Factors Affecting Conservation Agriculture Technologies at Farm Level in Bangladesh

Conservation agriculture (CA) is a win-win approach that reduces operational costs, including machinery, labour, and fuel, while increasing yields, profit and better utilization of natural resources. Data and information on farm level CA technology adoption are scarce in Bangladesh.Therefore, the study was conducted at three Upazilas of Rajshahi and Thakurgaon districts to assess adoption and farmers perceptions on CA technology, and to determine the factors of CA technology adoption at farm level in 2017. A total of 405 farmers taking 135 adopters and 270 non-adopters were selected randomly for this study. The study revealed that CA technology adoption is still going on in the study areas. However,the rates of adoptions of crop residue retention (67%) and crop rotations (38.9%) were much higher compared to minimum tillage (14.9%). Residue retention (68.9%) and suitable crop rotations (34.4%) were also practiced by the non-adopters. The age, innovativeness, and extension contact of the farmers and availability of VMP had significant positive influence on the adoption of CA technologies. The major problems of adoption were non-availability of minimum tillage planter, lack of knowledge and awareness of the farmer, and no/little subsidy provision on planter.Increasing the availability of VMP, providing training on CA methods,and providing subsidy on planter are important to increase CA technology adoption at farm level

Population dynamics and stock assessment of two major eels (Muraenesox bagio and Congresox talabonoides) from the marine waters of Bangladesh

Muraenesox bagio (black eel) and Congresox talabonoides (brown eel) are two major eels (Muraenesocidae) species which are commercially significant in the marine catch of Bangladesh, but population dynamics and stock assessment of marine eel fishery in Bangladesh are yet to be studied. This study is the first endeavour to analyze the population dynamics and stock assessment of this marine eels collected from July 2021 to May 2022 using three length-based methods namely TropFishR, the Length Based-Spawning Potential Ratio (LB-SPR) & the length-Based Indicators (LBI) and two catch-based methods including Depletion-Based Stock Reduction Analysis (DB-SRA) and the Catch-Maximum Sustainable Yield (CMSY). A slightly positive allometric growth pattern (b=3.10) for the black eel and a negative allometric growth pattern (b=2.33) for the brown eel were observed in the length-weight relationship. The parameters of von Bertalanffy Growth Function (VBGF) and the linearized length-converted catch curve (LCCC) analysis for black eel and brown eel were L∞=190.67cm and 166.63cm, k=0.18 year-1 and 0.16 year-1 , and the total mortality, Z=0.70 year-1 and 0.45 year-1. The eel fishery is calculated to be overfished due to overexploitation and the stock’s spawning biomass (SPR=19% for black eel and 21% for brown eel) is close to the limit reference point but well outside the targeted range because the majority of the catches were found to have below- maturity levels. This study advised an optimum length limit to catch from 93 to 114 cm for black eel and 83 to 101 cm for brown eel. Though the estimated reference points of the CMSY were more optimistic than those from the DB-SRA, the tendency of the status of eel stock has been displayed moving towards overexploitation from a safe stock scenario. This study, therefore, recommended an annual landing limit of 250 mt as OFL (Over fishing limit) for the next ten years in association with existing management measures to maintain the present stock biomass of eel fishery over the BMSY level.Peer reviewe

Assessment of degradation of agricultural soils arising from brick burning in selected soil profiles

The study was conducted with the selected soil profile of burnt (soil around brick kilns) and unburnt (agricultural land) soils in the Dinajpur, Rangpur, Rajshahi, Khulna and Patuakhali districts at the western part of Bangladesh to evaluate the effects of brick kilns on soil degradation and environmental pollution. The pH values of the unburnt soils increased as a function of the soil depth for Rangpur, Khulna and Patuakhali, while decreased for the soil profiles in Dinajpur. Burning of soils significantly (p<0.05) decreased the average pH values of soils by 0.4 pH units (7 % increased over average content = IOAC), but strikingly increased the average EC values from 0.26 to 1.77 mS/cm (592 % IOAC) and the effect was pronounced with the depth function. The average sand content of the soil profiles increased by 330%, while the silt and clay contents decreased by 49 and 40 %, respectively. The average losses arising from the burning of agricultural soils were amounted to 63% for organic matter, 56 to 86 % and 23 to 88 % for available and total N, P, K and S, respectively. This huge loss through the burning of 1 m deep soil profile, i.e. almost 3/4th of the deterioration of soil fertility is not only reducing the crop production but also polluting the associated environment and atmosphere. The burning of enormous C, N and S not only degrade the agricultural soils but also contributing to the changes in the global climate

Thinking out of the ‘Man box’: An intersectional exploration of gender dynamics in northern Bangladesh via gender tracking framework

Placing people on boxes and drawing gender lines based upon the social codes of education tend to result in long-term gender inequality in the global context, and in this regard, Bangladesh is not an exception. Our study is an endeavor to explore how both men and women have socialized themselves with the underlying principles of the ‘Man box’ and how such socialization translates into social infanticide of womenfolk in northern Bangladesh. A wide range of qualitative research tools was employed to collect primary data from two regions of northern Bangladesh. Accordingly, we combined three key concepts ‘Man box’, women's subordination, and intersectionality to capture the gender nuances and degrees as well as to unravel the subsequent repercussions on gender dynamics using an author-modified ‘Gender Tracking Framework’. The study noticed that the social education system in northern Bangladesh is largely shaped and driven by deep-rooted ‘Man box’ codes resulting in high levels of gender disparity concerning property rights, workload, wage rate, control over earnings, decision autonomy, social mobility, market participation, power, agency, and voice against violence. Moreover, the intersectional analysis unveiled the multilayered powerlessness of marginalized groups, stemming from their intersecting identities and exacerbated by governance leakage. Their resulting miseries reached to such an ultimate position that even hope seemed like a luxury to them. The findings suggest that gender equality in Bangladesh can only be attained in its true sense through collective socio-cultural transformation by breaking the ‘Man box’ trap and by familiarizing a social education system in which each individual will be taught to treat others equitably without any form of biases, which we termed as ‘Human box’ ideology