Use of Farmers’ Portal for dissemination of oil palm agro-management technology in India

Authors

  • K.L. Mary Rani
  • M.V. Prasad
  • S. Arulraj
  • B. Mounica

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.19071/jpc.2015.v43.i3.2862

Abstract

In India, mobile   phones are widely used for effective communication of various agro-management   information to farmers. Oil palm is cultivated in India since two decades   under irrigated conditions. The crop being new, farming technology has to be   disseminated to field extension staff, growers and developers to take quick   and apt decisions. Farmers’ Portal launched by Government of India (GOI) for   farming community is also being used to disseminate the oil palm farming   technology to its stakeholders through short message services (SMS). Contents   prepared on various aspects on oil palm cultivation were published as text   SMS (568) to the unique mobile numbers (19,301) of stakeholders of oil palm   in India. Messages were published in four languages viz., Hindi,   English, Telugu and Kannada to reach the stakeholders in vernacular   languages. Stakeholders contact the Institute, seeking more information on   various farming practices of oil palm viz., planting, protection,   general information, fertilizer application, irrigation, harvesting etc.   Consultation was provided to 304 farmers who sought information on fertilizer   management (34.2%) followed by crop protection aspects (28.3%) and general   information (24.0%) on oil palm cultivation. Feedback received from farmers   showed that the SMS contents were useful in the following order: irrigation   (15%), fertilizer application (14%), disease management (8%), weed control   (4%) and all messages were useful (59%). Majority of the farmers (68%)   perceived the messages were relevant to their crop growth/stages and 33 per   cent farmers were adopting the practices sent through SMS.

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Published

26-11-2015

How to Cite

Rani, K. M., Prasad, M., Arulraj, S., & Mounica, B. (2015). Use of Farmers’ Portal for dissemination of oil palm agro-management technology in India. Journal of Plantation Crops, 43(3). https://doi.org/10.19071/jpc.2015.v43.i3.2862

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Section

Commentary Article