10. The fungal counts displayed a range spanning from 1.40×10⁶ to 3.30×10⁶ cfu ml^-1, while the bacterial counts exhibited a broader spectrum, fluctuating between 3.80×10⁶ and 7.30×10⁶ cfu ml^-1. The bacteria identified in the samples were Proteus vulgaris, Bacillus sp., Xanthomonas campestris, Corynebacterium xerosis, Pseudomonas sp., Erwinia carotovora, Dickeya parasidiaca and Ralstonia solanacearum. The fungal isolates included Aspergillus niger, Fusarium sp., Alternaria sp., Mucor sp., Cordana johnsonii, Chrysonilia sp., Cladosporium sp., Doratomyces microspores, Rhizopus stolonifer and Colletotrichum musae. Fungi and bacteria detected in these samples prove their significant contribution causing the deterioration after harvest. This results in post-harvest diseases which consequently lead to the decline in the fruit's quantity and quality. Apart from the diminished commercial value of this kind of fruit, it can also pose chemical dregs, a health hazard to human beings. The knowledge gained from this research may facilitate the development of strategies for controlling banana fruit spoilage, resulting in improved product quality before consumption.

Mustapha Abdulsalam^*

Dept. of Microbiology, Skyline University Nigeria, Kano (700103), Nigeria

Olaitan Lateefat Salam

Dept. of Chemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Gothenburg, Gothenburg (PMB 100), Sweden

Maimuna Sidi Muhammad

Dept. of Microbiology, Skyline University Nigeria, Kano (700103), Nigeria

Sarah Natour

Dept. of Microbiology, Skyline University Nigeria, Kano (700103), Nigeria

Maryam Murtala Garba

Dept. of Microbiology, Skyline University Nigeria, Kano (700103), Nigeria

Suleiman Fatima Annu

Dept. of Microbiology, Skyline University Nigeria, Kano (700103), Nigeria

Fumaria parviflora, commonly known as "small-flowered fumitory," is a ubiquitous weed found in various regions across the globe. Despite being considered a nuisance in farming areas, the plant possesses numerous therapeutic benefits acknowledged in conventional medical systems. Its extracts have shown promise in treating digestive disorders, respiratory ailments and skin conditions due to their anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial properties. Efforts to harness its medicinal potential could lead to the development of innovative treatments while addressing concerns related to its invasive nature. This review aims to gather and evaluate the body of research on the medicinal, phytochemical and pharmacological attributes of Fumaria parviflora. Phytochemical analyses have revealed the presence of diverse bioactive compounds in F. parviflora, including alkaloids, flavonoids, phenolic compounds, terpenoids and essential oils. These phytoconstituents exhibit various biological activities such as anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, antioxidant, antidiabetic, hepatoprotective and anticancer effects. Despite the considerable therapeutic potential demonstrated by F. parviflora, further research is necessary to elucidate its action mechanisms, pharmacokinetics and safety profiles. Moreover, clinical trials are required to validate the effectiveness and security of F. parviflora-based human interventions. Harnessing the medicinal potential of natural products holds significant promise for the development of novel therapeutic agents across various ailments. Natural products, derived from plants, marine organisms, fungi and microorganisms, have been a rich source of pharmacologically active compounds for centuries. These compounds often possess unique chemical structures and biological activities that make them valuable candidates for drug discovery and development.

Nitesh Kumar

Dept. of Biosciences, Himachal Pradesh University, Shimla, Himachal Pradesh (171 005), India

Ruchika Devi^*

Dept. of Biosciences, Himachal Pradesh University, Shimla, Himachal Pradesh (171 005), India

Pratibha

Dept. of Biosciences, Himachal Pradesh University, Shimla, Himachal Pradesh (171 005), India

Satish Kumar

Dept. of Biosciences, Himachal Pradesh University, Shimla, Himachal Pradesh (171 005), India

Saurav

Dept. of Biosciences, Himachal Pradesh University, Shimla, Himachal Pradesh (171 005), India

Mamta Singh Pathania

Shoolini Institute of Life Sciences and Business Management, Solan, Himachal Pradesh (173 212), India

Anita Kumari

Dept. of Botany, G.B. Pant Memorial Govt. College, Rampur Bushahr, Himachal Pradesh (172 001), India

Under edaphic fluctuation, the current study explains the phytosociological characteristics and weed distribution patterns in transplanted rice crops. Present work was done in Jhargram block, West Bengal, during kharif season 2022 and 2023. For every weed species, analytical quantitative characters were determined, such as relative density, relative dominance and important value index. There were 15 (6 grassy, 6 BLWs, 3 sedge), 14 (4 grassy,6 BLWs, 4 sedge), 16 (5 grassy, 8 BLWs, 3 sedge) and 11 (3 grassy, 5 BLWs, 3 sedge) weeds species found in Jhargram, Binpur I and Binpur II and Nayagram block of Jhargram district, respectively. Observation showed that, the relative density of single plant species at Jhargram Block, Cynodon dactylon was the predominant grassy weed; however, relative density of BLWs (Broad Leaved Weeds) and sedges, more seen with Euphorbia hirta, Amaranthus spinosus and Cyperus sp., respectively. Importance Value Index (IVI) more reported with Cynodon dactylon for grasses, Ludwigia parviflora and Euphorbia hirta for BLWs and Cyperus difformis for sedges. In Binpur I, Cynodon dactylon for grasses, Ludwigia parviflora for BLWs and Cyperus rotundus for sedges, were the predominant weed species with highest IVI. In Binpur II, block, more IVI found with Paspalum scorbiculatum for grasses, Euphorbia hirta and Ludwigia parviflora for BLWs and Cyperus rotundus for sedges. In Nayagram, block, relative abundance was observed more with Echinochloa colona, Hydrolea zeylanica and Cyperus rotundus for grasses, BLWs and sedges, respectively. More number of BLWs was observed throughout the observation followed by grasses in case of Jhargram, Binpur I and sedges in Binpur II and Nayagram block. This baseline information become very imperative for future research as well as for farming community to choose right kind of competitive crops and cropping pattern in the red-latertic zone.

Dhiman Mukherjee^*

Regional Research Station (Red & Laterite Zone), Bidhan Chandra Krishi Viswavidyalaya, Jhargram, West Bengal (721 507), India

Golam Moinuddin

Regional Research Station (Red & Laterite Zone), Bidhan Chandra Krishi Viswavidyalaya, Jhargram, West Bengal (721 507), India

Subhendu Jash

Regional Research Station (Red & Laterite Zone), Bidhan Chandra Krishi Viswavidyalaya, Jhargram, West Bengal (721 507), India

An intensive research was carried out during 2018-2022 at the Regional Sericultural Research Station, Salem, Tamil Nadu. The research focused on assessing the significance of micronutrients and their effects on the growth, moisture content, yield parameters and nutrient composition of mulberry leaves. The combined results indicated that treatments T₂ and T₃ exhibited higher larval weight, shell weight, rendita and denier, with values of 42.90 g, 0.42 g, 6.14 kg and 2.33 d, respectively. Treatment T₅ also showed promising results, with larval weight of 42 g, shell weight of 0.38 g, rendita of 6.2 kg and denier of 2.65 d. In terms of single cocoon weight, treatment T₃ had the highest value of 1.88 g, closely followed by T₂ with 1.86 g. Regarding shell ratio and silk filament length, T₂ exhibited higher values (22.58% and 1103 m) compared to T₃ (22.55% and 1099 m). Among the five crops studied, the fourth crop demonstrated the best results when treated with T₂ and T₃. These treatments resulted in higher larval weight (51.37 g and 51.6 g), cocoon weight (2.2 g and 2.3 g), shell weight (0.56 g and 0.55 g), shell ratio (25% and 24.67%), pupal weight (1.65 g and 1.71 g), silk filament length (1416 m and 1412 m), rendita (6 kg) and denier (2.46 d and 2.79 d) respectively.

M. Devamani^*

Centre for Higher Studies in Botany and Sericulture (Periyar University), Vaikkalpattarai, Salem, Tamil Nadu (636 017), India

N. Dahira Beevi

Centre for Higher Studies in Botany and Sericulture (Periyar University), Vaikkalpattarai, Salem, Tamil Nadu (636 017), India

A. Mohan

Kandaswami Kandar's College, Velur, Namakkal, Tamil Nadu (638 182), India

Guava (Psidium guajava L.), is one of the most important fruit crops cultivated widely in tropical region of the world and considered as ‘poor man’s apple’ or ‘the apple of tropics’ due to its low cost of production and high nutritional value. Pruning is one of the most ancient horticultural practices which regulate the tree size and shape to achieve a desired architecture of the canopy and also to reduce the vegetative growth by removing unproductive branches of the tree. Guava is an evergreen tropical fruit crop and rarely pruned in our country to regulate the canopy for better yield and quality of fruits despite that guava responds to pruning. Fertigation (application of fertilizer solution with drip irrigation) has the potential for the right combination of water and nutrient which make it available at the root zone, satisfying the plant requirements. These inputs are the key factors for high yield and quality. Fertigation saves fertilizer as it permits applied fertilizer in required quantities at a time matching with the plants nutrient requirement. Besides, it is considered as eco-friendly which avoids leaching and also saves atmospheric pollution.

A. Mahadevan^*

Citrus Research Station, Sankarankovil, Thirunellvelli, Tamil Nadu (627 860), India

The present study entitled “Evaluation of pheromone traps for the management of pod borer, Helicoverpa armigera (Hubner) in Redgram [Cajanus cajan (L.) Millsp.] ecosystem” was carried out to study the influence of trap height on catches of H. armigera in redgram ecosystem during kharif 2017 at experimental farm of NPRC, Vamban and farmer’s field at Vadakaddu. Funnel traps were more effective compared to delta traps and green funnel traps placed at a height of one feet below the crop canopy (95.4 moths / 5 traps) and at the level of crop canopy (94.8 moths / 5 traps) performed well compared to traps placed at two feet below the crop canopy (73 moths / 5 traps), one feet above the crop canopy (59 moths / 5 traps) and two feet above the crop canopy (55 moths / 5 traps).

S. Lekha Priyanka^*

Dept. of Agricultural Entomology, ADAC&RI, TNAU, Trichy, Tamil Nadu (620 009), India

V. R. Saminathan

Dept. of Agricultural Entomology, NPRC, TNAU, Vamban, Tamil Nadu (622 303), India

S. Sithanantham

Sun Agro Bio–Tech Research Center, Chennai, Tamil Nadu (600 116), India

V. Ambethgar

Dept. of Agricultural Entomology, JSACAT, TNAU, Cuddalore, Tamil Nadu (606 108), India

N. Manivannan

Dept. of Plant Breeding and Genetics, NPRC, TNAU, Vamban, Tamil Nadu (622 303), India

We are living in the era of expeditiously increasing population and industrialization and water is used in almost all industrial sectors such as food, pharmaceutical, metallurgy, chemical, textile industry and leather industry etc. which produces different kind of effluent. There are several methods used for removing pollutants from wastewater, among them the adsorption method is best as it removes diverse species of pollutants. Textile effluent is one of the major problems for aquatic as well as human life, contains several kinds of dyes, chemicals & hazardous substances that needs to be removed before further use. If the effluent is discharged into the environment without any treatment process, it will cause serious issues related to environmental as well human health. In various waste water treatment plants that are used for treating wastewater through adsorption, cellulosic, lignin based carbon materials, chemically or biologically activated carbonaceous of different biomass origin are used as adsorbent. This paper reviews the possibility of Okara (soyabean milk waste), being a cellulosic biomass and shows some adsorption capacity, as a low-cost adsorbent for treatment of the waste water generated from the textile industries.

Sarthak Saxena

Division of Biological Sciences and Engineering, Netaji Subhas University of Technology, Delhi (110 078), India

Sumit Rai^*

Centre for Environmental Assessment and Climate Change, G.B. Pant National Institute of Himalayan Environment, Kosi-Katarmal, Almora, Uttarakhand (263 643), India

A field experiment was conducted during Kharif, 2018 to evaluate the efficacy of different insecticides against blister beetle, Mylabris pustulata (Thunberg) in pigeon pea. Among the seven treatments tested, Flubendiamide 480SC @ 30 g a.i ha^-1 was found to be effective and recorded 2.67 and 3.56 numbers plant^-1, respectively at 3 and 7 DAT after first spray followed by the treatment Indoxacarb 15.8SC @ 73 g a.i ha^-1 which recorded 2.78 and 3.56 numbers plant^-1. The third treatment proved to be effective was Deltamethrin 2.8EC @ 12.5 g a.i ha^-1 with the population of 3.22 and 3.78 numbers plant^-1. The similar trend of efficacy was noticed even after the second spray also. The order of efficacy of treatments in the population reduction of blister beetles was Flubendiamide 480SC @ 30 g a.i ha^-1 > indoxacarb 15.8SC @ 73 g a.i ha^-1 > Deltamethrin 2.8EC @ 12.5 g a.i ha^-1 > Cypermethrin 25EC @ 25 g a.i ha^-1 > Lambda cyhalothrin 5EC @ 25 g a.i ha^-1 > NSKE 5%. As that of results on the efficacy of insecticides, the reduction per cent in the blister beetle population also follows the similar trend of different treatments tested. This effectiveness also reflected in the highest grain yield of 1140.20 kg ha^-1 in Flubendiamide 480SC @ 30 g a.i ha^-1 with a yield increase of 36.47% over untreated check. This was followed by indoxacarb 15.8SC @ 73 g a.i ha^-1 (1102.3 kg ha^-1) > Deltamethrin 2.8EC @ 12.5 g a.i ha^-1 (1072.0 kg ha^-1) > Cypermethrin 25EC @ 25 g a.i ha^-1 (996.4 kg ha^-1) > Lambda cyhalothrin 5EC @ 25 g a.i ha^-1 (991.7 kg ha^-1) > NSKE 5% (951.70 kg ha^-1).

P. Thilagam^*

Dept. of Agricultural Entomology, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Agricultural Research Station, Vellore, Tamil Nadu, India

D. Dinakaran

Dept. of Plant Pathology, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Agricultural Research Station, Vellore, Tamil Nadu, India

A. Gopikrishnan

Dept. of Plant Breeding and Genetics, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Agricultural Research Station, Vellore, Tamil Nadu, India

Efficient utilisation of bio-wastes could be an important strategy for meeting the growing demand of nutrients and improving the soil health and crop productivity in north-eastern India, where there is abundant availability of bio-wastes (such as crop residues, weed biomass, forest litter, animal dung etc.), and use of chemical fertilisers is traditionally minimal. Production of weed biomass in north-eastern India is estimated to be in the range of 5-20 t ha^-1. Around 9 Mt of crop residues are produced annually in the region. Considering even half of these residues to be available and 40% loss of nutrients contained therein, the potentially available crop residues can add up to 10,000 tonnes of N, 2,000 tonnes of P₂O₅ and 35,000 tonnes of K₂O to soil. Around 15 Mt of animals’ dung produced annually can also supply substantial amount of nutrients. Additionally, these bio-wastes can improve soil organic carbon, moisture retention capacity, buffering capacity and many other desirable attributes of soil quality. These bio-wastes can also be utilised for production of quality organic manure in a short period of 50-80 days using earthworms and cellulose decomposing microorganisms, either alone or in combination. On the whole, efficient utilisation of the available bio-wastes has great potential to improve the soil health and crop productivity, and therefore needs to be promoted on priority basis. This will also help in mitigating the likely impacts of climate change on soil health and crop productivity in north eastern India.

Manoj Kumar^*

ICAR-Research Complex for Eastern Region, RCM, Darbhanga, Bihar (846 005), India

D.J. Rajkhowa

ICAR-Research Complex for NEH Region, Nagaland Centre, Nagaland (797 106), India

Kaberi Mahanta

Assam Agricultural University, Jorhat, Assam (785 013), India

B.C. Verma

Central Rainfed Upland Rice Research Station (ICAR NRRI), Hazaribagh, Jharkhand (825 301), India

B.U. Choudhury

ICAR-Research Complex for NEH Region, Umiam, Meghalaya (793 103), India

K.K. Rao

ICAR-Research Complex for Eastern Region, Patna, Bihar (800 014), India

Kirti Saurabh

ICAR-Research Complex for Eastern Region, Patna, Bihar (800 014), India

Rajiv Rakshit

Bihar Agricultural University, Sabour, Bhagalpur, Bihar (813 210), India

Organic farming is one of the broad spectrum methods of production that ensures environmental safety and restricts the synthetic input use. They are the key component for sustainable agriculture. Vegetables are the vital source in Indian Diet for nutrition. But, in recent decades the use of chemicals had created problem to both human and environment. Thus a need arises to go back for organic farming. The primary goal of the organic vegetable production is to optimize health and productivity of the interdependent communities of plant, soil, people and animals. Organic vegetable production for its quality generates a higher income to the farmers. Varied climatic conditions in India and wide soil types had created a huge scope for organic vegetable production to a greater extend. This article details the organic vegetable production.

T. Ilakiya^*

Dept. of Vegetable Science, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University (TNAU), Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu (641 003), India

E. Parameswari

Dept. of Environmental Sciences, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University (TNAU), Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu (641 003), India

V. Davamani

Dept. of Environmental Sciences, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University (TNAU), Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu (641 003), India

G. Yazhini

Dept. of Soil Science and Agricultural Chemistry, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University (TNAU), Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu (641 003), India

Enteric methane emission from ruminant livestock reduces the efficiency of feed energy utilization and contributes to global warming. An experiment was conducted to investigate the effects of sunflower (SFL) oil supplementation on methanogenesis, volatile fatty acids composition and feed fermentation pattern by in vitro gas production (IVGP) test. SFL oil was examined at three concentrations (0, 0.4 and 0.8 ml/ 30 ml buffered rumen fluid). In vitro incubation was carried out with sorghum hay (200 ± 5 mg) as substrate in 100 ml calibrated glass syringes following standard IVGP protocol. Addition of SFL oil resulted in increase (p < 0.05) in total gas production and decrease (p < 0.05) in methane concentration in head space gas, irrespective of level of inclusion. Linear decrease (p < 0.001) in feed degradability was evident with increasing doses of oil. Acetate production decreased (p < 0.05) without affecting propionate, however, butyrate production increased (p < 0.05) with addition of oil, irrespective of doses. The ratio of acetate to propionate was reduced (p < 0.01) with addition of oils. It is concluded that sunflower oil supplementation exerted inhibitory effects on methane production; however, dry matter degradability was also reduced. Further studies need to be carried out with lower dose levels for their practical application in animal feeding practices.

Avijit Dey^*

Division of Animal Nutrition and Feed Technology, ICAR-Central Institute for Research on Buffaloes, Hisar, Haryana (125 001), India

S.S. Paul

Division of Animal Nutrition and Feed Technology, ICAR-Central Institute for Research on Buffaloes, Hisar, Haryana (125 001), India

P.C. Lailer

Division of Animal Nutrition and Feed Technology, ICAR-Central Institute for Research on Buffaloes, Hisar, Haryana (125 001), India

S.S. Dahiya

Division of Animal Nutrition and Feed Technology, ICAR-Central Institute for Research on Buffaloes, Hisar, Haryana (125 001), India

Soil quality assessment is very important aspect in determining long term sustainability; however it is governed by different physico-chemical and bio-chemical parameters. These are interrelated among them and controlled by different management practices like tillage, water, organic and inorganic source of nutrients etc. Among the different soil parameters, it was considered that soil biochemical parameters provide rapid and accurate estimates on soil quality and its evaluation require understanding of biochemical and microbiological soil properties. Among the several biochemical and microbiological properties, soil organic carbon fractions, microbial biomass and soil enzymes activities may be considered as an important property which governed soil health or quality. Soil organic carbon fractions includes total organic carbon, soil organic carbon (oxidizable carbon), labile carbon etc., microbial biomass and enzymes activities include content of microbial biomass carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus and activities of different enzymes like dehydrogenase, acid and alkaline phosphatase, Urease, β-glucosidase, Aryl sulphatase, etc. It is established and proved that, nutrient management practices (application of fertilizers and manures) marked significant effect on SOC fractions and soil enzymes activities. In most of cases, the application of organic sources of nutrients as well as integrated nutrient management resulted in significant improvement in the soil biochemical properties, however, microbial properties like microbial biomass carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus and enzymes activities are very sensitive to nutrient management options compared to soil organic carbon fractions.

L.G. Mawlong

ICAR-Research Complex for NEH Region, Umiam, Meghalaya (793 103), India

B.C. Verma^*

Central Rainfed Upland Rice Research Station (CRURRS), ICAR-NRRI, Hazaribagh, Jharkhand (825 301), India

Manoj Kumar

ICAR-Research Complex for Eastern Region, RCM, Darbhanga, Bihar (846 005), India

D. Thakuria

College of Post Graduate Studies, CAU, Umiam, Meghalaya (793 103), India

Rajesh Kumar

ICAR-Research Complex for NEH Region, Umiam, Meghalaya (793 103), India

Biofuels and chemicals can be produced from the lignocellulosic biomass would be promising platform in the upcoming decades. The maize cob is selected as lignocellulosic biomass to synthesis chemicals. The maize cob treated with meagre concentration of dilute sulfuric acid (H₂SO₄) dehydrated with Tetrahydrofuran (THF) co-solvent and water in the ratio of 1:1 results with furfural formation. The maize cob sample acid catalysed dehydration process at 1, 2.5, 5 and 10% dilute H₂SO₄ is substantial for sugar compounds production, these compounds can be further fermented to produce liquid fuels viz., bioethanol, biobutanol in an efficient manner. The  maize cob treated with 0.25, 0.5 and 0.75% of dilute H₂SO₄ dehydrated with THF co-solvent and water (1:1) results with furfural formation and highest concentration was found in 0.5% acid catalyzed. The furfurals obtained can be downstream processed to recover and can be used as fuel precursor.

Sriramajayam, S.^*

Dept. of Renewable Energy Engineering, Agricultural Engineering College and Research Institute, TNAU, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu (641 003), India

J. Gitanjali

Dept. of Renewable Energy Engineering, Agricultural Engineering College and Research Institute, TNAU, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu (641 003), India

K. Chandrakumar

Dept. of Renewable Energy Engineering, Agricultural Engineering College and Research Institute, TNAU, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu (641 003), India

Rice crop is threatened by more than 50 diseases which may appear at any growth stage of the plants. Grain discolouration is an emerging disease of paddy, reported from different countries of the world and is gradually becoming a serious problem. Out of numerous reasons for grain discolouration, association of microbes is important one. It affects the qualitative and quantitative traits such as germination ability, seed health, seed quality, seed morphology and ultimately it results into yield penalty. It is a complex disease exhibiting various symptoms depending on season, locality, variety and pathogens involved. To mitigate this serious malady, precise identification of pathogen is necessary. An integrated management strategy involving better utilization of genetic resources, use of improved agricultural practices, seed treatment with chemicals or biological agents are need to be under taken to manage this malady.

B. Khamari^*

Institute of Agricultural Science, Siksha-o-Anusandhan (Deemed to be University), Bhubaneswar, Odisha (751 008), India

India has an agrarian economy. It needs an improved and newer group of biopesticides as the continuous use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides has resulted in pests outbreak and increased environmental pollution. In order to maintain sustainability and food security, an ecofriendly and sustainable strategy like use of natural enemies and microbes for managing these insects-pests is highly envisaged. Metarrhizum anisopliae (green muscardine fungus) have found effective in controlling these insect pests. Due to its mycoinsecticidal properties and easy applicability, various agricultural crops can be benefitted.

Charul Verma^*

Dept. of Plant Pathology, Dr. YSP University of Horticulture and Forestry, Nauni, Solan, Himachal Pradesh (173 230), India

Sushil Kashyap

Krishi Vigyan Kendra, Bastar, Chattisgarh (494 005), India

Springs have historically been considered as a lifeline for urban and rural population living in hilly region for domestic and agricultural needs. Niti Aayog reported that there are 5 million springs across India, of which nearly 3 million are in the IHR alone. In recent times, it is observed that drying up or decline in spring discharge is more frequent due to anthropogenic activities and changing climatic regime. In addition to quantity issues, spring water quality was also reported to be declining due to anthropogenic development in spring recharge areas and therefore spring water needs to be treated before using for domestic purposes. Considering the magnitude of problem, spring conservation and management programme is on national agenda. In present study, we touched upon the spring water quality issue, where status of physico-chemical properties of 16 spring sources of Mohal khad watershed were studied.

Vaibhav E. Gosavi^*

G. B. Pant National Institute of Himalayan Environment and Sustainable Development, Himachal Regional Centre, Mohal - Kullu, Himachal Pradesh (175 126), India

Rajat

G. B. Pant National Institute of Himalayan Environment and Sustainable Development, Himachal Regional Centre, Mohal - Kullu, Himachal Pradesh (175 126), India

Zinc (Zn) deficiency is a well-documented problem in food crops, causing decreased crop yields, nutritional quality. It has been estimated that about 50 per cent of cereal cultivated soils of India are deficient in zinc to support high crop yields. There is a synergistic effect between applied zinc in rice because Zn is very dependent on the size of plant available Zn pools in soil, in most parts of cereal growing areas, soils have less availability of Zn to plant roots. Till-date, the focus was on balanced application of N, P, K. But of late, it has been realized that deficiency of many secondary and micronutrients can also further limit the productivity of the many field crops. In India, first reported zinc deficiency in lowland rice.  Thereafter, it has recognized as a wide spread and important nutritional problem throughout the rice- growing world. Zn plays role in synthesis of plant growth substances and enzyme systems and is essential for promoting certain metabolic reactions. It is necessary for production of chlorophyll and carbohydrates. Zinc deficiency affects stem elongation, auxin activities and protein synthesis.

Jhutan Debnath

Uttar Banga Krishi Viswavidyalaya , Pundibari, Cooch Behar, West Bengal (736 165), India

Joy Kumar Dey^*

Institute of agriculture, Visva-Bharati, Sriniketan, West Bengal (731 236), India

Prajjal Dey

Odisha University of Agriculture and Technology, Bhubaneshwar, Odisha (751 003), India

Animal husbandry combined with several agricultural farming proved to be beneficial and economically viable venture. Similarly, mulberry (Morus alba L.) a perennial plant is cultivated as seasonal plant synchronizing 5 harvests in a year exclusively cultivated for feeding silkworm (Bombyx mori L.). A total of 60-70 MT of leaf or more than 100 MT of biomass will be harvested annually from one hectare of mulberry garden and used for silkworm rearing. Almost 50% of the harvested biomass will be leftover as waste during the process of harvesting mulberry shoots and feeding of silkworm. Further, after the harvest of mulberry garden around 25-30% of the thin branches and leftover unsuitable mulberry biomass will remain in the garden. All these waste mulberry material is most suitable for the cattle and sheep feeding. On interaction with farmers have expressed the increase of milk yield to a tune of twofold compared to the weed gracing cattle. In the present study an attempt was made to study the impact of feeding the leftover mulberry biomass to the animal husbandry among the sericulture farmers.

P. Sudhakar^*

Regional Sericultural Research Station, Central Silk Board (CSB), Ananthapur, Andhra Pradesh (515 001) India

B. Vijaya Naidu

Regional Sericultural Research Station, Central Silk Board (CSB), Ananthapur, Andhra Pradesh (515 001) India

K.P. Kiran Kumar

Regional Sericultural Research Station, Central Silk Board (CSB), Ananthapur, Andhra Pradesh (515 001) India

Pankaj Tewary

Central Sericultural Research and Training Institute (CSRTI), CSB, Mysore, Karnataka (570 008), India

Bran is a milling byproduct of rice. Rice bran is underutilized due to lipolytic enzyme mediated rancidity and its subsequent associated nutritional loss. Bran layer can serve as a source of novel lipolytic enzymes (lipase, esterase, lipoxygenase) which can be purified in order to exploit its catalytic property for industrial application and value addition to the underutilized rice bran layer. To do so traditional bran stabilization has to be avoided in order to safeguard both the nutritional properties and novel lipolytic enzymes. Instead of using bran as only cattle feed or consumable oil extraction, proteomics analysis can be performed to explore the superior usability of enzyme mediated commercial product development which can also serve as an alternative to microbial lipolytic enzymes.

Udit Nandan Mishra^*

Dept. of Biochemistry and Agricultural Chemistry, Assam Agricultural University, Jorhat, Assam (785 013), India

Ranjan Kandali

Dept. of Biochemistry and Agricultural Chemistry, Assam Agricultural University, Jorhat, Assam (785 013), India

Path analysis is a form of multiple regression-statistical analysis used to evaluate causal models by examining the relationships between a dependent variable and two or more independent variables.Using this method, one can estimate both the magnitude and significance of causal connections between variables. In statistics, path analysis is used to describe the directed dependencies among a set of variables. This includes models equivalent to any form of multiple regression analysis, factor analysis, canonical correlation analysis, discriminant analysis, as well as more general families of models in the multivariate analysis of variance and covariance analyses (MANOVA, ANOVA, ANCOVA).

Subrat K. Mahapatra^*

College of Agriculture, Odisha University of Agriculture & Technology, Bhubaneswar, Odisha (751 003), India

Abhiram Dash

College of Agriculture, Odisha University of Agriculture & Technology, Bhubaneswar, Odisha (751 003), India

Jayashankar Pradhan

IRRI-OUAT Collaborative Research Project,OUAT,Bhubaneswar, Odisha (751 003), India

Irrigation is the method in which a controlled amount of water is supplied to plants at regular intervals for agriculture. It is used to assist in the growing of agricultural crops, maintenance of landscapes, and re-vegetation of disturbed soils in dry areas and during periods of inadequate rainfall. About 70 percent of population of India lives in villages. Due to unavailability of canal irrigation in the country, most of the farmers of different parts depend on rainy season. Hence, we can say that if the monsoon fails agriculture also fail. At farm level, irrigation efficiency is on average 50 percent with traditional irrigation techniques, such as the basin and furrow systems, but it could reach 70-90 percent when modern pressurized techniques are used. Finally the involvement and participation of farmers must be improved at all levels of management. Hence there is also a need for implementing programs on education, training and extension.

Rohitashav Nagar^*

Dept. of Agronomy, School of Agricultural Sciences, Career Point University, Kota, Rajasthan (324 005), India

Monika Karnawat

Dept. of Agronomy, School of Agricultural Sciences, Career Point University, Kota, Rajasthan (324 005), India

Deepak Nagar

Dept. of Agronomy, School of Agricultural Sciences, Career Point University, Kota, Rajasthan (324 005), India

S.K. Trivedi

Dept. of Agronomy, School of Agricultural Sciences, Career Point University, Kota, Rajasthan (324 005), India

Farmers of Sikkim generally don’t know how the soil health can be improved. This study was conducted during the period of 2014-19. After distributing the inputs under Tribal Sub Plan (ICAR-TSP) project to tribal farmers in Sikkim the impact assessment was carried out. It was found that application of recommended dose of all the soil inputs increased nutrient use efficiency upto 8.7-12.4%, CEC upto 19.4-27.2%, soil organic carbon 2.4-5.1%, soil pH 18.5-32.3%, and crop productivity upto 18.6-27.4% along with increases in grain yields upto 10.5-14.7% in major crops of Sikkim (maize, rice, mustard, soybean, pulses). The net income (excluding cost of production) of the maize growing farmers were increased 57% (Rs. 37,000 to 58,090); rice growing farmers increased 37% (Rs. 25,000 to 34,250); pulses and oilseed growing farmers were increase 62% (Rs. 45,000 to 72,900) after adopting the use of different organic soil inputs.

Shaon Kumar Das^*

ICAR-Research Complex for NEH Region, Sikkim Centre, Tadong, Gangtok, Sikkim (737 102), India

R.K. Avasthe

ICAR-Research Complex for NEH Region, Sikkim Centre, Tadong, Gangtok, Sikkim (737 102), India

H. Kalita

ICAR-Research Complex for NEH Region, Sikkim Centre, Tadong, Gangtok, Sikkim (737 102), India

Ashish Yadav

ICAR Research Complex for NEH Region, Sikkim Centre, Tadong, Gangtok, Sikkim (737 102), India

R. Gopi

ICAR-Research Complex for NEH Region, Sikkim Centre, Tadong, Gangtok, Sikkim (737 102), India

A geographical area of land that drains or “sheds” rainfall and snowmelt into a specific waterbody is called watershed. Any human action aimed at ensuring the sustainable use of watershed resources without adversely affecting land and water bases is termed as watershed management. Each and every one of us live in a unique watershed, with interrelated natural processes that impact our lives. The changing climate scenario and scanty water resources compel us to rethink about the approaches towards uniform distribution of clean drinking water and also supply of irrigation water for agricultural practices emphasising on collection of runoff water (water harvesting), designing water conservation structures like bunds, water ways, diversion works and implementing approaches to curb different means of water losses. The understanding of land capability is equally important to increase the land use efficiency and productivity of a watershed for the generation of a highly productive, resource-efficient and sustainable watershed structure.

Ananya Chakraborty^*

Dept. of Agronomy, Bidhan Chandra Krishi Viswavidyalaya, Mohanpur, Nadia, West Bengal (741 252), India

Sritama Biswas

Dept. of Agronomy, Bidhan Chandra Krishi Viswavidyalaya, Mohanpur, Nadia, West Bengal (741 252), India

Pintoo Bandopadhyay

Dept. of Agronomy, Bidhan Chandra Krishi Viswavidyalaya, Mohanpur, Nadia, West Bengal (741 252), India

Mulberry, the sole food plant of silkworm, Bombyx mori (Linnaeus) is invaded by various polyphagous pests, causing economic loss in sericulture. Native predators in the plant ecosystem play a vital role in checking the pest infestation. In the present study, population dynamics, phenology of the arthropod predators of Paracoccus marginatus Williams and Granara de Willink and Maconellicoccus hirsutus (Green) infesting mulberry in four sericulture practicing districts (Murshidabad, Nadia, Birbhum and Malda) of West Bengal was studied. A diverse assemblage of alternate hosts and arthropod natural enemies were found associated with mealybugs infesting mulberry in the Indo gangetic plains of West Bengal. About 53 plant species acted as alternate hosts in the adjoining plots of mulberry gardens and profoundly influenced the population dynamics of mealybug pests and its associated predators and allowed migration rapidly from alternate hosts to mulberry as soon as the new flushes appeared after pruning. Sixteen predator species, were found consistently associated with mealybugs during the study. They are Brumoides suturalis (F), Coccinella septempunctata L., Jauravia pallidula Motschulsky, Menochilus sexmaculatus (F), Nephus regularis Sicard, Nephus sp. nr. roepkei de Fluiter., Nephus bipunctatus Kugelann, Scymnus bourdilloni Kapur, Scymnus coccivora Ayyar, Scymnus nubilus Mulsant, Scymnus pallidicollis Mulsant, Scymnus pyrocheilus Mulsant, Spalgis epius (Westwood), Mallada desjardinsi (Navas) and one anthocorid bug. Apart from these arthropods, one new species of Scymnus Kugelann, Scymnus (Pullus) latifolius Poorani sp. nov, was collected and reported for the first time. The predatory potential of the new predator was studied and amenability of the predator for mass multiplication in laboratory conditions opened avenues for its use as a potential biocontrol agent for checking mealybug pests in various agroecosystems.

Lalitha, N.^*

Eri silkworm Seed Production Centre, Central Silk Board, Bangara, Guwahati, Assam, INDIA & Central Sericultural Research and Training Institute, Berhampore, West Bengal, INDIA

M.V. Santhakumar

Central Sericultural Research and Training Institute, Berhampore, West Bengal, INDIA

H. Chatterjee

Palli Siksha Bhavana, Visva-Bharathi University, Santiniketan, West Bengal, INDIA

J. Poorani

National Research Centre for Banana, ICAR, Trichy, Tamil Nadu, INDIA

S. Nirmal Kumar

Central Sericultural Research and Training Institute, Berhampore, West Bengal, INDIA

Clupisoma garua (Hamilton, 1822) commonly known as ‘garuabachcha’ under the order Siluriformes and family Schilbeidae, a potamodromous species, demersal habitat and found both fresh as well as brackish water. The species is mainly distributed in Asian countries like Bangladesh, India, Pakistan and Nepal and found mainly large freshwater bodies. The species are categorized as Least Concern (LC) by IUCN but kept as Vulnerable (Vu) category by the CAMP and CAFF reports. It is anomini-carnivore species and feeds on insects, molluscs, crustaceans and small fishes in wild conditions. The species have both food and ornamental values and the medium-size individual also treated as game fish in India. Through the species is said to be widely distributed but threatened in some localities like southern West Bengal, due to overfishing andanthropogenic activities.In the present review, we have tried to give detail information of ‘garuabachcha’, which will be useful to know the species, its potential importance and suitable conservation measures may carry out accordingly.

Dibakar Bhakta^*

ICAR-Central Inland Fisheries Research Institute, Regional Center, B-12, Hans Society, Harney Road, Vadodara-390 022, Gujarat, INDIA

Sonia

ICAR-Central Inland Fisheries Research Institute, Regional Center, B-12, Hans Society, Harney Road, Vadodara-390 022, Gujarat, INDIA

Majority of soils in Tripura are strongly acidic having a pH range of 5.1-5.5. Groundnut, an oilseed crop, can grow well in coarse-textured soils which facilitate the better growth and development of groundnut pods. The low soil pH is associated with a number of soil chemical and biological properties that manifest themselves as the components of the acid soil syndrome. There are some specific problems which are associated with acid soils e.g., aluminum, iron and manganese toxicity; molybdenum deficiency; failures in legume nodulation; increase in plant disease, and calcium and magnesium deficiency. These conditions may adversely affect groundnut growth. Liming is an important proposition to combat soil acidity, however, everywhere this approach does not prove economical and most of the time it is out of the reach of resource poor farmers. Thus, judicious application of lime and integrated nutrient management (combinations of bio-fertilizer, greeen manuring, organic manure and chemical fertilizer) can be practiced to formulate an integrated programme for acid soil management which will be eco-friendly and economically feasible tool to conquer productivity barrier and to attain sustainable groundnut production in acid soils of Tripura.

D. Dey^*

Dept. of Soil Science and Agricultural Chemistry, Palli Siksha Bhavana (Institute of Agriculture), Visva-Bharati, Sriniketan 731236, Birbhum, West Bengal, INDIA

M.C. Kundu

Dept. of Soil Science and Agricultural Chemistry, Palli Siksha Bhavana (Institute of Agriculture), Visva-Bharati, Sriniketan 731236, Birbhum, West Bengal, INDIA

D. Sen

Dept. of Agronomy, College of Agriculture, Lembuchera-799210, West Tripura, INDIA

Marine fisheries is recognized as a sunrise sector and the prospects of foreign exchange earnings and employability is attracting more and more people into active fishing and allied sectors.. Fisheries resources are nutritional security, besides livelihood support and gainful employment. All over the world, more than 30 million fishers and fish farmers and their families gain their livelihoods from fisheries. Globally, fish provide about 16 per cent of the animal protein consumed by humans, and are a valuable source of minerals and essential fatty acids. Marine fisheries are very important sectors of India. It provides employment to millions of people and contributes to food security of the country. With a coastline of 8,118 km, an Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) of 2.02 million sq km, and with extensive resources, fisheries play a vital role. This article represents initial reviews on the status, challenges, distribution, research and sustainable management of marine fisheries in India.

Suman Takar^*

Fisheries College and Research Institute, Thoothukudi - 628 008, Tamil Nadu, INDIA

Udai Ram Gurjar

ICAR-Central Institute of Fisheries Education, Mumbai - 400 061, Maharashtra, INDIA

Electronisation and mechanization in communication systems have provided an opportunity to access the information rapidly, accurately and repeatedly. To reach the unreach modern electronic gadgets and systems have been introduced to cope-up the requirements. Information has an immense value in our society. Its large scale dissemination through highly preferred communication media constitutes one of the most striking developments of present era. Organic farming has an important scope in hilly rural areas of J&K. In order to increase the organic crops production in hilly areas, it is necessary that the organic farmers of hilly areas should adopt the scientific organic farming technologies. In order to know the media preferences of organic farmers residing in hilly areas, the present study was conducted in hilly district Reasi of Jammu and Kashmir which was selected purposively. A sample of 150 trained organic farmers was selected purposively. A list of different sources of organic farming information was prepared and farmers were asked to indicate their preferences on a three point scale. It was found that Extension Personnel of KVK and Extension Personnel of State Deptt. of Agri. were highly preferred by the organic farmers.

Banarsi Lal^*

KVK, Tanda, Reasi (SKUAST-Jammu)-182301, INDIA

Vikas Tandon

Division of Biotechnology, SKUAST-Jammu, J&K, INDIA

The present research work was carried out at two distinct locations (Research Field and Farmer’s Field). The Research Field, Jawaharlal Nehru Krishi Vishwa Vidyalaya and Farmer’s Field Village - Jatwa, Panagar Block of district Jabalpur Madhya Pradesh during two cropping season of rice i.e. Kharif of 2015 and 2016. Light trap was used for the taxonomic documentation Coleopteran phototactic insect fauna. Total 34 species of order Coleoptera belongs to 8 families were collected from rice ecosystem. Family Carabidae was the dominating family among the all 8 families. 34 species were collected at Farmer’s Field while 29 species at Research Field.

Anil Kurmi

Jawaharlal Nehru Krishi Vishwa Vidyalaya, Jabalpur (M.P.), INDIA

R. Pachori

Jawaharlal Nehru Krishi Vishwa Vidyalaya, Jabalpur (M.P.), INDIA

A.K. Bhowmick

Jawaharlal Nehru Krishi Vishwa Vidyalaya, Jabalpur (M.P.), INDIA

A.K. Sharma

Jawaharlal Nehru Krishi Vishwa Vidyalaya, Jabalpur (M.P.), INDIA

H.L. Sharma

Jawaharlal Nehru Krishi Vishwa Vidyalaya, Jabalpur (M.P.), INDIA

Brajesh K. Namdev^*

Jawaharlal Nehru Krishi Vishwa Vidyalaya, Jabalpur (M.P.), INDIA

Gujarat is the second largest cotton producing state of India. In Gujarat state Saurashtra region is also has major area under cotton crop. However, it is interesting to note that cotton, which occupies only five per cent of the total cultivable land consume more than 55 per cent of the pesticides used. Present study was carried out to know the knowledge level of Bt. cotton growers about integrated pest management practices in Rajkot district of Saurashtra region with one-fifty Bt. cotton growers. Finally, fifty-two statements were produced towards cotton growers for measuring his knowledge about IPM practices. Majority (66.00 per cent) of Bt. cotton growers were from medium knowledge followed by high level of knowledge about integrated pest management practices in Bt. Cotton. In case of association between knowledge level of Bt. cotton growers and their personal, socio economic characteristic, out of seven socio-economic characteristics, age was negative and significant associated with the knowledge of Bt. cotton growers. While size of land holding was non-significant related with knowledge, remaining all characteristics like, education, annual income, cotton yield index, training received, extension participation and scientific orientation were positive and significant association with the knowledge of Bt. cotton growers. Therefore, due weightage given to the above positive and significant related characteristic of cotton growers to achieve higher knowledge about IPM practices and better management of pest resulting higher income of cotton growers.

Jadav N.B.^*

Krishi Vigyan Kendra, Junagadh Agricultural University, Pipalia (Dhoraji), Rajkot-II, Gujarat, INDIA

Sharma P.S.

Krishi Vigyan Kendra, Junagadh Agricultural University, Pipalia (Dhoraji), Rajkot-II, Gujarat, INDIA

Undhad S.V.

Krishi Vigyan Kendra, Junagadh Agricultural University, Pipalia (Dhoraji), Rajkot-II, Gujarat, INDIA

Rodents are major vertebrate pests belongs to order Rodentia and class Mammalia. About 40% of all mammal species are rodents (2,277 species).They have emerged as a major pest due to their high damage potential and tendency to damage major crops at field level and in storage in India. Analysis of the reviews on pre-harvest losses indicates a range of 5-15% damage to major cereal crops and higher damages are noticed in endemic areas. Also about 2.5% damage is caused by rodents in post- harvest system. Rodents also gained importance due to their outbreaks in endemic areas and potential vector to cause and transmit zoonotic diseases such as plague and leptospirosis. The lesser bandicoot, Bandicota bengalensis, is predominant in irrigated crops throughout the country. The Indiang erbil, Tetara indica, soft-furred field rat, Millardia meltada, and field mouse, Mus booduga, are widespread in both irrigated dryland and dryland crops in the country, except in the north-eastern states. Farmers are facing huge problems due to rodent damage to their agricultural and horticultural crops for food and hoarding. The use of rodenticides is the common approach to manage rodent menace, but rodenticide coupled with many cultural practices like clean cultivation, proper soil tillage and crop scheduling, had given long-lasting results. Currently, problems occur due to increased intensive cropping with expansion of irrigated areas, changing agricultural practices resulting in higher breeding and damages by lesser bandicoot rats, increased coconut cultivation without proper spacing, cultivation of oilpalm in rodent-endemic areas, and natural calamities like flash floods and drought spells followed by heavy rains etc. Integrated rodent management is the available option to manage rodent damages.

Mariadoss A.^*

National Institute of Plant Health Management (NIPHM), Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare, Govt. of India, Rajendranagar, Hyderabad - 500 030, INDIA

J. Alice

National Institute of Plant Health Management (NIPHM), Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare, Govt. of India, Rajendranagar, Hyderabad - 500 030, INDIA

A. Chakraborty

Krishi Vigyan Kendra, Khowai, Tripura - 799207, INDIA

White grubs are the pests of economically important crops like sugarcane, groundnut, potato, arecanut, etc. and are distributed widely across the country. Studies have been taken up to document the predominant white grub species in major cropped area and their distribution in different regions of the country. The five years study revealed high species diversity of white grubs with varied distribution. This paper presents major 30 predominant species documented in various crops across different states.

Kolla Sreedevi^*

Division of Germplasm Collection and Characterization, ICAR-National Bureau of Agricultural Insect Resources, H.A. Farm Post, Hebbal, Bellary Road, Bengaluru - 560 024, Karnataka, INDIA

Chittoor district which occupies first position in Mulberry sericulture in Andhra Pradesh is in the Rayalaseema region where the temperature goes up to 47^oC in summer months. Inspite of water scarcity and low rainfall in the recent past, mulberry cocoon production sustained due to quality silkworm seed. NSSO has 20 SSPCs managed by well qualified scientists to create a new record in the seed production year after year. Bivoltine Double Hybrid Silkworm Seed have contributed for the sustenance and higher returns to the sericulturists. Grainage performance with the recovery of Dfls above NSSO norms as per the quality standards of ISO-9001:2015 has enhanced the returns from sericulture. The Bivoltine seed production by NSSO is appreciable as reflected in the Compounded Annual Growth rate (CAGR) of 17.21% for the past 5 years. The Bivoltine Dfls production by NSSO was 195.45 lakhs during 2013-14, 251.57 lakhs during 2014-15, 309.70 lakhs during 2015-16, 342.77 lakhs during 2016-17 and 314.32 lakhs during 2017-18 which clearly shows the continual improvement in production. The Egg recovery per 1 kg of Seed cocoon was well above the norms set for NSSO (65gms) in the grainages for the period from 2013-14 to 2017-18 which clearly defines the efficient utilization and management of Seed cocoons which has made the Bivoltine production economically sustainable. Present study was conducted in Chittoor cluster in Andhra Pradesh in 10 mandals i.e. Chittoor, Penumuru, Bangarupalem, Thavanampalle, Irala, Gudipala, Puthalapattu, G.D. Nellore, Pakala and Palasamudram. The paper deals with 5 years comparative data in Bivoltine Double Hybrid NSSO source Dfls brushing, Dfls harvesting, Average yield and Silk productivity since 2013-14 to 2017-18 in Chittoor cluster which shows continual improvement. The study reveals that the Dfls brushing was 82175 during 2013-14 which was increased to 110000 during 2014-15, 160400 during 2015-16, 249000 during 2016-17 and 443000 during 2017-18. Seed Cocoons harvested was 54.727 MT with an Average yield of 67.400 in 2013-14, 76.802 MT with an average yield of 69.820 in 2014-15, 102.988 MT with an average yield of 71.150 in 2015-16, 184.190 MT with an Average yield of 73.970 in 2016-17 and 313.400 MT with an Average yield of 75.900 in 2017-18. The study shows that quality Bivoltine Double hybrid NSSO source Dfls has enhanced the productivity and popularized the Bivoltine production in Chittoor district.

Deepa P.^*

Silkworm Seed Production Centre, National Silkworm Seed Organization, Central Silk Board, Madanapalle - 517325, Andhra Pradesh, INDIA

V. Harlapur

National Silkworm Seed Organization, Central Silk Board, Madiwala, Bangalore - 560068, Karnataka, INDIA

R.K. Mishra

National Silkworm Seed Organization, Central Silk Board, Madiwala, Bangalore - 560068, Karnataka, INDIA

The field experiment was conducted to refine the fertiliser prescription equation for hybrid maize on an Inceptisol (Periyenackampalayam soil series- Vertic ustropept), conducted at farmer’s holding of Allapalayam village, Annur block, Coimbatore District of Tamil Nadu in Western Zone of Tamil Nadu during Rabi 2015-16. Inceptisol. The soil of experimental field was sandy clay loam with alkaline pH and non-saline in nature. The soil was low in organic carbon and available N, medium in available P and high in available K. The available Zn, Cu, Fe, and Mn were in sufficient status. Basic parameters were calculated from the data generated from the field experiment. Using the basic parameters, crop nutrient requirement per quintal of grain production, contribution of soil available nutrients, contribution of fertilizer nutrients and contribution of farm yard manure were worked out. It was found that hybrid maize requires 1.76, 0.58 and 1.62 kg of N, P₂O₅ and K₂O per quintal of grain produced. Using the basic parameters, fertiliser prescription equations were developed based on integrated plant nutrition system (IPNS). It was estimated that, application of FYM @ 12.5 t ha^-1 with 28% moisture, 0.53%, 0.26% and 0.50% of N, P and K, respectively along with NPK fertilizers, the extent of saving inorganic fertiliser for hybrid maize was 40, 20 and 30 kg of fertiliser N, P₂O₅ and K₂O, respectively. So, that integrated use of organic manure and chemical fertilizers is beneficial in improving crop yield and uptake by maize hybrid. Thus to maintain consistent soil fertility with high rate of productivity soil test based fertiliser recommendation along with integrated nutrient management will benefit the farmer in saving of fertilizer and sustaining soil health.

Sivaranjani C.^*

Directorate of Natural Resource Management, Department of Soil Science and Agricultural Chemistry, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore (640003), INDIA

K.M. Sellamuthu

Horticultural College and Research institute, Periyakulam, Tamil Nadu (625604), INDIA

R. Santhi

Directorate of Natural Resource Management, Department of Soil Science and Agricultural Chemistry, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore (640003), INDIA

S. Maragatham

Directorate of Natural Resource Management, Department of Soil Science and Agricultural Chemistry, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore (640003), INDIA

Field experiment was conducted at Central Sericultural Research and Training Institute, Berhampore- 742 101 during 2016 to study the effect of fertilizer dose and split application of fertilizer on growth, yield and nutrient use efficiency of mulberry leaves. The treatments comprised of four levels of fertilizer (75, 100, 125 & 150% RDF), two types of split application (2 splits: 15^th & 45^th day after pruning and 3 splits: 15^th, 30^th & 45^th day after pruning). A control plot of 100% RDF with one time application of fertilizer on 15^th day after pruning was also maintained. The experiment was laid out in randomized block design with three replications. Recommended dose of fertilizer was used at 67.2:36: 22.4 kg NPK ha^-1 crop^-1. The required nutrient as per treatments were applied through Urea, DAP and MOP. The experimentation was done under existing S-1635 mulberry garden with 2'×2' spacing. The results revealed that mulberry showed positive response to fertilizer levels and split application of fertilizer. Growth and yield attributes were significantly higher under 125% RDF with 2 split application and this was on par with 150% RDF with in both 2 split and 3 split applications. Significantly higher leaf yield of 506.40 g/plant (14.07 t ha^-1 crop^-1) was registered under fertilizer dose at 125% RDF with 2 splits. Total soluble protein (mg/g of fresh green weight) was 31.82% higher in 125% RDF with 2 splits than control. Nutrient use efficiency (NUE) was markedly decreased with higher fertilizer dose (i.e. 150% RDF) than lower fertilizer dose (75% RDF). The results indicated that 11.10% higher NUE was registered under 125% RDF with 2 splits compared to control. From the above study, it could be concluded that application of 84:45:25 kg NPK ha^-1crop^-1 in 2 split was found to be a suitable technology for achieving higher mulberry leaf yield with enhanced fertilizer use efficiency. However, split application of fertilizer could reduce total nitrate emissions from mulberry field due to better nutrient use efficiency and this could one of the climate change mitigation option.

Mahesh R.^*

Central Sericultural Research and Training Institute, Central Silk Board, Berhampore, West Bengal-742 101, INDIA

Hirom Premjit Meitei

Central Sericultural Research and Training Institute, Central Silk Board, Berhampore, West Bengal-742 101, INDIA

Debashish Chakravarty

Central Sericultural Research and Training Institute, Central Silk Board, Berhampore, West Bengal-742 101, INDIA

V. Sivaprasad

Central Sericultural Research and Training Institute, Central Silk Board, Berhampore, West Bengal-742 101, INDIA

Tobacco caterpillar, Spodoptera litura F. is the key pest of tobacco nurseries and it is one of the major problems in successful production of healthy tobacco seedlings required to realise optimum yield and quality tobacco leaf. Insecticides chlorfenapyr 10 SC @ 0.01%, metaflumizone 22 SC @ 0.04%, spinosad 48 SC 0.01% and IGRs novoluron 10 EC @ 0.01% & lufenuron 5 EC @ 0.006% were evaluated against S. litura in tobacco seed beds in a replicated experiment in comparison with emamectin benzoate 5 SG @ 0.0025% and untreated control for two seasons. Emamectin benzoate 0.0025% recorded least seedling damage followed by chlorfenapyr 10 SC @ 0.01%. The seedling damage in the treatments of emamectin benzoate and chlorfenapyr was on á par with each other. The studies on persistent residual toxicity of the insecticides showed cent per cent mortality up to 8 days in emamectin benzoate @ 0.0025% and 6 DAS in chlorfenapyr @ 0.01%. The period of persistency was 20 days in emamectin benzoate and 16 days in chlorfenapyr treatment. The mean persistent toxicity and persistent toxicity index were 62.84 & 1256.80 for emamectin benzoate 5 SG @ 0.0025% and 71.95 & 1151.20 for chlorfenapyr 10 SC @ 0.01%. Chlorfenapyr 10 SC @ 0.01% can be used for management of S. litura in tobacco seed beds along with emamectin benzoate 5 SG @ 0.0025%.

U. Sreedhar^*

ICAR-Central Tobacco Research Institute, Rajahmundry - 533 105, Andhra Pradesh, INDIA

Cluster Promotion Programme (CPP) was implemented during 2008-2019 under XI & XII five year plans to generate gradable Bivoltine raw silk and project India as a potential Bivoltine silk producer in the international scenario. Kalyandurg has become one of the clusters selected for implementing the CPP out of 17 clusters selected to implement CPP in Andhra Pradesh. CPP was implemented in Kalyandurg during 2010-19 and distributed 28.51 lakh of DFLs against the target of 24.75 lakh with a significant achievement of 121.44%. During the CPP implemented period, 26.80 lakh DFLs were harvested, produced 1397.7MT of cocoons and contributed in generation of 275.85MT graded Bivoltine raw silk. Bivoltine DFLs brushing was raised progressively from the bench mark level (25000) to 59600 (2010-11), 63300 (2011-12), 69925 (2012-13), 133025 (2013-14), 246945 (2014-15), 327895 (2015-16), 540625 (2016-17), 653100 (2017-18) and 756400 (2018-19) DFLs with a percentage of achievement as against the given annual target was recorded as 119%, 106%, 108%, 133%, 165%, 109%, 150%, 102% and 101% respectively. Cocoon yield kg/100 DFLs was also recorded significant level of increase ranging from 61 kgs (2010-11) to 76 kgs (2018-19) per 100 DFLs whereas, bench mark yield was 45 kg/100 DFLs. Bivoltine cocoons generated by the Kalyandurg cluster farmers fetched higher market prices which ranged from Rs. 288/kg to Rs. 482.0/kg with average rate of RS. 347/kg while benchmark rate was Rs. 223. For the horizontal development of sericulture around 1857 acres of new mulberry plantation was undertaken among 1453 farmers followed by the organization of 157 extension & communication programmes (ECPs) and 41 Farmers Skill Trainings (FSTs) and sensitised 6,632 sericultural farming communities on various improved technologies for further accelerating the Bivoltine sericulture development under the cluster. The improvement in all aspects indicates the success of CPP in Kalyandurg during 2010-19 is nothing but intensive adoption of integrated technologies in cluster approach.

K.P. Kiran Kumar^*

Regional Sericultural Research Station, Central Silk Board (CSB), Ananthapur-515 001, Andhra Pradesh, INDIA

B. Vijaya Naidu

Regional Sericultural Research Station, Central Silk Board (CSB), Ananthapur-515 001, Andhra Pradesh, INDIA

P. Sudhakar

Regional Sericultural Research Station, Central Silk Board (CSB), Ananthapur-515 001, Andhra Pradesh, INDIA

I. Vijaya Kumar

Department of Sericulture, Kalyandurg, Ananthapur District, Govt. of Andhra Pradesh, INDIA

R.S. Teotia

Central Sericultural Research and Training Institute (CSRTI), CSB, Mysore-570 008, Karnataka, INDIA

Cluster Promotion Programme (CPP) was implemented during 2008-2019 under XI & XII five year plans to generate gradable Bivoltine raw silk and project India as a potential Bivoltine silk producer in the international scenario. Kalyandurg has become one of the clusters selected for implementing the CPP out of 17 clusters choose to implement CPP in Andhra Pradesh. CPP was implemented in Kalyandurg during 2010-19 and distributed 28.51 lakh of DFLs against the target of 24.75 lakh with a significant achievement of 121.44%. During the CPP implemented period, 26.80 lakh DFLs were harvested, produced 1397.7 MT of cocoons and contributed in generation of 275.85 MT graded Bivoltine raw silk. Cocoon yield/ 100 DFLs was enhanced from 45 kg (benchmark level) to 68.11 kg and fletched Rs. 395 average market price per kg cocoons. Further, as a part of cluster promotion programme, several scheduled caste and scheduled tribe farmers were approached and encouraged to take up Bivoltine sericulture to uplift their socio economic conditions. Chovitivanka Thanda (C. V. Thanda) of Kambaduru mandal under Kalyandurg Cluster, Anantapur District, Andhra Pradesh, where only 50 Sugali (ST) families live in and they were approached and made efforts to take up sericulture. Smt. Alivalamma, G. Rama Naik and Ch. Rama Naik are Scheduled Tribe farmers and suffered with losses due to the cultivation of various agricultural, vegetable and horticultural crops. They were struggling for their survival and they were planning to go to urban areas to pull the days as daily waged labourers. Under this situation, CPP was implemented by giving subsidies in all aspects of sericulture in the year 2017. They established gardens, rearing houses, infrastructure facilities and harvested yield of more than 80 Kgs/100 DFLs and earned more than Rs. 1 lakh in the first crop itself in all cases and their life has been transformed, uplifted their socio-economic conditions and brought glitters in their lives. They became role models for the other farmers, 15 new farmers have come forward and established sericulture from the same village and they are also in the same path of profitable sericulture. The village so called C.V. Thanda have become Seri Thanda with the development of Bivoltine sericulture under CPP.

K.P. Kiran Kumar^*

Regional Sericultural Research Station, Central Silk Board (CSB), Ananthapur-515 001, Andhra Pradesh, INDIA

P. Sudhakar

Regional Sericultural Research Station, Central Silk Board (CSB), Ananthapur-515 001, Andhra Pradesh, INDIA

B. Vijaya Naidu

Regional Sericultural Research Station, Central Silk Board (CSB), Ananthapur-515 001, Andhra Pradesh, INDIA

R.S. Teotia

Central Sericultural Research and Training Institute (CSRTI), CSB, Mysore-570 008, Karnataka, INDIA

Manipur being a sericulture state, produces all the four traded silkworms viz. Eri, Mulberry, Muga and Tasar with a total production of 615.45 MT. Silkworm pupa which contributes 70% of cocoon biomass is a seri-waste. However, seri-waste, both spent and unspent pupae are complete nutritional package rich in protein (~41%), micro nutrients such as Iron (111 mg/ 100 gm), Magnesium (622 mg/ 100 gm), Calcium (~30.51 mg/ 100 gm) and also posses antioxidant property (IC 50%, 68μg/ml, eri pupae). The state have immense scope for aquaculture development but availability of fish feed is a limiting factor. Feed cost covers 60-80% of the total production of which protein cost accounts 15%. Therefore, efficacy of three different feed formulations (T1, T2 & T3) incorporated with defatted silkworm pupae waste (DSPW) at 25%, 50% and 75% respectively replacing Mustard oil cake (MOC) were evaluated including conventional feed as control on carp fingerlings (Labeo rohita). T3 showed significant effective growth rate indicating more than double the size (36.60 ± 0.56 gm) then the initial day (16.66 ± 0.56 gm) at the end of 90 days. Relative Growth Rate (RGR) of different formulated feeds indicated approximate increase of 45-50% with respect to the proportion of DSPW incorporation. Hence, fish feed of DSPW as protein supplement revealed double the relative growth rate compare to control feed. Low cost fish feed formulation with locally available materials are more cheaper than the conventional protein feed sources such as groundnut cake, fish meal and soybean meal, which do not permit profit maximization in aquaculture ventures. Hence, silk industry waste can be an alternative low-cost protein supplement for effective fish feed formulation in the state.

Tourangbam Shantibala^*

College of Horticulture and Forestry, Pasighat, Central Agricultural University, Imphal, INDIA

Institute of Bioresources and Sustainable Development, Imphal, Department of Biotechnology, Government of India, Takyelpat, Manipur, INDIA

Gusheinzed Waikhom

Institute of Bioresources and Sustainable Development, Imphal, Department of Biotechnology, Government of India, Takyelpat, Manipur, INDIA

Gusheinzed Waikhom

Institute of Bioresources and Sustainable Development, Imphal, Department of Biotechnology, Government of India, Takyelpat, Manipur, INDIA

K. Mamocha Singh

College of Agriculture, Iroisemba, Central Agricultural University, Imphal, INDIA

B.N. Hazarika

College of Horticulture and Forestry, Pasighat, Central Agricultural University, Imphal, INDIA

Ecofriendly dyeing efficacy of cotton fabric with the pigments of mulberry fruits and its antibacterial functionality were investigated. The pure extract, ethanol and aqueous extracts were tested for their dye ability. The colour values referred in terms of L, a and b indicated purple to red colour of the pigment. The crude extract of fruits shown inhibitory zone against Bacillus subtilis, Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli in well diffusion assay. The cotton fabric dyed with fruit extract had fastness to light, UV and also thermal stability. The results of this research indicated a potential commercial application of the mulberry fruit in textile technology.

Menaka S.

Department of Agricultural Entomology, Adhiparasakthi Agricultural College, Vellore, Tamil Nadu, INDIA

Vijila K.^*

Department Agricultural Microbiology, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, INDIA

Cashew is an evergreen tree grown mainly in the tropical regions. Origin of cashew is believed to be the North East region of Brazil. Cashew has spread to different parts of the world by the activities of Portuguese colonials, Spanish sailors and the birds like bats. Currently, cashew has attained the status of an important tree nut crop in the world. Historically, India, Brazil and African countries dominated cashew production and trade. After 2006, Vietnam became the world leader in cashew with a significant increase in cashew production and earnings from export. In the cashew cultivation area, Côte d’Ivoire stands first with 26% and India stands second with 17% area of global cashew. Vietnam earns foreign exchange worth the US$ 2 billion which is nearly three times that of India’s earnings of US$ 0.7 billion. Global per capita consumption of cashew kernels has risen by about 47%. Cashew production in India can be increased with a multipronged approach involving area expansion, increasing crop productivity and processing efficiency. To address these issues associated with lower production various research and extension effort apart from government initiatives on area expansion have been taken up in India.

Siddanna Savadi^*

ICAR-Directorate of Cashew Research, Puttur- 574 202, Dakshina Kannada, Karnataka, INDIA

B.M. Muralidhara

ICAR-Directorate of Cashew Research, Puttur- 574 202, Dakshina Kannada, Karnataka, INDIA

M.G. Nayak

ICAR-Directorate of Cashew Research, Puttur- 574 202, Dakshina Kannada, Karnataka, INDIA

The present study analyses the River Basin Delineation and Hydrological Response Units (HRUs) Analysis using Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) Model. Delineation of Rajasthan, India considering delineation of the River Basin plays a significant role in watercourse planning. The study focused to demonstrate the applicability of SWAT (Soil and Water Assessment Tool) - a model of residential scale to forecast the effect over a period of land, soil and water changes. Since hydrological models are essential tools for understanding the hydrological activity of river basins, hence are used for the management of the river basin. These models are capable of simulating the effect of various systems for soil and water conservation. Under this study the delineations of river basin was carried out by ArcGIS 10.2.1. Post delineation the land use map, the soil class map and the slope class map were superimposed to complete the river basin HRUs analysis on the delineated river basin map. The output of the study may help in water resource planning in the basin and to undertake appropriate preventive actions in areas that are vulnerable to erosion.

Jalgaonkar B.R.^*

Department of Soil and Water Engineering, CTAE (MPUAT), Udaipur, Rajasthan, INDIA

Mahesh Kothari

Department of Soil and Water Engineering, CTAE (MPUAT), Udaipur, Rajasthan, INDIA

H.K. Mittal

Department of Soil and Water Engineering, CTAE (MPUAT), Udaipur, Rajasthan, INDIA

P.K. Singh

Department of Soil and Water Engineering, CTAE (MPUAT), Udaipur, Rajasthan, INDIA

Site quality (SQ) is maximum timber a site can produce in a given year. Site quality evaluation is important tool for plantation management. Site factors decide the productivity of that site which varies with species. Though there are many direct and indirect methods for site quality evaluation, having their own advantages and limitations. Site index is most commonly and widely used in even aged forest. Intercept method has been used to determine site quality of young stands. For mixed and uneven-aged forests where determination of the age is quite subjective due to false annual growth site form method is used. RSI is new method of site quality evaluation based on self-thinning law. Site quality classification based on vegetational approach is found suitable in low latitudes. As productivity mainly derived by climate and soil environmental approach is also used. All the methods examined are reasonably accurate if applied to restricted areas. A carefully derived SI is the most accurate indirect method of SQ measurement. In this paper we will discuss various method for site quality measurement.

Chichaghare A.R.^*

Department of Silviculture and Agroforestry, Kerala Agricultural University, Thrissur-680656, INDIA

Sreejith M.

Department of Silviculture and Agroforestry, Kerala Agricultural University, Thrissur-680656, INDIA

Vijayalakshmi K.P.

Department of Silviculture and Agroforestry, Kerala Agricultural University, Thrissur-680656, INDIA

Food security is one of the most critical issue for humanity as well as agricultural production. The threats analysed were environmental degradation, climate change and diseases and pests of animals and plants. Transboundary diseases contribute substantially in pest and disease-induced global food loss which is approximately 1/3^rd of annual food production. Some of Important transboundary diseases & pests are Brown Streak virus, banana bunchy top disease, greening disease of citrus, Powdery rust of coffee, Soybean downy mildew, Blue mold of tobacco, rust of maize, locusts, armyworm, fruit flies, cassava diseases and wheat rusts are among the most destructive transboundary plant pests and diseases. So as a protective measure, a country must have suitable contingency plans to respond quickly to high threat diseases. This could only be achieved by timely application of scientific technology for rapid response.

Jayashree Bhattacharjee^*

Dept. of Agriculture, Govt. of Tripura, Tripura, India

Debashre Bhattacharjee

Dept. of Agriculture, Govt. of Tripura, Tripura, India

Ipsita Samal

Division of Entomology, ICAR-Indian Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhi (110 012), India

Development of the agriculture sector in India focused primarily on raising agricultural output and improving food security. On the contrary, farmers’ income also remained low in relation to income of those working in non-farm sector. During early 1980, farm income per cultivator was just 34% of income of a non-agricultural worker. The potentiality of high value crops (HVC) to double farmers’ income over the cultivation of staple crops can clearly be understood with a statistical comparison. A number of schemes have been promoted by Govt. of India during the last years. Science that optimizes on the inputs, helps to reduce costs, makes the production more competitive and mitigates any inflationary pressure should be undertaken.

Debmala Mukherjee

Dept. of Vegetable Science, Faculty of Horticulture, BCKV, Nadia, West Bengal (741 252), India

Tridip Bhattacharjee^*

College of Agriculture, Tripura, Lembucherra, Tripura (799 210), India

Subhrajyoti Chatterjee

Dept. of Vegetable Science, Faculty of Horticulture, BCKV, Nadia, West Bengal (741 252), India

P.K. Maurya

Dept. of Vegetable Science, Faculty of Horticulture, BCKV, Nadia, West Bengal (741 252), India

S. Banarjee

Dept. of Vegetable Science, Faculty of Horticulture, BCKV, Nadia, West Bengal (741 252), India

Thingreingam Irenaeus K.S.

College of Agriculture, Tripura, Lembucherra, Tripura (799 210), India

Arup Chattopadhyay

Dept. of Vegetable Science, Faculty of Horticulture, BCKV, Nadia, West Bengal (741 252), India

Crop pest includes insects, pathogens and weeds which are one of the most crucial factors that cause yield loss to a greater extent.The negative impact of climate change on agriculture must be discussed under the light of its effect on crop pests. Climate change indirectly affects the pest dynamics by altering their ecology. Population dynamics, life cycle, geographic range, physiology of the pests depends on temperature, rainfall, relative humidity, radiation, carbon-di-oxide concentration, soil moisture etc. The host-pest-environment relationship is influenced by the changes in weather, soil and crop factors which are subjected to alteration due to the climate change.

Argha Ghosh^*

Dept. of Agricultural Meteorology and Physics, Bidhan Chandra KrishiViswavidyalaya, Mohanpur, West Bengal (741 252), India

One of the most important process occurring in the ecosystem is nutrient recycling, which describes the use, movement and recycling of nutrients in the environment involving both living and non-living components using biological, chemical and geological process. For economic and environmental reasons, it is essential that nutrient cycling is used more efficiently in the farm. To achieve this goal, reduction in long-distance nutrient flows, as well as promoting true on-farm recycling is required in which nutrients return in the form of crop residue or manure to the fields from which they came. There are a number of strategies to help farmers reach the goal of better nutrient cycling. However, there are potentially large flows of nutrients onto and off of farms. The inflow occurs as commercial and organic fertilizers and amendments as well as animal feeds are imported onto the farm and in manures and composts brought from off the farm. Exports are mainly in the form of crops and animal products. In general, larger amounts of nutrients are exported off the farm in vegetation (grains, forages, vegetables, etc.) than in animal products. Nutrient flows are of great concern because as nutrient levels decline, the soil rapidly degrades. Nutrient recycling can be done by effective utilization of straw, weed and other biomass, crop residues. Even fallow period can help nutrient recycling as well as maintenance of soil fertility. Crops producing more biomass if utilized well are more beneficial for effective nutrient recycling.

Debasish Borah^*

Krishi Vigyan Kendra Udalguri, Assam Agricultural University, Lalpool, BTAD, Udalguri, Assam (784 514), India

Sarat Sekhar Bora

Krishi Vigyan Kendra Udalguri, Assam Agricultural University, Lalpool, BTAD, Udalguri, Assam (784 514), India

The present research was aimed to estimate the spatial variability of soil organic carbon and their sequestration potential in the part of Bishwanaath, Chariali district of Assam. The sample was collected from marked sample points representing variability of soil type and crops grown. The collected samples were analysed for Soil Organic Carbon (SOC) and further SOC sequestration potential was derived based on this analysed SOC and CSP interpolation method deriving data in unsampled point. Geostatistical method viz., ordinary Kriging was employed for the detailed spatial distribution of SOC, CSP and interpolation map of SOC and CSP were generated. From the generated map it was revealed that SOC was lowest at the western part of study sites whereas the CSP is lowest at two spot where intensive cultivation of rice were practised since long time resulting comparatively less SOC build-up in the soil system. The remaining part of domain district were of medium to higher CSP potential. This difference in spatial variability in SOC and CSP might be due to the variation in soil physical properties specially bulk density of the respective soil sites. The Nugget to Sill ratio was quite high in CSP that indicating the management factor plays a very important role in soil carbon sequestration potential.

Jitendra Kumar

ICAR-Indian Institute of Soil Science (IISS), Nabi Bagh, Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh (462 038), India

Nirmal De^*

Institute of Agricultural Sciences, Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh (221 005), India

Pallab Kumar Sarma

Bishwanath College of Agriculture, Assam Agriculture University, Chariali, Sonitpur, Assam (784 176), India

Cleistogamy is a mode of reproduction which promotes self-pollination as the flower remains closed even after anthesis. This system avoids contamination of foreign pollen to outcross the clesitogamous flower. In nature, under suboptimal environmental condition, few plant species produce cleistogamous flower which requires fewer resources to reproduction. Three different types of cleistogamy occur in plants namely dimorphic cleistogamy, induced cleistogamy, and complete cleistogamy. This kind of sexual reproduction maintains the locally adopted gene complex and homogeneity of the genes in the population. This system of reproduction helps in achieving the genetic purity of any species. This system can be transferred to other species to exploit the cleistogamous nature of reproduction.

A. Manivannan^*

ICAR-Central Institute for Cotton Research, Regional Station, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu (641 003), India

A field experiment was carried out at the farm of Horticulture section, College of Agriculture, Nagpur during the years 2016-17 and 2017-18 in Factorial randomized block design to find out the most suitable dose of nitrogen and phosphorus for increasing seed yield and obtaining better quality seed of China aster with nine treatment combinations and three replications. The treatments comprised of three levels of nitrogen viz., 150, 187.5 and 225 kg ha^-1 and three levels of phosphorus viz., 50, 62.5 and 75 kg ha^-1. The results revealed that, significantly maximum flowers plant^-1, seeds flower^-1, germination % of seed, seed yield plant^-1 and ha^-1 and test weight of seed were registered with the individual treatments of 225 kg nitrogen and 75 kg phosphorus ha^-1. However, the treatment combination of 225 kg nitrogen + 62.5 kg phosphorus ha^-1 was found to be the best treatment as compared to others for obtaining maximum seed yield and good quality seed in China aster.

Neha Chopde^*

College of Agriculture, Gadchiroli, Dr. Panjabrao Deshmukh Krishi Vidyapeeth, Akola, Maharashtra (442 605), India

Ommala Kuchanwar

College of Agriculture, Nagpur, Dr. Panjabrao Deshmukh Krishi Vidyapeeth, Akola, Maharashtra (440 001), India

V.U. Raut

College of Agriculture, Nagpur, Dr. Panjabrao Deshmukh Krishi Vidyapeeth, Akola, Maharashtra (440 001), India

M.M. Wakode

College of Agriculture, Gadchiroli, Dr. Panjabrao Deshmukh Krishi Vidyapeeth, Akola, Maharashtra (442 605), India

V.P. Satar

College of Agriculture, Gadchiroli, Dr. Panjabrao Deshmukh Krishi Vidyapeeth, Akola, Maharashtra (442 605), India

The global pandemic of Covid-19 that originated in the Wuhan province of China has stretched its arms in the enire world afecing each and every sector of the economy. This has led to a fall in the world economy especially in developing countries like India. India with its apt governance has however tried its best to combat this crisis with a country wide lockdown to prevent the health implicaions. But agriculture being the backbone of the country and the GDP has been impacted in a negaive way with huge disrupions in the supply chain and cropping decisions for upcoming agricultural seasons. All these have a negaive implicaion on the farming community that is and will be undergoing heavy inancial and mental losses.

Prangya Paramita Sahoo^*

Dept. of Agricultural Economics, College of Agriculture, OUAT, Bhubaneswar, Odisha (751 003), India

Suvangi Rath

Dept. of Agricultural Economics, College of Agriculture, OUAT, Bhubaneswar, Odisha (751 003), India

Field experiments conducted in sugarcane revealed that scheduling irrigation through drip daily at 80 percent of pan evaporation (PE) registered the highest cane yield (168.2 t ha^-1) in main of cv. CO 86032 which was followed by 60 and 40 percent drip irrigation (148.5 and 140.9 t ha^-1 respectively) and were significantly superior over surface method of irrigation at 0.75 IW/CPE ratio (126.2 t ha^-1). In the ratoon crop, drip irrigation treatments at 40, 60 and 80 percent level of pan evaporation produced comparable cane yields (124.4, 131.7 and 128.9 t ha^-1 respectively). Highest water use efficiency was observed in 40% PE treatment for both main crop and ratoon (150.3 and 146.8 kg ha mm^-1 respectively). Nitrogen levels did not show any marked difference on cane yield and application of 175 kg N ha^-1 as fertigation was found to be optimum and economical.

G. Thiyagarajan^*

Water Technology Centre, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu (641 003), India

M. Manikandan

Agricultural Engineering College and Research Institute, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Kumulur, Tamil Nadu (621 712), India

An exploratory study was conducted to review the secondary extension activities conducted by fisheries discipline under Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK), South Tripura. Primary objective of a Krishi Vigyan Kendra is to frontline extension through assessment or refinement of technology (On Farm Trials, OFTs), Frontline Demonstrations (FLDs) and conducting training programmes for farmers, rural youths, and extension personnel. Conducting other extension activities which include a wide range of extension events is another mandated activity of KVK. This paper attempted to review the performance conducted in terms of other extension activities than OFT, FLD and Training in fisheries by KVK South Tripura from 2007-08 to 2019-20. The Study identified three categories of extension activities viz., individual, group and mass communication-based events and made the trend analysis of a number of extension activities carried out under each category. It was observed that the number of most of the activities were gradually increased over the years from 2007-08 to 2019-20. Time series pattern didn’t show a similar trend for different types of extension activities over the last 13 years. Few activities were conducted in substantial numbers, whereas a number of activities for few extension events required to be explored for possibilities. There is a lot of scope and potential usefulness for conducting such events under other extension activities on fisheries at KVK, South Tripura.

Biswajit Debnath^*

Krishi Vigyan Kendra, South Tripura, Manpathar, BC Manu, Tripura (799 144), India

Bees are essential for pollination of many fruit crops. Bees and other pollinators can be harmed by some pesticides used to manage insects, mites and diseases in cross pollinated crops. Growers can reduce pesticide risk to bees through these approaches: Develop and implement a pollination contract with your beekeeper. Use integrated pest management (IPM) to reduce the need for sprays. Avoid pesticide sprays during crop bloom. Apply pesticides after sunset or before sunrise, or when air temperature is below 50 °F. Select the least toxic pesticides and formulations when possible. Reduce drift onto areas outside crop fields. Remove lowering weeds from crops. Provide bee-friendly habitat away from crops.

D.N. Kambrekar^*

Dept. of Agricultural Entomology, University of Agricultural Sciences, Dharwad, Karnataka (580 005), India

India has great potential to produce high quality fruits of different kinds and to export them to other countries but its marketability is still limited to local market. This is due to the delicate nature of fruits, poor handling practices and inadequate storage facilities. The storage life and quality of fruits after harvesting depend on packaging material and storage environment of fruits. Use of proper packaging and cushioning materials help a great extent to enhance shelf life of fruits. In nowadays competitive environment the role of package has changed due to increasing self-service and changing consumer’s lifestyle. Firm’s interest in package as a tool of sales promotion is growing increasingly. Package becomes an ultimate selling proposition stimulating impulsive buying behaviour, increasing market share and reducing promotional costs. Package attracts consumer’s attention to particular brand, enhances its image, and influences consumer’s perceptions about product.

Vaishnavi G. Magar^*

College of Agriculture Dongarshelki Tanda, Udgir, Latur, Maharashtra (413 517), India

CIRC-Cattle BLAD Diagnostic Kit is a user-friendly, economical, rapid and specific diagnostic assay for detection of Bovine Leukocyte Adhesion Deficiency (BLAD), a common genetic disorder in breeding bulls/ buffaloes prior to semen collection and its utilization for breeding purposes.

Rafeeque Rahman Alyethodi

ICAR-Central Institute for Research on Cattle, Meerut, Uttar Pradesh (250 001), India

Rajib Deb^*

ICAR-Central Institute for Research on Cattle, Meerut, Uttar Pradesh (250 001), India

Umesh Singh

ICAR-Central Institute for Research on Cattle, Meerut, Uttar Pradesh (250 001), India

Sushil Kumar

ICAR-Central Institute for Research on Cattle, Meerut, Uttar Pradesh (250 001), India

Rani Alex

ICAR-Central Institute for Research on Cattle, Meerut, Uttar Pradesh (250 001), India

Sheetal Sharma

ICAR-Central Institute for Research on Cattle, Meerut, Uttar Pradesh (250 001), India

Gyanendra Singh Sengar

ICAR-Central Institute for Research on Cattle, Meerut, Uttar Pradesh (250 001), India

B. Prakash

ICAR-Central Institute for Research on Cattle, Meerut, Uttar Pradesh (250 001), India

The organic manures are the backbone of pesticide free food products and also the same is the culprit to transmit the antibiotics to food chain. The maximum concentrations of Oxytetracycline (OTC), Enrofloxacin (ENRO) and Chlorotetracycline (CTC) in poultry litter were 183 mg kg^-1, 83 mg kg^-1 and 726 mg kg^-1, respectively and 72 mg kg^-1, 52 mg kg^-1 and 133 mg kg^-1 in cowdung, respectively. During the composting process period, the antibiotics viz., OTC, ENRO, CTC were noticed in decreasing trend. The matured poultry manure recorded the OTC, ENRO and CTC concentration of 22, 18 and 162 mg kg^-1, respectively whereas the vermicompost recorded the OTC, ENRO and CTC concentration of 12, 10 and 32 mg kg^-1, respectively. From the present investigation, the poultry manure recorded more quantity of antibiotics viz., OTC, ENRO and CTC. It is also concluded that the composting process had significant reduction of antibiotic concentration compared to raw materials.

V. Davamani^*

Dept. of Environmental Sciences, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu (641 003), India

E. Parameswari

Dept. of Environmental Sciences, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu (641 003), India

M. Deepasri

Dept. of Environmental Sciences, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu (641 003), India

Cucumber is quite popular vegetable crop in Tripura as well as all over India. One kilogram of cucumber fetches average Rs. 50-60/- per kg in the local markets. Besides, cucumber is an excellent crop used for salad purpose or other occasion because of its high seasonal value. Value increased upto Rs. 70-80 /kg on seasonal occasion. Furthermore, cucumber cultivation demands less fertilization and irrigation requires 2-3 times. The remarkable success achieved by Shri. Uttam Debnath in cucumber cultivation made him a role model for the fellow farmers to emulate and succeed in west naogao, Jirania. Nearby 20-25 farmers are taking advices from Shri Debnath to cultivate their lands into successful cucumber cultivation for their socio-economical upliftment.

Debashre Bhattacharjee^*

ATMA (Old Agartala Block), Agartala, Tripura (799 205), India

Anindita Guha

ATMA (Old Agartala Block), Agartala, Tripura (799 205), India

In most of the countries, agricultural systems are the backbone of main economic sectors contributing to political stability. In a country, like India, whose economy is largely dependent on agriculture produce and exports, any such malicious attack can grossly destabilise the socio-economic structure. In many countries food price are kept very low due to production efficiencies and disease controls. So, the concept of ‘‘Agro-terrorism” or agricultural terrorism starts to assume vital importance since a disease outbreak in an agricultural system could lose billions of dollars, cause poor production efficiency, drive higher food prices, exports of valuable commodities will be stop, and so create economical instability. What is really needed is to treat the agro-terrorism menace at par with that of other kinds of terror and evolve a well-conceived strategy to deal with it. For this, anti-agro-terrorism models from other countries can be studied and adapted to the Indian situation. Such an effort is worth it even if the threat perception ceases to exist. A constant surveillance against pests and diseases of crops and animals will help combat even natural epidemics that often take a heavy toll on crop and livestock output.

Jayashree Bhattacharjee^*

Dept. of Agriculture, Govt. of Tripura, Tripura, India

Debashre Bhattacharjee

Dept. of Agriculture, Govt. of Tripura, Tripura, India

Ipsita Samal

ICAR-Indian Agricultural Research Institute, Division of Entomology, New Delhi (110 001), India

The alleviation of soil physical constraints limiting crop production is considered important to increase agricultural production and sustaining the productivity of soils. The major soil physical constraints include high soil permeability, soil surface crusting, sub-surface mechanical impedance, and soil hardening. Studies indicated that the management of highly permeable soils such as by compaction increased yields of various crops. Soil surface crusting could be managed by the application of FYM on seed lines at the rate of 4 t/ha. Application of tank silt has improved the physical properties of soil like reduces the bulk density and improved the water holding capacity of the soil.

M. Yuvaraj^*

Agricultural College and Research Institute, Vazhavachanure, Tiruvannamalai, Tamil Nadu (606 753), India

Black pepper is most important spice of the world and called as "King of Spices”. Several insect and non insect pests cause yield loss in this crop. Among them, Pollu beetle, top shoot borer, marginal leaf gall thrips, scales, mealy bugs and nematodes are worthy to note. These pests can be well efficiently managed by following integrated management tactics viz., field sanitation, cultural, biological and chemical methods.

T. Sathyan^*

Dept. of Agricultural Entomology, CPPS, TNAU, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu (641 003), India

K. Elanchezhyan

Dept. of Agricultural Entomology, AC&RI, Killikulam, Tamil Nadu (628 252), India

N. Murugesan

Dept. of Agricultural Entomology, AC&RI, Killikulam, Tamil Nadu (628 252), India

Rice is one of the important cereals of the world particularly in Asian countries and forms staple diet for more than 50 per cent of the population. Brown plant hopper is one of the major culprits for huge economic crop losses of rice. The BPH infestation occurred in all rice growing areas of Asian countries and cause huge yield losses by destruction of the crop. Integrated management of BPH should be followed by combining the availability of resources and economics of farmers. Surveillance and monitoring are the prime strategies to make effective management operations.

K. Elanchezhyan^*

Dept. of Agricultural Entomolgy, Agricultural College and Research Institute, TNAU, Killikulam, Vallanadu, Tamil Nadu (628 252), India

T. Sathyan

Dept. of Agricultural Entomology, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu (641 003), India

K.R. Manikandan

Dept. of Agricultural Entomology, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu (641 003), India

The present investigation was carried out to characterize and assess the treated paper mill effluent from the Seshasayee Papers and Boards (SPB) Pvt. Ltd., for physico-chemical and biological properties. Treated paper mill effluent samples were collected from SPB, Pallipalayam, Namakkal District of Tamil Nadu and were analyzed in the Department of Environmental Sciences, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore. The paper mill effluent collected from SPB, Pallipalayam was light brown in colour. The effluent was found to be neutral in reaction with a pH of 7.87. It recorded an EC of 1.19 dS m^-1. The effluent had considerable amount of cations like calcium (46.67 mg L^-1), magnesium (19.6 mg L^-1), sodium (101.70 mg L^-1) and potassium (15.99 mg L^-1) along with anions like chloride (127.03 mg L^-1), bicarbonate (201.3 mg L^-1) and sulphate (88.88 mg L^-1), respectively. The BOD and COD values of treated effluent were 17 and 39 mg L^-1, respectively. The paper mill effluent supported a considerable amount of microbial population.

V. Davamani^*

Dept. of Environmental Sciences, TNAU, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu (641 003), India

E. Parameswari

Dept. of Environmental Sciences, TNAU, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu (641 003), India

M. Deepasri

Dept. of Environmental Sciences, TNAU, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu (641 003), India

S. Paul Sebastian

Dept. of Environmental Sciences, TNAU, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu (641 003), India

T. Ilakia

Dept. of Vegetable Sciences, TNAU, Coimbatore,Tamil Nadu (641 003), India

Crop residues are left over of the plant parts in the field after harvest of the crop.  Crop residues are natural resources which can be recycled for meeting the nutrient requirement of succeeding crops. Crop residues contain significant quantities of plant nutrients and their judicious application will improve the physical, chemical and biological properties of soil. Crop residues can be incorporated into soil with suitable machinery and this can improve soil health. Retention on soil surface can conserve as soil moisture, temperature and control weed emergence. Residue decomposition in soil substantially increase the soil organic carbon and other nutrients.

Harish Shenoy^*

Dept. of Agronomy, Livestock Research and Information Centre (Amrithmahal), Karnataka Veterinary Animal and Fisheries Sciences University, Konehalli, Tiptur, Karnataka (572 201), India

Current study aimed to Botanical features, applications in traditional medicinal plants, used to treat and prevent many types of diseases and systematically review publications indicating the viability of traditional medicinal plants. The leaves, fruits, seeds and bark of medicinal plants are used in traditional medicine to treat disorders affecting many systems, including blood circulation, the immune system, the heart, and digestive, respiratory, genetic, musculoskeletal, and conjunctive systems. Some herbal plants are used as pleasant spices, flavors, dyes, and preservatives food etc. Virtually every part of the plant has its own medicinal properties. Various types of phytochemicals found in medicinal plants play a key role in many types of diseases and are also used to produce medicines. The plant has various functions such as antimicrobial, antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, ant-diabetic, antibiotic, hemolytic properties that are widely used by indigenous peoples around the world. The folk medicinal plant uses of 12 herbal species belonging to various families are reported in this review article.

Thirumal Sivakumar^*

Dept. of Botany, Annamalai University, Annamalai Nagar, Tamil Nadu (608 002), India

Dept. of Botany, Thiru A. Govindasamy Govt. Arts College, Tindivanam, Tamil Nadu (604 307), India

Deepa Balasubramanian

Dept. of Biochemistry and Biotechnology, Annamalai University, Annamalai Nagar, Tamil Nadu (608 002), India

Dharmapuram Gnanmbigai Govt. Arts College for Women, Mayiladuthurai, Tamil Nadu (609 001), India

Change in climate directly effects on the agricultural ecosystem that results in changing agricultural climatic elements such as temperature, precipitation and sunlight. The impacts of climate change on global food system, nutrition and health will depend on a variety of environmental factors. Due to continuously increasing global temperature, the negative impact of climate change on agricultural crops includes reduction in crop quality and quantity. The increasing population demands more food which resulted intensive agricultural practices like the use of pesticides, livestock generation, extensive use of water resources. The high anthropogenic activities result, degradation of natural resources. Now, it is the need of the hour to strengthen our capacities to combat these constant environmental changes with integration of knowledge from, ancestors, communities and scientific innovations. Technological innovations to meet the local needs of food and nutrition with best practices for producing, preserving and preparing healthy foods.

Anjali Tiwari

G.B. Pant National Institute of Himalayan Environment (GBP-NIHE), Kosi-Katarmal, Almora, Uttarakhand (263 643), India

Kapil Kesarwani^*

G.B. Pant National Institute of Himalayan Environment (GBP-NIHE), Kosi-Katarmal, Almora, Uttarakhand (263 643), India

Tapan Ghosh

G.B. Pant National Institute of Himalayan Environment (GBP-NIHE), Kosi-Katarmal, Almora, Uttarakhand (263 643), India

Sumit Rai^*

G.B. Pant National Institute of Himalayan Environment (GBP-NIHE), Kosi-Katarmal, Almora, Uttarakhand (263 643), India

In the present article reviews novel discoveries associated within the phytochemical analysis and antioxidant activity of piper species. Black pepper (Piper nigrum L.) regard as the "King of spices" is a broadly utilized spice that convenes its own flavor to foods and augmented the flavor of other ingredients. Piper nigram has been extensively investigated for its bioactive phytochemicals. Piper species are essential herbal plants utilized in the traditional medicinal plants. They are traditionally used to treat abdominal pain, rheumatism, diarrhea and other common infections, the effectiveness of which is stated by their bioactive compounds. Current scientific research has established that many of these spices, which are known to have specific pharmacological properties, contain active compounds. The result has been an increase in the requirement for herbal medicines globally, which has led to the realization of advanced new medicines. Most communities in growing countries are deeply involved in the use of medicinal plants owing to the alarming rates of poverty, so this requires scientific support, particularly in reducing their effectiveness in treating such diseases. In their pure compounds or standardized plant extracts, they offer unlimited opportunities for new pharmaceuticals as they are unparalleled in compensating for their chemical diversity. The vitality of natural products is related to the effects of various phytochemicals such as tannins, terpenoids, cardiac glycosides, flavonoids, saponins.

Thiyagarajan Gnanasundaram^*

Dept. of Botany, Annamalai University, Annamalai Nagar, Tamil Nadu (608 002), India

Thirumal Sivakumar

Dept. of Botany, Thiru A. Govindasamy Govt. Arts College, Tindivanam, Tamil Nadu (604 307), India

Ecological Engineering (EE), a sustainable pest management tool is a modified tritrophic interaction, which enhance the natural enemies of pests and modify the crop micro environment has been emphasized in recent times due to lesser adversities. This approach relies on use of cultural techniques to bring out habitat manipulation by altering plant composition and enhance biological control by manipulating the third trophic level.  It is emphasized more on ecological knowledge rather than on high technology approaches such as synthetic pesticides and genetically engineered crops. Thus, in the era of IPM this tool can be used for the pest management purposes to obtain highest profit without hampering the environment.

Ipsita Samal^*

Division of Entomology, ICAR-Indian Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhi (110 012), India

Jayashree Bhattacharjee

Department of Agriculture, Govt. of Tripura, Tripura, India

Debashre Bhattacharjee

Department of Agriculture, Govt. of Tripura, Tripura, India

In agriculture, pest management is an important task wherein appropriate principles have to be necessarily deployed. Farmers greatly depend on synthetic insecticides for pest management. For successful chemical pest control, knowledge on insect identification, symptomatology, selection of insecticides, application methodologies etc. are prerequisite. Farmers should have ideas on these aspects to get hold of better plant protection with minimum expenses.

T. Sathyan^*

Dept. of Agricultural Entomology, CPPS, TNAU, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu (641 003), India

K. Elanchezhyan

Dept. of Agricultural Entomology, AC&RI, Killikulam, Vallanadu, Tamil Nadu (628 252), India

N. Murugesan

Dept. of Agricultural Entomology, AC&RI, Killikulam, Vallanadu, Tamil Nadu (628 252), India

Excessive and ever increasing population is the growing concern from last few years and it is creating major pressure in Agriculture sector of our country. Meeting the adequate food requirement of the huge population is necessary, but due to several adverse factors, production systems are facing many problems. Limited arable land resources, excessive use of chemical fertilizers, land degradation, cultivation with poor quality seeds, lack of proper seed replacement, are some of the major concerns for which not only the production of food materials in sufficient quantity is being affected but also the quality seed production is getting invaded badly. Quality seed is a vital input for crop production. It is the cheapest input and the key to progress towards the development of sustainable agriculture. Response of different inputs and final crop output depends to a large extent on the seed material used for sowing purpose. Thus, for better production, profit and sustainability, use of genetically and physiologically pure, vigorous, climate adaptive and less disease pest prone seeds are required in one hand along with good seed replacement rate, qualitative seed stock, proper seed certification etc. are very much crucial to unfold the potential yield performance of species and varieties and hence, the article is emphasized on the quality seed production in agriculture.

Ramyajit Mondal^*

Dept. of Agronomy, Bidhan Chandra Krishi Viswavidyalaya, Mohanpur, Nadia, West Bengal (741 252), India

Saumi Goswami

Dept. of Agronomy, Bidhan Chandra Krishi Viswavidyalaya, Mohanpur, Nadia, West Bengal (741 252), India

As there is a several fold increase in the world population, there must be change in food system for the supply of enough nutrition. The malnutrition problem (hidden hunger) have topped up and affected larger percentage of population globally. Microgreens are the distinct group of vegetable that are identified as a source to overcome the problem of malnutrition. Microgreens are the tiny version of edible young greens with abundant nutrition in them. There are more than 80-100 identified crop varieties that are grown as microgreens. The cultivation aspects of microgreens are easier and are grown for house hold purpose to commercial marketing. The nutrition aspects are higher in microgreens compared to that of matured ones. This article details the aspect of microgreen production and its role to counter the problem of malnutrition.

T. Ilakiya^*

Dept. of Vegetable Sciences, TNAU, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu (641 003), India

E. Parameswari

Dept. of Environmental Sciences, TNAU, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu (641 003), India

V. Davamani

Dept. of Environmental Sciences, TNAU, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu (641 003), India

E. Prakash

Dept. of Vegetable Sciences, TNAU, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu (641 003), India

Small cardamom (Elettaria cardamomum) the queen of spices enjoys a unique position in the international spice market. It is often named as the third most expensive spice in the world after cinnamon and clove. The cardamom plants firstly came into existence in the monsoon forests of Western Ghats in southern India as wild herbs. Hot and humid environment prevailing under evergreen rain forests of the Western Ghats is ideal for this crop. In order to raise a cardamom plantation, seedlings or suckers of high yielding varieties are used. Superior quality produce achieved by good cultivation practices and scientific post-harvest management. Proper management of the plantation is the most important factor for successful cultivation of the small cardamom.

Navya Vishweshwar Bhat

Dept. of Fruit Science and Horticulture Technology, OUAT, Bhubaneswar (751 003), India

Pavankumar Goudar^*

Dept. of Agronomy, COA, Pasighat, CAU, Imphal, Manipur (791 102), India

The use of mobile technologies as a tool of intervention in agriculture is becoming increasingly popular. Smartphone penetration enhances the multi-dimensional positive impact on sustainable poverty reduction and identifies accessibility as the main challenge in harnessing the full potential in agricultural space. Different elements affected the agriculture development; however, the most essential bottlenecks are lack of instant information and drudgery involved in farming practices. To conquer these issues, agriculture should be made more alluring and done smartly. Corona virus (COVID 19) Lockdown harms Agriculture Sector in India, as farmers are unable to get the latest information regarding various agricultural issues, market Status & other relevant information related to the agriculture & allied sector, smartphone apps act an important tool for agricultural information dissemination during this period. There are varieties of mobile applications, utilized over the globe for different segments, including farming, but in our country, the usage is still is limited. In India, there are enormous opportunities for utilizing smartphones as a part of agribusiness improvement. Its utilization is vital for quick growth and easy access to information to Indian agriculturists, farmers, and growers.

Subrat Kumar Mahapatra^*

College of Agriculture, Odisha University of Agriculture & Technology (OUAT), Bhubaneswar, Odisha (751 003), India

Role of Conservation Agriculture in improving Soil Health

Maintenance of soil health at its optimum level is essential for sustainable crop production and rational use of natural resources without jeopardizing their quality. In recent years, many agricultural scientists across the world have recommended conservation agriculture as a solution to overcome the adverse effects of conventional tillage practices on soil health. Conservation agriculture aims to conserve, improve and make more efficient use of natural resources through integrated management of available soil, water and biological resources combined with external inputs. It contributes to environmental conservation as well as to enhanced and sustained agricultural production. Conservation agriculture is mainly an integration of three crop management practices, viz. minimum or no-tillage, permanent retention of crop residue and crop rotation.

V. Arunkumar^*

Agricultural College and Research Institute, Vazhavachanur, Tiruvannamalai, Tamil Nadu (606 753), India

M. Yuvaraj

Agricultural College and Research Institute, Vazhavachanur, Tiruvannamalai, Tamil Nadu (606 753), India

Globally, the productivity varies in a great margin and is under threat from genetic erosion and the alarming increase in population led to an immense burden on agriculture. The advent of several key domestication genes alongside the development of trending technologies for accurate manipulation of several target genes simultaneously renders de novo domestication a roadmap towards new era of crop improvement.

Bichhinna Maitri Rout

Division of Vegetable Science, ICAR-IARI, New Delhi (110 012), India

Dinesh Nagar^*

Division of Fruit Science, RARI, Jaipur, Rajasthan (302 018), India

To accommodate the large global population and to combat with the alarming climate change and scarcity of water, the modern day farming demands new and improved methods, technologies and solutions for modern agricultural fields to enhance productivity. Consequently, the need for automation and intelligent decision making is becoming more important to accomplish this mission. This article outlines the recent applications of wireless sensor networks (WSN’s) in precision agriculture research to improve agricultural quality including the provision of adequate nutrients for crops and the wastage of pesticides for the effective control of weeds, pests, and diseases. An intelligent and smart WSN system can collect and process large amount of data from the beginning of the monitoring and manage air quality, soil conditions, to weather situations and in many other applications such as military, health care, industrial this technology is also applicable. These approaches may also increase the number of opportunities for processing Internet of Things (IoT) data.

Ekta Joshi^*

Dept. of Agronomy, College of Agriculture, RVSKVV, Gwalior, MP (474 002), India

Deep Singh Sasode

Dept. of Agronomy, College of Agriculture, RVSKVV, Gwalior, MP (474 002), India

Neelam Singh

Dept. of Agronomy, College of Agriculture, RVSKVV, Gwalior, MP (474 002), India

Namrata Chouhan

Dept. of Agronomy, College of Agriculture, RVSKVV, Gwalior, MP (474 002), India

Chickpea infected with various diseases in all growth stages. The pathogens viz., fungi, bacteria, viruses, nematodes and mycoplasma that affect chickpea, which cause severe economic losses globally. Therefore, possible management options are vital to simplify the problem.

M. Suganyadevi^*

Agricultural College and Research Institute, Vazhavachanur, Tiruvannamalai, Tamil Nadu (606 753), India

M. Pandiyan

Agricultural College and Research Institute, Vazhavachanur, Tiruvannamalai, Tamil Nadu (606 753), India

R. Sasmitha

Agricultural College and Research Institute, Vazhavachanur, Tiruvannamalai, Tamil Nadu (606 753), India

M. Sivaji

Agricultural College and Research Institute, Vazhavachanur, Tiruvannamalai, Tamil Nadu (606 753), India

T. Tilagavathi

Agricultural College and Research Institute, Vazhavachanur, Tiruvannamalai, Tamil Nadu (606 753), India

M. Yuvaraj

Agricultural College and Research Institute, Vazhavachanur, Tiruvannamalai, Tamil Nadu (606 753), India

Soil and water conservation measures which includes both agronomical as well as mechanical measures play a key role in resource conservation of dry land agriculture. Use of agronomic measures in the drylands, with the conclusion that agronomic measures contribute a lot for enhancing production in drylands. However timeliness and preciseness in performing the operations in the field should be taken care of. No doubt these agronomic measures contributes a lot for the dryland production. However the timeliness of the operation and preciseness with which these operations perform will yield a better results in case of drylands. Agronomic methods are used in inter-bunded areas, and mechanical measures compliment to help boost the crop yields in the rainfed drylands. Agronomical measures will be mainly adopted in the inter-bunded areas, mainly in the croplands. In the croplands, these mechanical measures compliment the agronomical measures in boosting the crop yield from the drylands.

M. Jayalakshmi^*

Krishi Vigyan Kendra Banavasi, Kurnool, Acharya N.G. Ranga Agriculture University, Guntur, Andhra Pradesh (522 034), India

G. PrasadBabu

Krishi Vigyan Kendra Banavasi, Kurnool, Acharya N.G. Ranga Agriculture University, Guntur, Andhra Pradesh (522 034), India

Pesticides are those that kills the insect and pest that causes tremendous effects in cultivation of the crop. Pesticides as a whole includes fungicides, insecticides, rodenticides, herbicides, nematicides, molluscicides and others. Pesticide usage on the crop species has both positive and negative effects. Though pesticides kills the target pest, the excessive usage would lead to the biodiversity destruction. Many animals, aquatic organisms and birds are under the serious threat for their survival due to the harmful nature of the pesticides. The global stability and environmental sustainability is of a great question mark now-a-days. Hence the environment protection must of serious concern. This article deals about the impact of pesticides on environment.

E. Parameswari^*

Dept. of Environmental Sciences, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Tamil Nadu (641 003), India

V. Davamani

Dept. of Environmental Sciences, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Tamil Nadu (641 003), India

T. Ilakiya

Dept. of Vegetable Sciences, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Tamil Nadu (641003), India

S. Arulmani

Bannari Amman Institute of Technology, Sathiamangalam, Tamil Nadu (638 401), India

V. Prithiv Raj

Sardarkrushinagar Dantiwada Agricultural University, Gujarat (385 505), India

Water hyacinth is a noxious weed threatening the aquatic life tremendously. Conventional remediation pose a serious problem as it releases poisonous gases and carries heavy metals. Hence it must be eradicated in an environment friendly manner. Hydrothermal carbonization (HTC) has expanded great interest for the process of hydrochar production. It pave an excellent path to convert it into a carbon rich hydrochar. The carbonization of biomass is not only limited to pure carbohydrates but also includes lignocellulosic biomass. Such precursors, require special reactions because of their complex breakdown process when compared to hemicelluloses and lignin. The water hyacinth hydrochar can be efficiently used in various fields like biorefinery, biosorption, capacitors and energy production.

E. Parameswari^*

Dept. of Environmental Sciences, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu (641 003), India

V. Davamani

Dept. of Environmental Sciences, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu (641 003), India

R. Kalaiarasi

Dept. of Environmental Sciences, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu (641 003), India

T. Ilakiya

Dept. of Vegetable Sciences, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu (641 003), India

S. Arulmani

Bannari Amman Institute of Technology, Sathiamangalam, Tamil Nadu (638 401), India

V. Prithiv Raj

Sardarkrushinagar Dantiwada Agricultural University, Gujarat (385 506), India

Under the current scenario, healthy plants are of primary concern in the world. Maintaining proper plant health is essential surpassing various challenges like changing climatic conditions, various biotic and abiotic stresses and negative impacts of various pollutants. UNs have declared 2020 as the international year of plant health with various objectives such as, massive awareness among public on global, regional and national levels, protection of the environment and facilitation of economic and trade development, promotion and strengthening of global, regional and national plant health efforts in light of increasing trade and increasing global, regional and national resources for plant health policies.

S. Routray^*

Dept. of Agricultural Entomology, Faculty of Agriculture, Sri Sri University, Cuttack, Odisha (754 006), India

Insect pests are the major constraints in enhancing rice productivity, besides diseases and weeds. They cause 20-30 per cent losses every year. More than hundred species of the insects have been reported attacking the rice crop and 20 of them can cause serious economic loss. Rice stem borers have acquired the status of regular insect pests of rice in most of the rice grown area in the state. Five species in families, crambidae and noctuidae of Lepidoptera have been reported as important stem borer pests of the rice in India. Of these, yellow stem borer, Scirpophaga incertulas is the dominant species across the country. It can be effectively managed by adopting IPM practices including cultural, mechanical, biological and chemical control.

K. Elanchezhyan^*

Dept. of Agricultural Entomology, Agricultural College and Research Institute, TNAU, Killikulam, Vallanadu Tamil Nadu (628 252), India

T. Sathyan

Dept. of Agricultural Entomology, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore Tamil Nadu (641 003), India

K.R. Manikandan

Dept. of Agricultural Entomology, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore Tamil Nadu (641 003), India

Adoption of integrated crop management practices in rice can improve the yields substantially. Demonstrations conducted in the farmers field of selected cluster villages of coastal Karnataka for a period of two years indicated that the adoption of integrated crop management practices in rice recorded an yield of 53.6 q/ha compared to farmers practice (40.95 q/ha) an increase by 31.6% over a period of two years. There was additional net returns gain by Rs. 24,316/- in demonstration plots compared to check.

Harish Shenoy^*

Dept. of Agronomy, Livestock Research and Information Centre (Amrithmahal), Karnataka Veterinary Animal and Fisheries Sciences University, Konehalli, Tiptur, Karnataka (572 201), India

Today the world population is increasing and climate change are the major challenges of food security. Scientist are searching the convenient and modern techniques for crop production. A new era of omics like genomics, transcriptomics, proteomics and metabolomics has a role to accelerate the biotechnology work in future. The genomics has role in increasing the genomic resources, utility, diversity, yield and other agronomic traits. The application of genomics with next generation sequencing can change the molecular plant breeding and will accordingly allow to be achieved with precision.

Dalpat Lal^*

Dept. of Agriculture, Jagan Nath University, Jaipur, Rajasthan (303 901), India

Precision farming is a feasible approach for sustainable agriculture. Precision farming makes use of remote sensing to macro-control of GPS to locate precisely ground position and of GIS to store ground information. It precisely establishes various operations, such as the best tillage, application of fertilizer, sowing, irrigation, harvesting etc., and turns traditional extensive production to intensive production according to space variable data. Precision farming not only may utilize fully resources, reduce investment, decrease pollution of the environment and get the most of social and economic efficiency, but also makes farm products, the same as industry, become controllable, and be produced in standards and batches. The use of inputs (fertilizers and pesticides) based on the right quantity, at the right time, and in the right place. This type of management is commonly known as “Site-Specific Management”. The productivity gains in global food supply have increasingly relied on expansion of irrigation schemes over recent decades, with more than a third of the world's food now requiring irrigation for production. However, precision farming has been confined to developed countries. Land tenure system, smaller farm size and crop diversity have limited the scope of precision farming in India. However, there is a wide scope for precision farming in irrigated/ commercial/ fruit and vegetable crops/ high value crops. It is apparent that there is a tremendous scope for precision farming in India as well and it is necessary to develop database of agriculture resources, which will act as decision support system at the farm.

Sunil^*

Dept. of Agronomy, CCS Haryana Agricultural University, Hisar, Haryana (125 004), India

Paras

Dept. of Genetics & Plant Breeding, CCS Haryana Agricultural University, Hisar, Haryana (125 004), India

Deepak Loura

Dept. of Agronomy, CCS Haryana Agricultural University, Hisar, Haryana (125 004), India

Akshit

Dept. of Agronomy, CCS Haryana Agricultural University, Hisar, Haryana (125 004), India

Sushil Kumar

Dept. of Agronomy, CCS Haryana Agricultural University, Hisar, Haryana (125 004), India

Shalu

Dept. of Agronomy, CCS Haryana Agricultural University, Hisar, Haryana (125 004), India

This study was carried out to assess the comparative cost structure and profitability of paddy cultivation under different level of mechanization in Cauvery command area of Karnataka. 120 respondents were selected randomly and the sample respondents were post-stratified based on the level of farm mechanization. The results revealed that, the cost of cultivation of paddy in the study areas was lower in case of farmers harvesting and threshing using combine harvester (Rs. 75,583.00 ha^-1), followed by harvesting manually and threshing mechanically (Rs. 76,239.00 ha^-1), harvesting and threshing manually (Rs. 78,125.00 ha^-1), respectively. The farmers using combine harvester for harvesting realized increase in net returns in paddy cultivation. The mechanization index in paddy was about 10-40 percent in study area based on the level of farm mechanization. The results clearly depicted the importance of the farm mechanization in realizing additional profit to the farmers.

Satishkumar, M.^*

Dept. of Agricultural Economics, College of Agriculture, Bheemarayanagudi, University of Agriculture Science - Raichur, Karnataka (585 287), India

K.B. Umesh

Dept. of Agricultural Economics, GKVK, University of Agricultural Sciences, Bangalore, Karnataka (560 065), India

Conservation Agriculture (CA) is a climate change adaptation measure being advanced for small-scale farmers. It is touted as a sustainable adaptation practice that can improve profitability in minimal cultivating areas. Conservation agriculture, in light of no-till, permanent soil cover and their harvest residues and crop rotation, is a productive framework to secure the soil against disintegration and to improve organic matter levels. Conservation Agriculture has just added to the feasible escalation of farming in a several developed and developing regions of the world by improving soil quality and efficiency yet diminishing the level of inputs (power, labour, fertilizers, agrochemicals, and water) required. Following 10 years of reception of conservation agriculture, soil organic matter expanded and the utilization proficiency of inputs expanded likewise. The better use effectiveness of the conservation agriculture frameworks came about because of the consolidated impact of more noteworthy land profitability (25%) and a decrease of energy inputs because of less power and fertilizers required.

Neelam Singh^*

Dept. of Agronomy, College of Agriculture, RVSKVV, Gwalior, Madhya Pradesh (474 002), India

Ekta Joshi

Dept. of Agronomy, College of Agriculture, RVSKVV, Gwalior, Madhya Pradesh (474 002), India

Deep Singh Sasode

Dept. of Agronomy, College of Agriculture, RVSKVV, Gwalior, Madhya Pradesh (474 002), India

Namrata Chouhan

Dept. of Agronomy, College of Agriculture, RVSKVV, Gwalior, Madhya Pradesh (474 002), India

Increasing consumption of food, feed, fuel and to meet global food security needs for the rapidly growing human population, raise the necessity to breed high yielding crops that can adapt to the future climate changes, particularly in developing countries. To solve these global challenges, novel approaches are required to identify quantitative phenotypes and to explain the genetic basis of agriculturally important traits. These advances will facilitate the screening of germplasm with high performance characteristics in resource limited environments. High-throughput phenotyping platforms have also been developed that capture phenotype data from plants in a non-destructive manner. In this review, we discuss recent developments of high throughput plant phenotyping infrastructure including imaging techniques and corresponding principles for phenotype data analysis. Phenomics is a way of speeding up phenotyping with the help of high-tech imaging systems and computing power. It has been a practice in plant breeding for selecting the best genotype after studying phenotypic expression in different environmental conditions and also using them in hybridization programs, to develop new improved genotypes.

Md. Ramjan^*

College of Horticulture and Forestry, Central Agricultural University, Pasighat, Arunachal Pradesh (791 102), India

B.N. Hazarika

College of Horticulture and Forestry, Central Agricultural University, Pasighat, Arunachal Pradesh (791 102), India

Naorem Bidyaleima Chanu

College of Horticulture and Forestry, Central Agricultural University, Pasighat, Arunachal Pradesh (791 102), India

Soft silk fabrics are extensively used for the production of dress materials and soft sarees. The perennial problem in soft silk fabrics is the wrinkle and drape ability problems. CSTRI has developed new technology for the production of wrinkle resistant and high drape degummed soft silk fabrics using chemical treatment. In the earlier studies the suitability of the chemical has been confirmed for the improvement of softness of fabrics and standardized the processing conditions. In the present study influence of chemical concentration at different temperatures and duration of treatment were studied. It was found that higher the temperature of treatment the chemical reaction was effective and the fabrics have shown improved drapeability and wrinkle resistant. In order to study the chemical modification on the fabrics, the untreated and untreated at different temperatures were studied for Raman spectroscopy. The Raman spectroscopy data has been analyzed and it could be observed that the chemical treatment at 60 ºC and 75 ºC has shown shift at 1225 and 1650 wave number, which may be attributed to tertiary level molecular structure change in amide I and amide III level due to chemical treatment. Thus the study indicate that using the chemical treatment at high temperatures, the degummed soft silk fabrics could be improved to have better crease recovery, drape, Flexural rigidity and tensile characteristics.

G. Hariraj^*

Central Silk Technological Research Institute, Central Silk Board, Ministry of Textiles, Govt. of India, BTM Layout, Bengaluru, Karnataka (560 068), India

K.M.A. Kadhar

Central Silk Technological Research Institute, Central Silk Board, Ministry of Textiles, Govt. of India, BTM Layout, Bengaluru, Karnataka (560 068), India

K. Geetanjali

Central Silk Technological Research Institute, Central Silk Board, Ministry of Textiles, Govt. of India, BTM Layout, Bengaluru, Karnataka (560 068), India

Subhas V. Naik

Central Silk Technological Research Institute, Central Silk Board, Ministry of Textiles, Govt. of India, BTM Layout, Bengaluru, Karnataka (560 068), India

In the plant kingdom, air plants are indispensable creations of nature and recently gaining popularity. Due to their uniqueness in absorption of water and nutrients through fuzzy trichomes present on leaf surface, that sets them far apart from other plants and belongs to epiphytic group. They have a reputation of being well known accumulators of heavy metals present in the air and therefore, acts as an excellent biomonitors for purifying the atmosphere. In addition to their medicinal values, their appearance itself makes them aesthetic and a signature ornamental plant as they grow dangling in air without any soil as a substrate. These are low maintenance plants as they require watering once or twice in a week. So they make up a good specimen in a florist’s collection of ornamental wonders. This review article highlights interesting facts about air plants, its maintenance and usefulness.

Dhanush Swaroop Sadhu

Kittur Rani Channamma College of Horticulture, Arabhavi, University of Horticultural Sciences, Bagalkot, Karnataka (591 218), India

Mahantesha Banvat Netaji Naika^*

Kittur Rani Channamma College of Horticulture, Arabhavi, University of Horticultural Sciences, Bagalkot, Karnataka (591 218), India

Oak tasar cocoons are difficult to reel due to the presence of high amounts of protein-tannin complexes. The chemical methods developed for reeling these cocoons is not readily adopted by the common tasar silk reelers and weavers due to various reasons including relatively low reeling performance, low fuel efficiency, complicated procedure and prolonged cooking time. Proteolytic enzymes that cleaves the internal peptide bonds in an amino acid chain have the potential to effect partial solubilisation of the proteinaceous silk gum (sericin) involved in biding the silk (fibroin) strands together in silkworm cocoon, an essential step in the silk cocoon cooking and reeling. Pineapple fruit extract rich in cysteine endopeptidases has a potential application in cooking and reeling of oak tasar (Antheraea proylei J.) silk cocoons which cannot be softened by boiling in plain water unlike the mulberry cocoons (Bombyx mori L). The experimental results from the present investigation on the oak tasar cocoon cooking with pineapple extract at room temperature and subsequent study have indicated for an applicability of pineapple extract as an effective agent for the oak tasar (Antheraea proylei J.) cocoon cooking and reeling. It is observed that enzymatic cocoon cooking has advantages over chemical method. The method involving pineapple extract is a relatively better method regarding its overall better reeling performances and also mostly due to the abundant availability of pineapples grown in the oak tasar belt in India. Moreover, the method is environmentally friendly and is readily accessible to the common tasar silk reelers and weavers.

Yengkokpam Ranjana Devi^*

Central Agricultural University, Iroisemba, Imphal, Manipur (795 004), India

Laishram Rupachandra Singh

Manipur University, Canchipur, Imphal, Manipur (795 003), India

Sanjenbam Kunjeshwori Devi

Manipur University, Canchipur, Imphal, Manipur (795 003), India

To meet the demand for the growing population, post-independence Indian agriculture was highly based on synthetic based modern agriculture. Though there is a positive change highly contributed economic growth, this chemical-based agriculture was criticized from environmental aspects. Conflict arises between synthetic based agriculture and increasing demand for non-chemical agriculture like Bio-Based Farming System (BBFS), that are most important for maintaining soil fertility as well as soil health for sustainable agricultural production. To solve the conflict, awareness level of the farmers is more important between introducing any farming system like Bio-Based Farming System or maintaining a chemical traditional farming system. The present study is an attempt to study the awareness level of the farmers practicing bio-based farming system. Four districts of Southern West Bengal from which, four blocks and then four villages from those blocks have been randomly selected for the study. A total of 200 farmers have been selected (50 from each village). Results showed that 78% farmers strongly agree that quality of BBFS product is good than chemical based product; 67% respondents strongly agree that BBFS farming system is profitable. Similarly, about 70% respondents are aware about the use of crop rotation and recommended Package of Practice.

Debabrata Giri^*

Dept. of Agricultural Economics, Palli Siksha Bhavana, Visva Bharati, West Bengal (731 236), India

Bidhan Chandra Roy

Dept. of Agricultural Economics, Palli Siksha Bhavana, Visva Bharati, West Bengal (731 236), India

Debashis Sarkar

Dept. of Agricultural Economics, Palli Siksha Bhavana, Visva Bharati, West Bengal (731 236), India

Sourendranath Das

State Agricultural Management and Extension Training Institute, Ramakrishna Mission Ashrama Narendrapur, Kolkata, West Bengal (700 103), India

Liming is the key to success of crop production on acid soils. The practice however has not met wider adoption, due largely to the higher doses of lime requirement. To ascertain the effect of lime pelleting (seed pelleting with lime) vis-a-vis higher doses of lime as required for furrow application and broadcasting, we conducted a greenhouse pot experiment wherein common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris) was grown with five treatments: T₁: control (no lime), T₂: lime pelleting with gum arabic, T₃: lime pelleting with rice starch, T₄: lime application @ 300 kg ha^-1 equivalent dose, and T₅: lime application @ 3000 kg ha^-1 equivalent dose. Lime pelleting caused 12-14% improvement in crop yield compared to 31 and 38% increments at higher doses of lime application i.e., T₄ and T₅, respectively, with a commensurate increase in associated yield parameters. Higher leaf chlorophyll content (SPAD index) caused by liming and lime pelleting suggested improved plant nutrition. Rhizosphere pH increased with liming (p≤0.05), with corresponding reductions in exchangeable Al and acidity, but the effects of lime pelleting were discernible only at lower levels of statistical significance (p≤0.2). Contrary to the popular belief, liming reduced soil P availability, implying that the growth stimulation by liming was not caused by increased P availability, but by reduced Al toxicity and ensuing improvement in plant’s nutrient acquisition efficiency. To conclude, lime pelleting is proposed as an alternative low-cost, easily-adoptable technology for reducing lime requirement and for improving pulse productivity on acidic soils.

Manoj Kumar^*

ICAR-Research Complex for NEH Region, Umiam, Meghalaya (793 103), India

ICAR-RCER, Research Centre for Makhana (RCM), Darbhanga, Bihar (846 005), India

S. Hazarika

ICAR-Research Complex for NEH Region, Umiam, Meghalaya (793 103), India

B.U. Choudhury

ICAR-Research Complex for NEH Region, Umiam, Meghalaya (793 103), India

B.C. Verma

ICAR-Research Complex for NEH Region, Umiam, Meghalaya (793 103), India

CRURRS, ICAR-NRRI, Hazaribagh, Jharkhand (825 301), India

D.J. Rajkhowa

ICAR-Research Complex for NEH Region, Umiam, Meghalaya (793 103), India

Reshma Shinde

ICAR-RCER, Research Centre, Ranchi, Jharkhand (834 010), India

Shikha Yadav

ICAR-Research Complex for NEH Region, Umiam, Meghalaya (793 103), India

Arvind Kumar

ICAR-Research Complex for NEH Region, Umiam, Meghalaya (793 103), India

Mulberry (Morus alba L.) is a valuable tree of immense importance in silk industry due to its foliage, which constitute the chief food for silkworms (Bombyx mori L.) the source of fabulous silk. One of the major constraints in the cultivation and production of quality mulberry leaf is the attack of pests and diseases. Among the several diseases, root rot caused by Macrophomina phaseolina (Tassi) Goid is becoming a serious problem in many mulberry growing areas of south India. The root rot infected root samples were collected from the field and used for isolation of the pathogen. Cold water extracts of 10 plants species were screened against the mulberry root rot pathogen M. phaseolina. Among them, two plants extracts viz., curry leaf (Murraya koenigii L.) and Marunthukoorkan (Coleus forskohlii) showed the 67.77 percent and 61.10 percent inhibition of mycelial growth over control respectively. Similarly the sclerotial production showed 87.33 percent and 82.15 percent inhibition over control respectively.

Deshmukh M.M.^*

Dept. of Sericulture, Tamil Nadu Agriculture University, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu (641 003), India

S. Vanitha

Dept. of Sericulture, Tamil Nadu Agriculture University, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu (641 003), India

Recycling of organic waste material or bio-waste is still fairly limited in low and middle income settings, although this is by far the largest fraction of all generated municipal wastes such as households, commercial and institutional activities in urban population. Further, expansion of intensive and profitable livestock production are constrained by increasing feed costs, especially the protein ingredients. Both of these factors lead to the need for alternative feed ingredients that are cheap, good quality animal protein sources and do not require extensive land and would be available. Black Soldier Fly (BSF) can remarkably able to transform any kind of organic waste biomass into protein rich larvae which can meet the demand of reliable protein. In contrast to other dipteran species, BSF is not considered as pest and its larvae can reduce populations of harmful bacteria. They feed on organic resources i.e., fruit remains, animal manure, vegetables and brewers’ spent grains and convert into high-quality insect protein and fat. They contain high amount of crude protein, fat, calcium, phosphorus and magnesium and larval meal has been satisfactorily used in livestock and fish feed. Replacement of soyabean and fish meal with BSF larvae is evidently cost effective and significant in terms of body weight gain in broiler, hen day egg production in layers and growth in growing pigs. However, dietary inclusion of BSF larvae meal needs more attention to the total fat content of the diet and its undesirable effect on the nutritional composition or flavor of meat and eggs.

Nonigopal Shit^*

Regional Research Station - Terai Zone, Uttar Banga Krishi Viswavidyalaya, Cooch Behar, West Bengal (736 165), India

An experiment on induction of mutation in lathyrus by gamma rays was conducted by using treated seeds of lathyrus cv. NLK-73 with 150, 200, 250, 300 and 350 Gy doses of gamma rays in non-replicated trial along with control. The treated material along with untreated control were sown in M₁ generation and the seeds collected from individual plant of M₁ generation were used to raise M₂ generation during Rabi 2017 and 2018 respectively. Fifteen different types of morphological and biochemical mutants viz., chlorophyll, early flowering, tall, broad leaves, profuse branches, more pods, flower colour, purple colour leaf, narrow leaves, more pods and tall, broad leaves and tall, broad leaves and profuse branches, profuse branches and tall, profuse branches and more pods, high yield and more pods were identified and isolated. Mutation frequency and mutagenic efficiency increased with the increase in dose upto 250 Gy and 200 Gy respectively, later on both decreased with increase in the dose of gamma rays. Mutagenic effectiveness decreased with the increase in doses of gamma rays. Significant variations among the treatments for all the mutants were recorded in M₂ generation of Lathyrus and hence, offer scope for identifying mutants.

Shanti R. Patil^*

Dept. of Botany, College of Agriculture, Dr. Panjabrao Deshmukh Krishi Vidyapeeth, Nagpur, Maharashtra (440 001), India

V.T. Chavan

Dept. of Botany, College of Agriculture, Dr. Panjabrao Deshmukh Krishi Vidyapeeth, Nagpur, Maharashtra (440 001), India

Ommala Kuchanwar

Dept. of Botany, College of Agriculture, Dr. Panjabrao Deshmukh Krishi Vidyapeeth, Nagpur, Maharashtra (440 001), India

Micronutrients are important not only for better productivity of crops, but also essential for sustaining human and animal health. There is a widespread deficiency of micronutrients especially zinc in the Indian soils. Micronutrient malnutrition is known to affect more than half of the world’s population and considered to be among the most serious global challenges to mankind. Malnutrition is of great public health significance in various developing and underdeveloped countries. Deficiency of iron and zinc can cause various severe health issues. Modern plant breeding has been historically focused towards achieving high agronomic yield rather than nutritional quality, and other efforts related to solve the problem have been mainly through industrial fortification or pharmaceutical supplementation. In humans, problems caused due to micronutrient deficiencies can be solved through biofortification. Biofortification is a promising and sustainable agriculture-based strategy to reduce micronutrient deficiency in dietary food substances. Effective biofortification techniques need to be recognized and applied in an effort to enrich the micronutrient content in the staple crops. Foliar fertilization with micronutrients often increases nutrient uptake and efficient allocation in the edible plant parts than soil fertilization, especially in the case of cereals. Agronomic biofortification can be a way to enrich the food crops leading to decreased micronutrient malnutrition in humans. Moreover, it is the most cost effective and sustainable solution for tackling the micronutrient deficiencies as the intake of micronutrients is on a continuing basis with no additional costs to the consumer in the arid-tropics and sub-tropics of developing countries.

Sumit Sow^*

Dept. of Agronomy, Bihar Agricultural University, Sabour, Bhagalpur, Bihar (813 210), India

Shivani Ranjan

Dept. of Agronomy, Bihar Agricultural University, Sabour, Bhagalpur, Bihar (813 210), India

The Cucurbitaceae family, encompassing about 118 genera and 825 species, is economically, culturally, aesthetically, horticulturally and medicinally significant. Among its cultivated species, melon (Cucumis melo L.) stands out for its immense diversity, with distinct groups based on horticultural usage. This article explores the morphological characteristics, nutritional value and uses of melon, emphasizing its potential health benefits. Melon, a warm-season crop, requires specific climate and soil conditions for optimal growth. Breeding objectives focus on medium-sized fruits with high sugar content, while cultivation practices address disease resistance and efficient water management. The nutritional composition of melon and its various uses, both fresh and processed, contribute to its popularity as a dessert and a health-promoting food. Overall, melons offer a rich source of essential nutrients and their diverse attributes make them valuable for enhancing human health.

Koku K. Tara^*

Division of Vegetable Science, ICAR-Indian Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhi (110 012), India

Neha Sharma

Division of Vegetable Science, ICAR-Indian Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhi (110 012), India

R. Vishal

Division of Vegetable Science, ICAR-Indian Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhi (110 012), India

The last century has seen a global growth in the usage of antibiotics, and this trend is expected to continue. The increased level of antibiotic resistance in soils is a result of the misuse of veterinary antibiotics in animal husbandry and the ensuing manure applications to the land. Over half of the veterinary antibiotics that are taken are excreted in the environment, accounting for approximately 58% of the total. As a result, animal manures and soil treated with manures can contain antibiotic concentrations up to mg L^-1, as well as a broad range and frequency of antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs). As a result, worries about these compounds' ability to find their way into human food and endanger human health have been expressed.

Kalyani Patil^*

Division of Soil Science and Agricultural Chemistry, ICAR-IARI, New Delhi, Delhi (110 012), India

Ravi Saini

Division of Soil Science and Agricultural Chemistry, ICAR-IARI, New Delhi, Delhi (110 012), India

A field experiment was conducted at the experimental farm, Department of Agronomy, SASRD, Nagaland University to study sesamum on nutrient uptake, economics and nutrient concentration on post-harvest soil as affected by different levels and sources sulphur. The experiment was laid out in randomized block design (RBD) with three replications. There were ten treatments viz., T₁ (control), T₂ (10 kg gypsum ha^-1), T₃ (20 kg gypsum ha^-1), T₄ (30 kg gypsum ha^-1), T₅ (40 kg gypsum ha^-1), T₆ (control), T₇ (10 kg elemental sulphur ha^-1), T₈ (20 kg elemental sulphur ha^-1), T₉ (30 kg elemental sulphur ha^-1) and T₁₀ (40 kg elemental sulphur ha^-1). The total Nitrogen (70.72 kg ha^-1), Phosphorus (7.91 kg ha^-1), Potassium (28.52 kg ha^-1) and Sulphur (6.05 kg ha^-1) uptake by the plant was recorded highest with 40 kg elemental sulphur ha^-1. Treatment T₁₀ recorded the highest net return as well as B:C ratio (%) with Rs. 24,130.40 ha^-1 and 1.21 respectively, while T₁ and T₆ recorded the lowest net return and were statistically at par. The available soil Nitrogen (435.53 kg ha^-1) after harvest was recorded highest in T₁ (control). The available soil Phosphorus (48.75 kg ha^-1) and Potassium (214.27 kg ha^-1) was recorded highest in T₁ (control) and available soil Sulphur (22.15 kg ha^-1) was recorded highest in T₁₀.

P.C. Lallawmzuali^*

Dept. of Agronomy, SASRD, Nagaland University, Medziphema, Nagaland (797 106), India

Lanunola Tzudir

Dept. of Agronomy, SASRD, Nagaland University, Medziphema, Nagaland (797 106), India

D. Nongmaithem

Dept. of Agronomy, SASRD, Nagaland University, Medziphema, Nagaland (797 106), India

Mushroom is an edible fungus which humans have been using as food and medicine since time immemorial. Cultivation of eatable mushrooms can often be affected by several insect pests, mites and nematodes which often cause production losses. The market value of mushrooms also reduces due to infestation and contamination. There is not much evidence related to integrated pest management in mushroom cultivation. The updated article presents a practical list of insect pests related to mushroom cultivation and their integrated management, which will provide useful information to mushroom growers and also help them for controlling of the insect pests and nematodes.

Ashok Kumar Meena

Dept. of Entomology, College of Agriculture, Baytu, Agriculture University, Jodhpur, Rajasthan (344 034), India

Durga Prasad^*

Dept. of Plant Pathology, College of Agriculture, Baytu, Agriculture University, Jodhpur, Rajasthan (344 034), India

The plant products and materials are believed to have numerous health benefits. The Asian continent is recognized as a hub for medicinal plants. As on today, a large populace relies on medicinal plants and their associated products for the treatments of ailments. The popularity of the medicinal plants is continuously increasing because they are assumed to impose no health risk and side effects unlike synthetic therapeutants. Edible vegetals and agroindustrial residues are considered to be abundant and promising sources of natural antioxidants. The extraction method, of crucial importance for both technical and economic reasons, ideally should be non-destructive, time efficient and suitable for producing high quantities of extracts, which should be processed by selective techniques to yield concentrates of enhanced antioxidant capacity. The extraction methods, solvent system used and sample nature greatly effects the final bioactive compounds yield and efficacy. This article briefly summarized the basics of extraction and separation of bioactive compounds and improvisation in further downline applications.

Kanti Meena^*

ICAR-Central Research Institute for Jute and Allied Fibres, Barrackpore, Kolkata, West Bengal (700 120), India

Utilization of biochar i.e., solid product obtained through pyrolysis of biomass is captivating global interest in agricultural prospective. Along with reduction in anthropogenic emission of greenhouse gases and bioremediation of natural resources, biochar as a soil amendment also upgrade the nutrient retention, soil tilth and rhizospheric microbial community. To enhance the benign effects of biochar in crop production, designed biochar has been produced by the immobilization of fertilizers and biocontrol agents on biochar according to the specific requirements. Several studies mentioned different virtues of designed biochar that includes antagonistic potential, plant growth promoting attributes and the ability to activate the induced systemic response against foliar pathogens during field trials. Due to complications regarding the efficacy faced by whole organism formulations of biocontrol agents, secondary metabolites has emerged as promising substitute with target specificity, invulnerable to geographical locations, longer shelf life, resistant against climatic conditions and large scale production. Metabolites obtained from biocontrol agents against abiotic and biotic stresses have proved their potential in antagonistic and plant growth promoting abilities. The objective of this article is to devise the combination of biochar with specific metabolites and to glean maximum advantages in our agro ecosystems.

Jyoti Singh^*

Dept. of Botany, Institute of Science, Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh (221 005), India

Abhilasha Tripathi

Dept. of Civil Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh (208 016), India

Autophagy, governed by autophagy-related genes (ATGs), is essential for cellular homeostasis. It impacts diverse cellular functions, including development, reproduction, metabolism, hormone signaling, cell death, senescence, and stress responses. The article delves into macro-autophagy, micro-autophagy, and chaperone-mediated autophagy (CMA), emphasizing cargo specificity. Bulk autophagy engulfs cellular constituents indiscriminately, while selective autophagy targets specific proteins or organelles. In plants, stress-induced selective autophagy involves regulators like BES1 and TSPO. The intricate machinery of macro-autophagy in plants, driven by ATG proteins, participates in lipid transfer, phagophore formation, and autophagosome-vacuole fusion. Initiation mechanisms, including ATG9 vesicles, ATG2-ATG18 complexes, and phosphatidylinositol synthase-enriched ER subdomains, are explored. The review scrutinizes autophagy's role in virus infection, emphasizing its protective function against cell death and its dual impact on anti-viral and pro-viral responses. Silencing ATG genes compromise plant immunity, while certain viruses exploit autophagy for infection. Understanding autophagy's regulation informs therapeutic interventions and agricultural applications, highlighting its versatility and essentiality.

Berryish Metha, C.^*

Dept. of Plant Biotechnology, Centre for Plant Molecular Biology and Biotechnology, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu (641 003), India

Eniya A.

Dept. of Agricultural Entomology, Centre for Plant Protection Studies, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu (641 003), India

Samuel P.

Dept. of Plant Biotechnology, Centre for Plant Molecular Biology and Biotechnology, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu (641 003), India

Over the past few decades, climate change has spurred significant changes in the weed flora within the arable biosphere of India. This impact is not direct but rather indirect, as climate change compels adaptations in agronomic practices. For successful strategies in weed control while maximizing crop yield, it is crucial to possess a comprehensive understanding of these transformative processes. Growing concerns revolve around the potential impacts of global CO₂ enrichment in weeds and crop yields. Due to the impacts of climate change, there is a probable alteration in life cycles, phenology and infestation pressure. Certain weed species may be at risk of extinction, whereas others might exhibit increased aggressiveness as invaders. Comprehensive studies are of vital importance to assess the collective interactive effects of climate change factors. Such research will aid in predicting how weed-related challenges may evolve within the context of a changing climate scenario.

Meghna Sarma^*

Krishi Vigyan Kendra-Ri Bhoi, ICAR-Research Complex for NEH Region, Umiam, Meghalaya (793 103), India

Mokidul Islam

Krishi Vigyan Kendra-Ri Bhoi, ICAR-Research Complex for NEH Region, Umiam, Meghalaya (793 103), India

Micronutrient deficiency has been linked to various human diseases. Crops grown in mineral-depleted soils may have reduced food quality as measured by nutrient density because of any deficient minerals and a potential impaired ability to synthesize compounds essential to human health, including vitamins. Until recently, micronutrient density was not clearly understood and may have silently crept through the food chain, exacerbating various modern human diseases. We believe investigating the critical roles of soil micronutrients, especially magnesium (Mg) and zinc (Zn) in vitamin synthesis and function is urgently needed.

Walton Sumner

Argillic Horizon, 7 Old Westbury Lane, St. Louis (63119), USA

Sougata Bardhan^*

306A Foster Hall, College of Agriculture, Environment, and Human Sciences, Lincoln University, Jefferson City (65101), USA

Pelleting animal feed is crucial for handling feed more conveniently and for increasing feeding efficiency. Because of their uniform size, which makes handling and feeding easier and lowers the cost of storage and transportation, pellets made from biomass have exhibited a trend towards utilization. The characteristics of the feedstock and the operational factors governing the densification process determine the quality of the pellet. By modifying the procedure to suit the raw material to be pelletized, quality parameters can be changed. To make pellets that are easy to store and use, this pelleting process entails grinding, combining and compressing a variety of substances, including grains, forage and supplements. The manufacturing of fodder pellets increases feed efficiency, lowers waste and improves the nutritional value of animal feed.

Kabinesh V.^*

Dept. of Forest Products and Wildlife, Forest College and Research Institute, TNAU, Mettupalayam, Tamil Nadu (641 301), India

Vennila S.

Dept. of Agronomy, Agricultural College and Research Institute, TNAU, Tiruvannamalai, Tamil Nadu (606 753), India

Baranidharan K.

Dept. of Forest Products and Wildlife, Forest College and Research Institute, TNAU, Mettupalayam, Tamil Nadu (641 301), India

Ravi R.

Dept. of Floriculture, Horticulture College and Research Institute, TNAU, Periyakulam, Tamil Nadu (625 604), India

Krishnamoorthi S.

Dept. of Forest Products and Wildlife, Forest College and Research Institute, TNAU, Mettupalayam, Tamil Nadu (641 301), India

Bargavi S.

Dept. of Forest Products and Wildlife, Forest College and Research Institute, TNAU, Mettupalayam, Tamil Nadu (641 301), India

Polyamines are small chemical compounds that play diverse roles in plant physiology, including mitigating both biotic and abiotic stresses. They are crucial for plant growth and development. When applied externally, polyamines can delay senescence and enhance the quality of crops. Additionally, polyamines stimulate the antioxidant enzymatic activity, which helps plants manage oxidative stress caused by environmental factors. By binding to the phospholipid sites of cell membranes, polyamines reduce cytolysis and enhance resistance to cold, thus minimizing damage from chilling temperatures. Furthermore, polyamines tend to accumulate significantly in plant tissues infected by pathogens, thereby limiting the growth of bacteria and viruses and deactivating the latter. This study briefly touches upon the production, function and metabolism of fruit crops.

Ranjani M.^*

Division of Food Science and Post Harvest Technology, Indian Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhi (110 012), India

Ch. Pallavi Sri Padma

Division of Food Science and Post Harvest Technology, Indian Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhi (110 012), India

This article explores the pivotal role of protein linkers in constructing stable and bioactive recombinant fusion proteins, showcasing their diverse applications across industries. Three linker categories: flexible, rigid and in vivo cleavable; address specific construction needs. Flexible linkers, rich in small or polar amino acids, offer mobility for interacting domains. Rigid linkers, characterized by α-helices or proline-rich sequences, efficiently separate functional domains. Cleavable linkers enable in vivo domain release, enhancing chimeric protein bioactivity and targeted drug delivery. Linker selection criteria consider system-specific nuances and contribute to the strategic construction of functional chimeric proteins. Linkers enhance folding and stability and modulate expression levels, influencing bioactivity and pharmacokinetic profiles. Fusion proteins find diverse applications, from protein purification to cancer diagnostics and agricultural improvement. Effective linkers contribute to drug conjugate efficiency, exemplified by Fc-fusion proteins. Overall, the review highlights linkers' critical role in advancing recombinant fusion proteins across scientific and medical domains.

Berryish Metha C.^*

Dept. of Plant Biotechnology, Centre for Plant Molecular Biology and Biotechnology, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu (641 003), India

Samuel Peter

Dept. of Plant Biotechnology, Centre for Plant Molecular Biology and Biotechnology, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu (641 003), India

Bishnupriya Gauda

Dept. of Plant Biotechnology, Centre for Plant Molecular Biology and Biotechnology, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu (641 003), India

Dhanvarsha M.

Dept. of Plant Biotechnology, Centre for Plant Molecular Biology and Biotechnology, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu (641 003), India

The concept of the Blue Economy, which focuses on sustainable use of ocean resources for economic growth, has gained significant attention globally. This paper delves into the exploration of India's Blue Economy, analyzing the opportunities and challenges it presents for fostering sustainability and resilience. As India seeks to harness the untapped potential of its coastal and marine resources, the paper examines the various opportunities that the Blue Economy provides for economic development, job creation and technological innovation. Moreover, climate change, overfishing, pollution and inadequate regulatory frameworks are among the challenges that must be addressed to ensure the long-term viability of India's Blue Economy. Furthermore, the paper explores policy implications and potential strategies to overcome these challenges, advocating for a comprehensive and integrated approach that involves collaboration between government, industry and local communities.

Supra Subhadarsani

Faculty of Agriculture and Allied Sciences, C.V. Raman Global University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha (752 054), India

Jayshree Padhi

Faculty of Agriculture and Allied Sciences, C.V. Raman Global University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha (752 054), India

Monalisha Rana

Faculty of Agriculture and Allied Sciences, C.V. Raman Global University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha (752 054), India

Lopamudra Behuria

Faculty of Agriculture and Allied Sciences, C.V. Raman Global University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha (752 054), India

Priyadarsini Parida

Faculty of Agriculture and Allied Sciences, C.V. Raman Global University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha (752 054), India

Debadurlabha Sahoo

Faculty of Agriculture and Allied Sciences, C.V. Raman Global University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha (752 054), India

Soubhagya Ranjan Khuntia

Faculty of Agriculture and Allied Sciences, C.V. Raman Global University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha (752 054), India

Manaswini Mahapatra

Faculty of Agriculture and Allied Sciences, C.V. Raman Global University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha (752 054), India

Jyoti Prakash Sahoo^*

Faculty of Agriculture and Allied Sciences, C.V. Raman Global University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha (752 054), India

Genome sequencing is an old yet unexploited avenue in the fisheries sector. It has incorporated around 594 species which is increasing as we are speaking. It has opened the path for taxonomy, selective breeding, conservation, phylogeny, production and sustainable fisheries. It has been done in many fish species of global commercial importance like catla, rohu, puffer fish, zebra fish, atlantic salmon and rainbow trout etc. and many more are still under investigation. Genomics technologies have the flexibility of integration with ‘omics’ approach and other aspects in fisheries sector, with so much potential beyond the current constraints that are preventing aquaculture from reaching its new heights. Still, many more limitations in the current genome sequencing system need to be addressed.

Yadvesh Ranvir Singh

Dept. of Fish Genetics and Breeding, College of Fisheries, CAU (Imphal), Lembucherra, Tripura (799 210), India

Samikshya Mishra^*

Fish Nutrition, Biochemistry and Physiology Division, ICAR-Central Institute of Fisheries Education, Mumbai, Maharashtra (400 061), India

Debiprasad Kantal

Aquatic Environment Management Division, ICAR-Central Institute of Fisheries Education, Mumbai, Maharashtra (400 061), India

The unintentional capture of marine life by abandoned fishing gear, or "ghost fishing," seriously jeopardizes marine ecosystems and economies across the world. This essay looks about ghost fishing's sources, impacts and management strategies. Ghost gear, which includes nets, lines and traps, can destroy ecosystems, injure natural places and ensnare and kill a variety of marine life. The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) admits that the consequences of ghost fishing on marine environments have expanded over time. Empirical studies reveal that ghost gear has an annual impact on thousands of marine species, underscoring the pressing necessity for intervention. Ghost fishing is decreased by the application of management strategies including education, gear technological advancements and retrieval programs. However, because there are no set standards and underwater environments are complicated, assessing the effects of ghost fishing is difficult. To successfully prevent ghost fishing and protect marine biodiversity, innovative methods are required. This review summarizes current research to offer a thorough overview of the problem and make recommendations for more study and action.

Gaurav N. Lanjewar^*

College of Fisheries, Shirgaon, Ratnagiri, Maharashtra (415 629), India

Shweta A. Sonawane

College of Fisheries, Shirgaon, Ratnagiri, Maharashtra (415 629), India

Digvijay D. Chauhan

College of Fisheries, Shirgaon, Ratnagiri, Maharashtra (415 629), India

Omkar A. Kode

College of Fisheries, Shirgaon, Ratnagiri, Maharashtra (415 629), India

This paper examines the burgeoning role of blockchain technology in supply chain management (SCM), including its emerging influence in the agriculture and allied sectors, where it promises to enhance traceability, sustainability and efficiency from farm to table. It presents a synthesis of current research, demonstrating how blockchain can significantly transform SCM functions across various industrial applications, from shipping to healthcare and assesses blockchain's potential to augment visibility and streamline business processes. The opportunities, societal impacts, state-of-the-art technologies, challenges and future research directions are critically analysed. The paper further contemplates blockchain's feasibility in creating a secure, decentralized environment for transactions, addressing its scalability and security challenges and envisions the technological trajectory for blockchain integration in SCM.

Boda Mahesh Naik^*

ICAR-National Academy of Agricultural Research Management, Hyderabad, Telangana (500 030), India

Athira Raveendran

Dept. of Economics, M.S. University, Tirunelveli, Tamil Nadu (627 012), India

A field experiment entitled “Nutrient concentrations and their total uptake as affected by liquid bio-fertilizers in groundnut (Arachis hypogaea L.)" was conducted during kharif season of 2017 at research farm, COA, Gwalior on sandy clay loam soil to study the response of groundnut to chemical fertilizers and liquid bio-formulations. Four fertility levels viz., 25, 50, 75 and 100% RDF and three biofertilizer inoculation viz., no bio-formulations (B1), liquid Bio-NPK + Zn solubilizing bacteria (B2) and bio-grow (B3) to groundnut in 12 treatment combinations replicated thrice in split plot design. The yield and nutrient concentrations and their total uptake (N, P, K, Zn) was significantly highest with 100% RDF and liquid Bio-NPK + Zn solubilizing bacteria. However, their interaction had no significant influence on these parameters. But the highest values were observed when 100% RDF was applied in combination with liquid Bio-NPK + Zn solubilizing bacteria.

Neelam Singh^*

Dept. of Agronomy, RVSKVV, College of Agriculture, Gwalior, Madhya Pradesh (474 002), India

Ekta Joshi

Dept. of Agronomy, RVSKVV, College of Agriculture, Gwalior, Madhya Pradesh (474 002), India

D.S. Sasode

Dept. of Agronomy, RVSKVV, College of Agriculture, Gwalior, Madhya Pradesh (474 002), India

Roop Singh Dangi

Dept. of Agronomy, RVSKVV, College of Agriculture, Gwalior, Madhya Pradesh (474 002), India

Namrata Chouhan

Dept. of Agronomy, RVSKVV, College of Agriculture, Gwalior, Madhya Pradesh (474 002), India

The present study was conducted at farmer’s field to evaluate performance of Vanaraja and Kamrup crossbred poultry under backyard system. The day old chicks of both birds were kept in artificial brooding at the KVK farm complex to ensure uninterrupted power supply round the clock up to 1 month to reduce chick mortality. After one month, chicks were supplied to farmers of adopted villages to establish 28 numbers of units (one unit per household) with 14 numbers of birds unit^-1. Body weight gain at monthly interval upto 6 months of age and egg production parameters were taken accordingly. It was found that both Vanaraja and Kamrupa were found good by the farmers with slightly little edge of Vanaraja over Kamrupa. Depending on the observations, actions were taken by the KVK to popularize both the breeds equally in the district afterwards.

H.K. Bhattacharyya^*

Livestock Research Station, Assam Agricultural University, Hekra-Mandira, Kamrup (R), Assam (781 127), India

S. Baruah

Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK), Assam Agricultural University (AAU), Romai-Kardoibam, Dibrugarh, Assam (786 010), India

S. Sarma

Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK), Assam Agricultural University (AAU), Romai-Kardoibam, Dibrugarh, Assam (786 010), India

S.B. Saikia

Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK), Assam Agricultural University (AAU), Romai-Kardoibam, Dibrugarh, Assam (786 010), India

H.C. Saikia

Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK), Assam Agricultural University (AAU), Romai-Kardoibam, Dibrugarh, Assam (786 010), India

K.B. Chetry

Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK), Assam Agricultural University (AAU), Romai-Kardoibam, Dibrugarh, Assam (786 010), India

In order to ascertain the impact of physiological parameters like temperature and pH on growth and sporulation of M. phaseolina and F. oxysporum, causing stem-root rot and wilt diseases of jute, an experiment was conducted to examine. It was discovered that Fusarium oxysporum thrived at pH 5 (80.135 mg) while Macrophomina phaseolina grew best at neutral pH, or pH 7 (69.065 mg). M. phaseolina grows best at temperatures ranging from 35 °C to 30 °C, with no growth observed at lower temperatures. Fusarium oxysporum's growth peaked at 25 °C (90.00 mm), and it significantly decreased below 15 °C and above 40 °C. In response to changes in temperature, fungal development slows.

D. Mahato^*

Dept. of Plant Pathology, Institute of Agriculture Science, Siksha ‘O’ Anusandhan University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha (751 003), India

In natural ecosystems, plant health is mainly dependent on interactions with diverse and dynamic soil microbial communities. The microbial communities particularly those associated with nitrogen (N) cycling pathway inhabiting in rice field ecosystem have been described previously. Although, little is known about the taxonomic microbial players involved with dissimilatory nitrate reduction to ammonium (DNRA), a short-circuit N retention pathway in terrestrial N cycle. Therefore, we have to focus on how rice plants shape DNRA bacteria and how they alter over the course of several rice growth stages. Besides, we also shed lights on rice root physiology and the role of root exudates to address plant physiological aspects that may influence plant-microbe interactions.

Megha Kaviraj

ICAR-National Rice Research Institute, Cuttack, Odisha (753 006), India & The University of Burdwan, Burdwan, West Bengal (713 104), India

Upendra Kumar^*

ICAR-National Rice Research Institute, Cuttack, Odisha (753 006), India

Soumendranath Chatterjee

The University of Burdwan, Burdwan, West Bengal (713 104), India

Eichhornia crassipes (water hyacinth) cause various problems in sectors of fisheries, navigation, tourism, health and environment. Though physical, chemical and biological methods of removal are available, removal for utilization is the best method. The paper cites various methods of utilisation of this weed and advocates community mobilisation as a first step towards eradication of the weed.

Thankam Theresa Paul^*

ICAR-Central Inland Fisheries Research Institute Kochi Centre, CMFRI Campus, Kerala (682 017), India

Nandana R.

ICAR-Central Institute of Fisheries Education, Mumbai, Maharashtra (400 061), India

Deepa Sudheesan

ICAR-Central Inland Fisheries Research Institute Kochi Centre, CMFRI Campus, Kerala (682 017), India

Tanuja A.

ICAR-Central Inland Fisheries Research Institute Kochi Centre, CMFRI Campus, Kerala (682 017), India

B.K. Das

ICAR-Central Inland Fisheries Research Institute Kochi Centre, CMFRI Campus, Kerala (682 017), IndiaICAR-Central Inland Fisheries Research Institute Kochi Centre, CMFRI Campus, Kerala (682 017), India

An important micronutrient for many facets of plant development and metabolism is boron. Its roles encompass crucial functions such as cell wall formation, sugar transport, regulation of enzyme activities involved in nitrogen assimilation and amino acid metabolism, conversion of starch to sugars, modulation of plant hormones like auxins and facilitation of reproductive processes including seed setting and fruit development. By participating in these fundamental processes, boron ensures proper plant development, improves fruit quality and enhances overall yield. Boron deficiency in plants can lead to reduced shoot and root growth, reproductive failure, susceptibility to stress resulted in decrease the crop yield.

V. Prasad^*

Dept. of Soil Science and Agricultural Chemistry, Professor Jayashankar Telangana State Agricultural University, Rajendra Nagar, Hyderabad, Telangana (500 030), India

M. Bhargava Narasimha Yadav

Dept. of Soil Science and Agricultural Chemistry, College of Agriculture-Dharwad, University of Agricultural Sciences, Dharwad, Karnataka (580 005), India

Biomass is a promising renewable energy source for fuel conversion. Hydrothermal liquefaction technology converts biomass into an energy-rich biofuel called biocrude which can potentially substitute fossil fuels. In this study, wet biomass namely water hyacinth, banana pseudostem, banana peduncle, wine waste and beer waste were investigated for biocrude production. The biomass macro molecules underwent anaerobic thermochemical disintegration to yield biocrude in the range of 7.3 to 16% at the hydrothermal liquefaction temperature and pressure of 275 ºC and 15 MPa respectively. Wine waste showed higher biocrude yield (16%) among the selected biomass materials with aqueous phase (63%) and char (3%) as by products. The recovered biocrude showed good quality fuel properties similar to diesel and bio-diesel with heating value of about 30 MJ kg^-1. GCMS and FTIR analyses proved the biocrude to be rich in aliphatic and aromatic fuel and chemical derivatives of alkenes, alcohols, ketones and amines which necessitate its potential to drop in advanced fuels and chemicals for supplementing conventional resources.

R. Divyabharathi^*

Dept. of Renewable Energy Engineering, Agricultural Engineering College and Research Institute, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu (641 003), India

P. Subramanian

Dept. of Renewable Energy Engineering, Agricultural Engineering College and Research Institute, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu (641 003), India

Polychaete worms, a diverse group of marine organisms, have garnered increasing attention in recent years for their potential as broodstock in aquaculture systems. Polychaetes offer several unique characteristics that make them promising candidates for this role. Firstly, their reproductive biology is adaptable, with many species exhibiting high fecundity rates and rapid larval development, which could significantly enhance aquaculture production efficiency. Secondly, polychaetes possess a diverse array of nutritional profiles, making them suitable as feed for various aquaculture species, thereby contributing to sustainable feed solutions and reducing reliance on wild-caught sources. Additionally, Polychaetes thrive in a range of environmental conditions and tolerance to fluctuations in water quality positions them as resilient candidates for aquaculture systems, potentially reducing risks associated with disease outbreaks or environmental stressors. In conclusion, the development of polychaete worms as broodstock holds significant promise for the aquaculture industry, offering opportunities to improve production efficiency, sustainability and environmental stewardship.

A. Jackqulinwino^*

Dept. of Aquaculture, Dr. M.G.R. Fisheries College and Research Institute, Ponneri, (Tamil Nadu Dr. J. Jayalalithaa Fisheries University, Nagapattinam), Tamil Nadu (601 204), India

B. Ahilan

Dept. of Aquaculture, Dr. M.G.R. Fisheries College and Research Institute, Ponneri, (Tamil Nadu Dr. J. Jayalalithaa Fisheries University, Nagapattinam), Tamil Nadu (601 204), India

Microbe-assisted plant breeding (MAPB) revolutionizes agriculture by leveraging microbes for enhanced growth and sustainability. MAPB accelerates breeding, optimizes yields and reduces synthetic input dependence by recognizing bacteria, fungi, and viruses as pivotal contributors to plant development. The core microbiome, integral to plant holobiont, provides crucial functional genes. MAPB introduces genetic variability, supports resistance breeding and follows a systematic workflow for success. The study of soil-borne pathogen resistance in common beans unveils intricate rhizosphere dynamics. Overall, MAPB reshapes agriculture, promotes precision breeding and sustainability and reduces reliance on synthetic inputs concisely and impactfully.

Berryish Metha, C.^*

Dept. of Plant Biotechnology, Centre for Plant Molecular Biology and Biotechnology, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu (641 003), India

Urbanization poses challenges for urban water bodies, prompting the adoption of innovative solutions like floating wetlands. These artificial structures mimic natural wetlands, proving effective in mitigating algal blooms, removing pollutants and providing habitat for diverse organisms. This article examines the construction techniques for Floating Treatment Wetlands (FTWs), which have a variety of uses including improving water quality, enhancing biodiversity, managing runoff and fostering community involvement. Naturally occurring plants, floating or supported, play a vital role as hydroponic mats, acting as natural filters. The integration of floating wetlands into urban water management is advocated as a sustainable approach, delivering benefits for water quality, biodiversity and community well-being. This harmonious blend in urban planning ensures a healthier and more vibrant future for urban water bodies.

Jeevitha J.^*

Dept. of Aquatic Environment Management, Dr. MGR Fisheries College and Research Institute, Ponneri, Tamil Nadu Dr. J Jayalalithaa Fisheries University, Tamil Nadu (601 204), India

Akila A.

Dept. of Aquatic Environment Management, Dr. MGR Fisheries College and Research Institute, Ponneri, Tamil Nadu Dr. J Jayalalithaa Fisheries University, Tamil Nadu (601 204), India

Aruna S.

Dept. of Aquatic Environment Management, Dr. MGR Fisheries College and Research Institute, Ponneri, Tamil Nadu Dr. J Jayalalithaa Fisheries University, Tamil Nadu (601 204), India

Sona B.R.

Dept. of Aquatic Environment Management, Dr. MGR Fisheries College and Research Institute, Ponneri, Tamil Nadu Dr. J Jayalalithaa Fisheries University, Tamil Nadu (601 204), India

Tropical root and tuber crops serve as second main food crop after cereals. They are wealthy source of dietary fibres and play key role in the food security of global population. Cassava, sweet potato, yams, taro, tannia and minor tuber crops are the tropical tuber crops mainly cultivated in India. Despite of its agricultural importance most of the tropical tuber crops are not as much of exploited like other food crops. By various modern biotechnological approaches such as next generation sequencing (NGS) with the aid of various omics technologies the various novel traits of tuber crops can be identified. Application of plant biotechnology have already proven as promising technology for developing economically important plant varieties with novel traits even with interspecies crosses. Here we describe the past developments and modern approaches of plant biotechnology for the improvement of tropical tuber crops.

B.G. Sangeetha^*

Division of Crop Protection, ICAR-Central Tuber Crops Research Institute, Sreekariyam, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala (605 017), India

E.R. Harish

Division of Crop Protection, ICAR-Central Tuber Crops Research Institute, Sreekariyam, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala (605 017), India

R. Arutselvan

Division of Crop Protection, ICAR-Central Tuber Crops Research Institute, Sreekariyam, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala (605 017), India

C. Pradeepika

Section of Crop Utilization, ICAR-Central Tuber Crops Research Institute, Sreekariyam, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala (605 017), India

Traditionally, agriculture has been a labor-intensive industry, heavily reliant on human effort and manual labor. The advent of Artificial Intelligence (AI) is reshaping this narrative. AI is introducing automation and precision into farming practices, leading to increased efficiency and productivity. AI-powered robots are now capable of performing practices such as seed sowing, watering the crops and harvesting the produce. Furthermore, AI algorithms possess the capability to scrutinize extensive data sets sourced from diverse outlets like weather forecasts, soil sensors, and satellite imagery, which enables them to furnish farmers with meticulous guidance regarding planting times, irrigation quantities, and harvest schedules. Such guidance not only enhances resource utilization but also amplifies crop yields. However, AI-powered drones equipped with advanced imaging capabilities can scan large tracts of farmland to identify signs of pest infestation or disease outbreak. In essence, AI is transforming agriculture from a labor-intensive sector into a knowledge-intensive one.

Monalisha Rana

Faculty of Agriculture and Allied Sciences, C.V. Raman Global University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha (752 054), India

Anshita Sahu

Faculty of Agriculture and Allied Sciences, C.V. Raman Global University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha (752 054), India

Himadri Tanaya Mukhi

Faculty of Agriculture and Allied Sciences, C.V. Raman Global University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha (752 054), India

Manisha Sahoo

Faculty of Agriculture and Allied Sciences, C.V. Raman Global University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha (752 054), India

Rashmi Sarkar

Faculty of Agriculture and Allied Sciences, C.V. Raman Global University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha (752 054), India

Sayantan Senapati

Faculty of Agriculture and Allied Sciences, C.V. Raman Global University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha (752 054), India

Manaswini Mahapatra

Faculty of Agriculture and Allied Sciences, C.V. Raman Global University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha (752 054), India

Jyoti Prakash Sahoo^*

Faculty of Agriculture and Allied Sciences, C.V. Raman Global University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha (752 054), India

D.D. Vadalia^*

Centre of Excellence on Soil and Water Management, Research Testing and Training Centre, Junagadh Agricultural University, Junagadh, Gujarat (362 001), India

G.V. Prajapati

Centre of Excellence on Soil and Water Management, Research Testing and Training Centre, Junagadh Agricultural University, Junagadh, Gujarat (362 001), India

S.H. Parmar

Centre of Excellence on Soil and Water Management, Research Testing and Training Centre, Junagadh Agricultural University, Junagadh, Gujarat (362 001), India

G.D. Gohil

Dept. of Processing and Food Engineering, College of Agricultural Engineering and Technology, Junagadh Agricultural University, Junagadh, Gujarat (362 001), India

D.D. Vadalia^*

Centre of Excellence on Soil and Water Management, Research Testing and Training Centre, Junagadh Agricultural University, Junagadh, Gujarat (362 001), India

G.V. Prajapati

Centre of Excellence on Soil and Water Management, Research Testing and Training Centre, Junagadh Agricultural University, Junagadh, Gujarat (362 001), India

S.H. Parmar

Centre of Excellence on Soil and Water Management, Research Testing and Training Centre, Junagadh Agricultural University, Junagadh, Gujarat (362 001), India

G.D. Gohil

Dept. of Processing and Food Engineering, College of Agricultural Engineering and Technology, Junagadh Agricultural University, Junagadh, Gujarat (362 001), India

Chemical fertilizers have been utilized extensively over last five to six decades. They significantly contribute in damaging the ecosystem, including the soil properties and the health of the future generation. Organic farming is employed as a substitute to obtain better and healthier output. To increase output and replenish soil fertility without harming the environment or having any negative impacts on human health, organic fertilizers such as sawdust, cow dung and cow urine are used instead of chemical fertilizers. Nowadays, organic farming is widely practiced around the world. Efforts were made to study the effects of organic and inorganic fertilizers on the growth of cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.). Experiment was conducted in pots with four treatments i.e., control (water and soil), organic (cow dung, cow urine, sawdust), inorganic (NPK) and mixture of organic and inorganic. The parameters observed were stem height, number of leaves and the length of leaves. Antimicrobial activity of cucumber leaves, seeds and cow urine was checked on different bacterial strains including E. coli, Pseudomonas sp. and Salmonella sp. Phytochemical analysis was conducted to analyze the presence of alkaloid, carbohydrate, tannins, saponins, flavonoids, terpenoids, phenol and anthraquinone content in cucumber. In comparison to alternative treatments, organic cucumber cultivation produces higher growth rates. Cow urine was more effective against E. coli, moderate against Pseudomonas and resist against Salmonella. The seed extract of cucumber was more effective against Salmonella and less effective against E. coli. The leaf extract is more effective against Pseudomonas and less effective against E. coli. In cucumber leaves alkaloids, carbohydrate, tannins, saponins, flavonoids, terpenoids, phenol and anthraquinone content are present.

Divya Tandon

Dept. of Microbiology, SILB, Solan, Himachal Pradesh (173 212), India

Anjali Kumari^*

Dept. of Microbiology, SILB, Solan, Himachal Pradesh (173 212), India

Amrita Sharma

Dept. of Microbiology, SILB, Solan, Himachal Pradesh (173 212), India

Vaishali Mehta

Dept. of Microbiology, SILB, Solan, Himachal Pradesh (173 212), India

In the pursuit of sustaining life beyond Earth, space farming has emerged as a critical frontier in agriculture. This article explores the innovative techniques and technologies driving space farming, addressing the challenges of cultivating food in extra-terrestrial environments such as microgravity and limited resources. By adapting traditional agricultural practices and utilizing advanced methods like closed-loop systems and hydroponics, space farming not only supports long-duration space missions but also lays the groundwork for sustainable colonies on other celestial bodies. Moreover, insights gained from space farming have the potential to revolutionize terrestrial agriculture, offering solutions to food security and environmental challenges. As humanity ventures further into the cosmos, space farming stands as a beacon of hope for cultivating life beyond the confines of our home planet.

Bijay Ananda Swain

Faculty of Agriculture and Allied Sciences, C.V. Raman Global University, Bhubaneswar (752 054), India

Shuvrajyoti Rana

Faculty of Agriculture and Allied Sciences, C.V. Raman Global University, Bhubaneswar (752 054), India

Ashirbad Naik

Faculty of Agriculture and Allied Sciences, C.V. Raman Global University, Bhubaneswar (752 054), India

Subhankar Mallik

Faculty of Agriculture and Allied Sciences, C.V. Raman Global University, Bhubaneswar (752 054), India

Prabodh Kumar Nayak

Faculty of Agriculture and Allied Sciences, C.V. Raman Global University, Bhubaneswar (752 054), India

Sangram Sagar

Faculty of Agriculture and Allied Sciences, C.V. Raman Global University, Bhubaneswar (752 054), India

Jyoti Prakash Sahoo^*

Faculty of Agriculture and Allied Sciences, C.V. Raman Global University, Bhubaneswar (752 054), India

Biofortification, the process of enhancing the nutrient richness of staple crops, holds immense potential for addressing hidden hunger and improving global nutrition. This article explores the significance of biofortification in agriculture, highlighting its role in combatting malnutrition, promoting food security and fostering sustainable agricultural practices. Through conventional breeding or genetic engineering, biofortified crops are enriched with essential vitamins and minerals, offering a cost-effective and scalable solution to nutrient deficiencies. The article discusses recent advancements, challenges and opportunities in biofortification, emphasizing the need for collaborative efforts to maximize its impact on public health and development. By integrating biofortified crops into existing agricultural systems and promoting consumer awareness, biofortification can contribute significantly to developing resilient and diverse food systems that support human nutrition and environmental sustainability.

Badal Verma^*

Dept. of Agronomy, Jawaharlal Nehru Krishi Vishwa Vidyalaya, Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh (482 004), India

Muskan Porwal

Dept. of Agronomy, Jawaharlal Nehru Krishi Vishwa Vidyalaya, Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh (482 004), India

A.K. Jha

Dept. of Agronomy, Jawaharlal Nehru Krishi Vishwa Vidyalaya, Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh (482 004), India

Wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) is the world's most important cereal grain which contains carbohydrate, protein, fat, minerals and significant amounts of vitamins. A study was conducted in Augmented Block Design with 105 genotypes of bread wheat with four checks (HD-2967, DBW-222, DBW-107, and HD-2733) for estimation of means, range, correlations and path-coefficient. A wide range of variations were observed for different characters under study. The genotype RAJ-4549 (16.35), UP-3056 (15.78), DBW-344 (15.78), produced highest grain yield plant^-1 followed by NW-8076 (15.36) and NW-8019 (15.14). In case of correlation study, grain yield plant^-1 had a highly significant and positive correlation with tillers plant^-1, biological yield plant^-1, peduncle length, and spike length; whereas a non-significant negative correlation was found with days to 50% flowering, plant height and days to maturity. In path coefficient analysis, major positive direct effect on grain yield plant^-1 was exerted by biological yield plant^-1, followed by harvest-index, number of grain spike^-1, peduncle length, number of tillers plant^-1, test weight, days to 50% flowering and spike length. Tillers plant^-1 and peduncle length exhibited high order positive indirect effects on grain yield plant^-1 via biological yield (0.87) and (0.69) respectively. The characters showing highly significant positive correlation among yield and its components can be further validated and if consistent performance is found in future study; emphasis should be given to those characters while developing high yielding varieties.

Roshani Singh

Dept. of Genetics and Plant Breeding, Acharya Narendra Deva University of Agriculture and Technology, Kumarganj, Ayodhya, Uttar Pradesh (224 229), India

Vinod Singh

Dept. of Genetics and Plant Breeding, Acharya Narendra Deva University of Agriculture and Technology, Kumarganj, Ayodhya, Uttar Pradesh (224 229), India

Abhishek Dwivedi

Dept. of Genetics and Plant Breeding, Acharya Narendra Deva University of Agriculture and Technology, Kumarganj, Ayodhya, Uttar Pradesh (224 229), India

Hariome Singh

Dept. of Genetics and Plant Breeding, Acharya Narendra Deva University of Agriculture and Technology, Kumarganj, Ayodhya, Uttar Pradesh (224 229), India

Priya Sharma

Dept. of Genetics and Plant Breeding, Acharya Narendra Deva University of Agriculture and Technology, Kumarganj, Ayodhya, Uttar Pradesh (224 229), India

Parshant Kumar Sharma

Dept. of Genetics and Plant Breeding, Acharya Narendra Deva University of Agriculture and Technology, Kumarganj, Ayodhya, Uttar Pradesh (224 229), India

Anand Kumar Shahi

Dept. of Genetics and Plant Breeding, Acharya Narendra Deva University of Agriculture and Technology, Kumarganj, Ayodhya, Uttar Pradesh (224 229), India

Joy Kumar Dey

KVK-Sepahijala, Central Agricultural University (Imphal), Latiacherra, Tripura (799 103), India

Ashim Debnath^*

Dept. of Genetics and Plant Breeding, Acharya Narendra Deva University of Agriculture and Technology, Kumarganj, Ayodhya, Uttar Pradesh (224 229), India

The reactions of twenty five (25) accessions of okra were evaluated under field conditions against Leafhopper, Amrasca biguttula biguttula. The experiment was conducted at NBPGR, regional station Hyderabad. Among twenty five germplasm (25) screened against the okra leafhopper, IC344596 recorded significantly lowest leafhopper population which was followed by RJR-124, PSRJ12952, NIC 9402 and IC433667. PSRJ 13040 and RJR-193 recorded high population of leafhopper. RJR-124, PSRJ12952 and IC344596 recorded significantly highest number of trichomes of 57.00, 47.67 and 42.33 trichomes m^-2, respectively. RJR-193 and PSRJ 13040 recorded significantly less number of trichomes (10.33 m^-2). Correlation between okra leafhopper and the various yield and growth parameters of okra accessions revealed highly significant and negative correlation for yield, number of pods and significant positive correlation with plant height while non-significant correlation recorded with pod length.

K.P. Manju^*

Dept. of Agricultural Entomology, Krishi Vigyan Kendra, Kannur, Kerala Agricultural University, Kerala (670 142), India

Analysis of long-term (1987-2019) fish landing data showed that an average 191.93 t year^-1 of fish landed at Uzanbazar (Guwahati) landing center of River Brahmaputra. The total landings registered peak landings of 471.8 t in 2002 and thereafter it declined to the lowest levels of 84.06 t in 2016. Fish landings suffered changes in the qualitative and quantitative aspects of River Brahmaputra fishery in Assam. Whereas average total landings during last decade declined by almost 60% as compared to the average landings of 234.97 t year^-1 in the previous two decades (1987-2009), the contribution of Indian major carps (IMC) and minor carps towards total landings declined from 17.54% and 35.11% during 1987-2009 to only 4.86% and 8.94%, respectively during 2010-2019. Miscellaneous fishes group emerged as dominant group contributing 58.28% of the average landings in last decade (54.30 t year^-1) compared to 69.38 t year^-1 during 1987-2009. Average landing of catfishes also decreased from 26.96 t year^-1 in 1987-2009 to 19.77 t year^-1 in 2010-2019, but percentage contribution increased from 11.47% to 21.28% over decades. Similarly, average landings of Hilsa declined from 8.24 t year^-1 to 3.42 t year^-1 but percentage contribution remained unchanged over the period. Such changes can be partly ascribed to climate change, habitat modification, over exploitation and other anthropogenic causes. The sharp decline in IMC landings as well as changes in landing composition from the river due to these alterations in the last decade is directly affecting the livelihood of the fishermen community.

Anil Kumar Yadav^*

ICAR-Central Inland Fisheries Research Institute Regional Centre, Guwahati, Assam (781 006), India

Simanku Borah

ICAR-Central Inland Fisheries Research Institute Regional Centre, Guwahati, Assam (781 006), India

Birendra Kumar Bhattacharjya

ICAR-Central Inland Fisheries Research Institute Regional Centre, Guwahati, Assam (781 006), India

Kishore Kumar Das

Dept. of Statistics, Gauhati University, Guwahati, Assam (781 034), India

Basanta Kumar Das

ICAR-Central Inland Fisheries Research Institute, Barrackpore, Kolkata, West Bengal (700 120), India

A study was conducted by Krishi Vigyan Kendra, West Siang, Indian Council of Agricultural Research, Arunachal Pradesh Centre, India for a period of 72 weeks, from January, 2021 to May, 2022 with 300 unsexed 4 weeks old brooded Vanaraja chicks which were provided to the farmers. The birds were randomly divided into five feeding trial groups (20 birds in each treatment group with 3 replications), namely TO₁ (birds were let out for foraging with no supplementation), TO₂ (basal diet), TO₃ (basal diet + 5% fresh Azolla), TO₄ (basal diet + 10% fresh Azolla) and TO₅ (basal diet + 15% fresh Azolla). Data on weekly body weight gain up to 20^th weeks showed no significant difference between Azolla fed groups and basal diet fed groups; whereas, number of egg production up to 72^nd weeks recorded as 62.4±3.4, 110.5±3.1, 116.2±3.2, 120.5±4.6 and 128.2±4.8 in TO₁, TO₂, TO₃, TO₄ and TO₅ respectively. Economic efficiency of Azolla fed birds showed higher economic returns in terms of benefit cost ratio in group TO₅ (4.42) than that of basal diet (3.04) and group where birds were let out for foraging (2.59).

M.S. Baruah^*

KVK - West Siang, ICAR-Research Complex for North Eastern Hill Region, Arunachal Pradesh Centre, Basar, Arunachal Pradesh (791 101), India

H. Kalita

ICAR-Research Complex for North Eastern Hill Region, Arunachal Pradesh Centre, Basar, Arunachal Pradesh (791 101), India

Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry method was developed and validated for the quantification of anthranilic diamide insecticide chlorantraniliprole residues in soil. The soil samples were extracted with acetonitrile and dispersive solid phase extraction clean up. The average recoveries of chlorantraniliprole were in the range of 94.10-96.82% with reproducibility and repeatability was ranged between 0.17 to 1.90 and 0.97 to 1.22%, respectively. The limit of quantification of the analytical method was 0.01 μg g^-1 and the matrix effect was less than 1%.

Paramasivam, M.^*

ICAR-Krishi Vigyan Kendra, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Virinjipuram, Tamil Nadu (632 104) India

Field experiments were conducted during summer seasons in two consecutive years (2020-21 and 2021-22) at Experimental Farm of College of Agriculture, Tripura to find out the best Rhizobacteria inoculants for stimulation of nodulation and increasing yield of blackgram crop. From the findings of two years’ experiment, it can be noted that inoculation of Rhizobium significantly increased the number and dry mass of nodules (32.8 plant^-1 and 35.8 mg plant^-1 at 30 DAS), plant dry mass (26.8 g plant^-1) and grain yield (861.3 kg ha^-1) of black gram. Azotobacter chroococcum alone and with Rhizobium numerically favoured the nodulation (29.6 and 34.2 plant^-1 respectively) in black gram. Rhizobium + A. chroococcum treatment produced significantly more plant dry mass (29.6 g plant^-1) and grain yield (930.6 kg ha^-1) of black gram over the uninoculated control (23.2 g plant^-1 and 747.9 kg ha^-1 respectively) and Rhizobium alone, respectively. Bacillus sp. in conjunction with Rhizobium were statistically comparable to Rhizobium alone inoculation in respect of nodule mass and grain yield. All the three inoculants together gave the 890.3 kg ha^-1 black gram yield which was statistically comparable to Rhizobium + A. chroococcum in black gram. So, from the results of experiment, it can be concluded that dual inoculation of black gram seeds with Rhizobium + A. chroococcum promotes significant nodulation of black gram crop with in turn increases the plant biomass and seed yield of summer blackgram crop.

A. Saha^*

Dept. of Agronomy, College of Agriculture, Tripura, West Tripura (799 210), India

S. Biswas

Dept. of Agronomy, Bidhan Chandra Krishi Viswavidyalaya, Mohanpur, Nadia, West Bengal (741 252), India

P. Lodh

Dept. of Agronomy, College of Agriculture, Tripura, West Tripura (799 210), India

Fishing is deeply ingrained in societies, crucial for global food security and economies. Scombrids like tunas and mackerels are vital marine ecosystem components worldwide. India's rich marine biodiversity underscores scombrids' global significance, constituting 7.4% of marine fish resources. Tunas, dubbed "chicken of the sea," are prized for their flesh, supporting international fishing. Despite economic importance, scombrids face overfishing and habitat degradation, with albacore tuna nearing threatened status. Sustainable fishery management is vital, balancing economic interests and environmental preservation through cooperation. Understanding human-community-marine ecosystem links is the key for scombrid and ocean sustainability. Embracing stewardship and conservation principles is essential to safeguard marine resources for future generations, ensuring food safety and ecological harmony.

Paplin Prince B.^*

Dept. of Fisheries Resource Management, Dr. M.G.R. Fisheries College and Research Institute, Ponneri, Tamil Nadu (601 204), India

Pavinkumar P.

Dept. of Fisheries Resource Management, Dr. M.G.R. Fisheries College and Research Institute, Ponneri, Tamil Nadu (601 204), India

Nutritional insecurity poses a significant global threat, particularly among populations heavily reliant on cereal-based diets lacking essential nutrients. Millets, predominant in African and Asian climate characterized by semi-arid conditions and susceptibility to drought, emerge as primary energy sources with superior nutritional profiles rich in essential amino acids, proteins, vitamins and minerals. The proven economic feasibility of biofortification in millets offers a promising solution to combat malnutrition in India. Acknowledging the potential, HarvestPlus introduced high-iron pearl millet in India as a measure to alleviate iron deficiency. Advancements in molecular techniques have uncovered waxy starch traits in diverse millet varieties, thereby improving their suitability. Moreover, scientists have elucidated genes linked to protein quality in finger millet. Furthermore, recent innovations in transgenic methods for expressing zinc transporters have revealed calcium sensor genes in finger millet. This article discusses strategies to expedite millet biofortification, outlining opportunities and challenges to enhance macro and micronutrient bioavailability.

Medha Deepa Nayak

Faculty of Agriculture and Allied Sciences, C.V. Raman Global University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha (752 054), India

Bhanu Prasant Sahoo

Faculty of Agriculture and Allied Sciences, C.V. Raman Global University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha (752 054), India

Deviparna Rath

Faculty of Agriculture and Allied Sciences, C.V. Raman Global University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha (752 054), India

Nimain Charan Pradhan

Faculty of Agriculture and Allied Sciences, C.V. Raman Global University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha (752 054), India

Arpita Priyadarshini

Faculty of Agriculture and Allied Sciences, C.V. Raman Global University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha (752 054), India

Dibya Pal

Faculty of Agriculture and Allied Sciences, C.V. Raman Global University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha (752 054), India

Ajit Kumar Basantiya

Faculty of Agriculture and Allied Sciences, C.V. Raman Global University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha (752 054), India

Jyoti Prakash Sahoo^*

Faculty of Agriculture and Allied Sciences, C.V. Raman Global University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha (752 054), India

Avian pests threaten global agricultural productivity by damaging crops. Traditional deterrents like scare balloons and auditory methods are ineffective due to habituation, while exclusion netting is labor-intensive and costly. Inhumane practices like avicides also pose ethical concerns. Laser bird deterrents offer a cutting-edge solution, utilizing software-powered cameras to detect bird presence and emitting a 532 nm green light to startle them away without habituation. These devices, equipped with batteries and solar panels, are portable and sustainable, suitable for multifaceted bird control strategies and potentially as standalone tools by increasing device density. Ongoing research is vital to optimize this technology, exploring daytime applications, expanding coverage and adapting devices for diverse crops and pests. Laser bird deterrents represent a promising advancement in agricultural pest management, providing an effective, humane and environmentally sustainable approach to mitigate avian damage to crops.

Subrata Goswami^*

Dept. of Entomology and Agricultural Zoology, Institute of Agricultural Sciences, Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh (221 005), India

M. Raghuraman

Dept. of Entomology and Agricultural Zoology, Institute of Agricultural Sciences, Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh (221 005), India

Kaushik Kumar Das

Dept. of Entomology, CCS Haryana Agricultural University, Hisar, Haryana (125 004), India

Manish Gadekar

Dept. of Entomology, Jawaharlal Nehru Krishi Vishwa Vidyalaya, Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh (482 004), India

Food preservation is a fundamental practice essential for ensuring the availability and safety of food over extended periods. Drawing from centuries-old practices passed down through generations, along with the latest technological innovations offers a comprehensive solution to the challenges of food preservation in the 21^st century. By leveraging traditional methods such as fermentation, drying and pickling with advancements like vacuum sealing, high-pressure processing and controlled atmosphere storage, food preservation becomes not only a means of extending shelf life but also a way of enhancing nutritional value and flavour retention. Through this integration, a comprehensive approach that honours traditional wisdom while embracing future opportunities guarantees the effectiveness and sustainability of food preservation. This article demonstrates how this integration not only prolongs the shelf life of perishable goods but also improves food safety, quality and sustainability.

Shradha Suman Mishra

Faculty of Agriculture and Allied Sciences, C.V. Raman Global University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha (752 054), India

Piyush Priyadarshi Jena

Faculty of Agriculture and Allied Sciences, C.V. Raman Global University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha (752 054), India

Sandeep Keshari

Faculty of Agriculture and Allied Sciences, C.V. Raman Global University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha (752 054), India

Archita Sethy

Faculty of Agriculture and Allied Sciences, C.V. Raman Global University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha (752 054), India

Kalyana Saurabh Swain

Faculty of Agriculture and Allied Sciences, C.V. Raman Global University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha (752 054), India

Simran Priyadarsini

Faculty of Agriculture and Allied Sciences, C.V. Raman Global University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha (752 054), India

Jyoti Prakash Sahoo^*

Faculty of Agriculture and Allied Sciences, C.V. Raman Global University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha (752 054), India

This article explores the principles, benefits, challenges and innovative strategies associated with green farming, also known as sustainable agriculture. Green farming represents a holistic approach to agriculture that prioritizes environmental stewardship, economic viability and social responsibility. By adopting practices such as soil health management, biodiversity conservation and climate resilience, green farming offers numerous benefits, including environmental sustainability, economic viability and food security. However, the widespread adoption of green farming faces challenges such as knowledge gaps, economic constraints and policy barriers. To overcome these challenges, innovative strategies such as farmer education, public-private partnerships, market-based incentives and technological innovation are essential. By embracing these strategies, stakeholders can accelerate the transition to a more sustainable, resilient and equitable agricultural future.

Badal Verma^*

Dept. of Agronomy, Jawaharlal Nehru Krishi Vishwa Vidyalaya, Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh (482 004), India

Muskan Porwal

Dept. of Agronomy, Jawaharlal Nehru Krishi Vishwa Vidyalaya, Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh (482 004), India

A.K. Jha

Dept. of Agronomy, Jawaharlal Nehru Krishi Vishwa Vidyalaya, Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh (482 004), India

Tropical cyclones pose a significant threat to the vulnerable Sundarban region, the largest mangrove forest globally, situated along the Bay of Bengal coast. In this article, we will delve into the profound effects of cyclones on agriculture and aquaculture in the Sundarbans and explore potential strategies to mitigate their impact. Cyclone-induced flooding, soil degradation and changes in agricultural trends severely affect crop yields and livelihoods. Aquaculture infrastructure destruction, water quality deterioration and stock loss disrupt the thriving aquaculture industry. Mitigation measures such as salt-resistant seed cultivation, integrated farming practices, mangrove restoration and livelihood diversification are discussed. Urgent conservation efforts are crucial to safeguard the Sundarbans' unique biodiversity, including the iconic Royal Bengal Tigers and sustain the livelihoods of millions relying on this fragile ecosystem. As cyclone frequency increases due to climate change, proactive measures and community resilience building are imperative for the Sundarbans' long-term sustainability and resilience.

Samiran Mukherjee^*

Fisheries Economics, Extension and Statistics Division, ICAR-CIFE, Mumbai, Maharashtra (400 061), India

Pritam Sarkar

Aquatic Environment and Health Management Division, ICAR-CIFE, Mumbai, Maharashtra (400 061), India

As climate change accelerates, its impacts on agriculture become increasingly profound, posing significant challenges to global food security and rural livelihoods. This paper describes the current state of affairs, offering insights into how climate change is reshaping agricultural landscapes and practices. Emphasizing the susceptibility of crops and agricultural systems to severe weather conditions, water shortages and changing patterns of pests and diseases, it stresses the critical need for prompt adaptation and mitigation measures. By exploring innovative strategies and technologies, as well as the implications of policy responses, this paper provides a roadmap for navigating the complex intersection of climate change and agriculture. As we confront the present realities and gaze into the future, understanding these implications is paramount to building resilient and sustainable agricultural systems capable of withstanding the challenges ahead.

Bhabani Sankar Sahu

Faculty of Agriculture and Allied Sciences, C.V. Raman Global University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha (752 054), India

Abhijit Baidya

Faculty of Agriculture and Allied Sciences, C.V. Raman Global University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha (752 054), India

Roshan Kathar

Faculty of Agriculture and Allied Sciences, C.V. Raman Global University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha (752 054), India

Shaktikanta Jena

Faculty of Agriculture and Allied Sciences, C.V. Raman Global University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha (752 054), India

Jyoti Prakash Sahoo^*

Faculty of Agriculture and Allied Sciences, C.V. Raman Global University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha (752 054), India

Rodents are the most populous and widespread vertebrate pest of agriculture. It is a major cause of crop losses in fields and storage grains resulting in huge economic losses annually. Despite its huge economic importance, little is known about the pest in terms of its habitat, feeding habits, reproduction patterns and population dynamics. Due to the lack of proper knowledge, rodents are one of the most difficult pests to control in the agro-ecosystems. The management practices that exist are mostly chemo-centric and are often unreliable in controlling the populations. Hence, to develop efficient management strategies, it is important to gain a better insight into the ecology of rodents, both feeding and reproductive. This paper attempts to discuss the feeding and reproductive ecology of rodents, specifically but not limited to the agro-ecosystem.

K. Sindhura Bhairavi^*

Dept. of Entomology, Assam Agricultural University, Jorhat, Assam (785 013), India

Ratul Kumar Borah

Dept. of Entomology, Assam Agricultural University, Jorhat, Assam (785 013), India

Badal Bhattacharyya

Dept. of Entomology, Assam Agricultural University, Jorhat, Assam (785 013), India

Shimantini Borkataki

Dept. of Entomology, Assam Agricultural University, Jorhat, Assam (785 013), India

An integrated strategy that tackles the relationships between agriculture, climate change and sustainable development is known as "climate-smart agriculture" (CSA). It places a strong emphasis on putting practices and technology into place that increase agricultural output, strengthen resilience to climate change and variability and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Adoption of crop varieties resistant to climate change, effective water management strategies, agro-forestry systems and soil conservation measures are important elements of CSA. Through the integration of early warning systems and climate information, CSA empowers farmers to make well-informed decisions and modifies their methods in response to changing weather patterns. Aside from guaranteeing food security, CSA also encourages the sustainable expansion of agricultural production while protecting biodiversity and natural resources. By taking a comprehensive strategy, CSA helps to meet the global climate goals, rural development and poverty alleviation. Moreover, CSA is important for developing resilient and sustainable agricultural systems that can handle the demands of a changing climate and support millions of farmers worldwide.

Nitya Saswata Mohanty^*

Faculty of Agriculture and Allied Sciences, C.V. Raman Global University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha (752 054), India

Atanu Mohanty

Faculty of Agriculture and Allied Sciences, C.V. Raman Global University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha (752 054), India

Debasmita Dhal

Faculty of Agriculture and Allied Sciences, C.V. Raman Global University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha (752 054), India

Sourav Mahapatra

Faculty of Agriculture and Allied Sciences, C.V. Raman Global University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha (752 054), India

Badrinath Mishra

Faculty of Agriculture and Allied Sciences, C.V. Raman Global University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha (752 054), India

Rekha Mallik

Faculty of Agriculture and Allied Sciences, C.V. Raman Global University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha (752 054), India

Jyoti Prakash Sahoo^*

Faculty of Agriculture and Allied Sciences, C.V. Raman Global University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha (752 054), India

In today’s world of rising purchasing power and technological improvement, electronic waste poses a significant global pollution issue besides others leading to economic, environmental and health consequences. Developed nations often dump their e-waste into developing nations where informal recycling practices prevail and stakeholders are not bound by any regulations. Therefore, proper management and treatment of e-waste is important to reduce its hazardous impacts, reflecting the zero-waste management concept, a comprehensive approach recognizing waste together a resource and also a measure of modern society’s inefficiency. India stands third next to China and the USA producing 13 and 16 lakh tonnes in 2020-21 & 2021-22 respectively, according to CPCB. This article offers insights into India’s strategy for resource efficiency to address the e-waste sector challenges with transition from traditional waste management to a circular and resource-efficient system. This shift promotes sustainable practices fostering a circular economy approach to e-waste management.

Routhu Urmila Devi^*

Aquatic Environmental Management Discipline, ICAR-Central Institute of Fisheries Education, Mumbai, Maharashtra (400 061), India

Pritam Sarkar

Aquatic Environmental Management Discipline, ICAR-Central Institute of Fisheries Education, Mumbai, Maharashtra (400 061), India

Saurav Kumar

Aquatic Environmental Management Discipline, ICAR-Central Institute of Fisheries Education, Mumbai, Maharashtra (400 061), India

At Bidhan Chandra Krishi Viswavidyalaya's District Seed Farm (AB-Block), Kalyani during the 2020 kharif season, a experiment in the field was taken to study the performance of maize hybrids and to study crop yield and adaptability of maize hybrids. Four replications of the experiment were conducted using a Randomized Block Design and six maize hybrids (DKC 9144, DKC 7204, DKC 8181, P3396, Kaveri 50 and Yuvraj). The experiment's findings showed that the maize hybrid DKC 9144 recorded the highest growth attribute like plant height (252.67 cm) and characters related to yield attributing include 100 seed weight (41.67 g), grains row^-1 (43.00) and grain rows cob^-1 (13.97). Highest grain yield (9.06 t ha^-1), stover yield (10.99 t ha^-1) and harvest index (47.80) were obtained by maize hybrid DKC 9144 than other maize hybrids. Lowest growth character (plant height), yield attributing characters (Grain rows cob^-1, Grains row^-1 and 100 seed weight), yields (Grain yield and Stover yield) and harvest index of maize were recorded by Kaveri 50 hybrid. According to the experimental findings, cultivating the hybrid maize variety DKC 9144 under rainfed conditions in new alluvial zone of West Bengal is advised in order to maximise the output of farmers.

S. Biswas^*

Dept. of Agronomy, Bidhan Chandra Krishi Viswavidyalaya, Mohanpur, Nadia, West Bengal (741 252), India

A. Saha

Dept. of Agronomy, College of Agriculture, Tripura, Lembucherra, West Tripura (799 210), India

De novo assembly is a computational process used in genomics to reconstruct genomes from short DNA sequencing reads without a reference genome. Current article outlines the definition, steps, constraints and solutions associated with de novo assembly. De novo assembly is crucial for studying non-model organisms, identifying genetic variations and understanding evolutionary relationships. A general outline of the steps involved in de novo assembly has been provided; however, slight variations may occur based on the approach to assembly employed, whether it is overlap-layout-consensus or de Bruijn graph-based. Constraints such as sequencing errors, repetitive sequences and genome size variations pose challenges to accurate assembly. Solutions to these challenges involve employing advanced algorithms, optimizing sequencing technologies and integrating multiple data sources. Understanding and overcoming these constraints are essential for enhancing the accuracy and completeness of de novo assembly, thereby enhancing the output from various genomic studies and applications.

Sindhu D.

Division of Genetics, ICAR-Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI), New Delhi (110 012), India

Satish Hosakoti

Dept. of Genetics and Plant Breeding, University of Agricultural Sciences (UAS), Bangalore, Karnataka (560 065), India

Bidwan Rath^*

Division of Genetics, ICAR-Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI), New Delhi (110 012), India

Sinchana Kashyap G.S.

Dept. of Genetics and Plant Breeding, University of Agricultural Sciences (UAS), Bangalore, Karnataka (560 065), India

Basanagouda Gonal

CSB-Central Sericultural Research & Training Institute (CSR&TI), Pampore, Jammu & Kashmir (192 121), India

The prevalence of plastics in contemporary society has resulted in unprecedented levels of plastic pollution, raising significant environmental and health concerns. Since the 1950s, global plastic production has surged, leading to widespread accumulation of plastic waste. Microplastics (Mps), particles measuring less than 5 mm in diameter, have emerged as a particularly worrisome aspect of plastic pollution due to their persistence and potential adverse effects. Various sources contribute to the presence of Mps in aquatic environments, including land-based plastic waste, tourism-related littering, shipping activities, fisheries, aquaculture and atmospheric deposition. Mps can adversely impact aquatic organisms, affecting their feeding behavior, reproduction, immune responses and gene expression. Moreover, microplastics pose potential health risks to humans. Several measures can be undertaken to address the issue, including removing plastic microbeads from personal care products, utilizing biodegradable materials, enhancing waste management and recycling practices, upgrading wastewater treatment plants and advancing cleanup and bioremediation technologies.

Prachurjya Das^*

ICAR-Central Institute of Fisheries Education, Mumbai, Maharashtra (400 061), India

Upasana Sahoo

ICAR-Central Institute of Fisheries Education, Mumbai, Maharashtra (400 061), India

Sourav Bhadra

ICAR-Central Institute of Fisheries Education, Mumbai, Maharashtra (400 061), India

Tuturanjan Gogoi

ICAR-Central Institute of Fisheries Education, Mumbai, Maharashtra (400 061), India

The fall armyworm (Spodoptera frugiperda) is a highly damaging pest that threatens global agriculture. Originating from the Americas, it invaded Sub-Saharan Africa in 2016 and subsequently spread to India and numerous other countries in Africa and Asia. Its life cycle consists of six larval instars over a period of 14 to 18 days, with pupae exhibiting morphological and morphometric differences between sexes. Effective management approaches include monitoring and early detection, cultural practices like crop rotation and mechanical control methods such as handpicking, biological control through natural enemies, host plant resistance and integrated pest management strategies. These measures collectively aim to mitigate the impact of fall armyworm infestations and safeguard agricultural productivity.

Brajrajsharan Tiwari^*

Dept. of Agril. Entomology, Banda University of Agriculture & Technology (BUAT), Banda, Uttar Pradesh (210 001), India

Shailendra Kumar Mishra

Dept. of Agril. Entomology, Banda University of Agriculture & Technology (BUAT), Banda, Uttar Pradesh (210 001), India

Ankit Kumar Mishra

Dept. of Agril. Entomology, Banda University of Agriculture & Technology (BUAT), Banda, Uttar Pradesh (210 001), India

Mohd. Danish

Dept. of Agril. Entomology, Sam Hangbittom University of Agriculture & Technology (SHUATS), Prayagraj, Uttar Pradesh (211 007), India

Pradeep Kumar

Dept. of Agril. Entomology, Maharana Pratap University of Agriculture and Technology, Udaipur, Rajasthan (313 004), India

The transportation sector faces urgent challenges due to climate change and declining fossil fuel reserves, necessitating viable alternatives to petroleum. This article focuses on second-generation bioethanol production, which utilizes lignocellulosic biomass, offering a significant advancement over previous biofuel generations. Biomass containing Lignocellulose i.e., cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin, undergoes pretreatment, enzymatic hydrolysis, fermentation, distillation and dehydration for conversion. Pretreatment enhances carbohydrate accessibility and reduces inhibitors, while enzymatic hydrolysis releases fermentable sugars like glucose and xylose. However, hydrolysates may require detoxification before fermentation, because of inhibitors. Moreover, effective saccharification involves exogenous hemicellulases and cellulolytic enzymes. Genetically engineered microorganisms are essential for fermenting xylose, as conventional yeast cannot. Moreover, genetic engineering facilitates the acquisition of pentose-fermenting microorganisms by optimizing xylose utilization from the hydrolysate. Utilizing residual biomass for bioethanol production offers substantial potential as a renewable energy solution, capable of combating climate change, bolstering energy security and promoting rural development.

Rajnandini Sahoo^*

Faculty of Agriculture and Allied Sciences, C.V. Raman Global University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha (752 054), India

Abhijit Sahu

Faculty of Agriculture and Allied Sciences, C.V. Raman Global University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha (752 054), India

Manaswini Mahapatra

Faculty of Agriculture and Allied Sciences, C.V. Raman Global University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha (752 054), India

Jyoti Prakash Sahoo^*