Marketing Efficiency of Green Peas under Different Supply Chains in Punjab

During the year 2007-08, the area under green peas in Punjab was 18.45 thousand hectares with a production of 1.11 lakh tonnes. The total consumption at the farm level being just 2.54 per cent, the marketed surplus was 97.46 per cent. The maximum quantity of green peas was sold by the growers in the wholesale market (about 89%) and the rest was sold at the farm, in the village and in Apni Mandi. The marketing of green peas has been studied by three supply chains, viz. I: Producer → wholesaler (through commission agent) → retailer → consumer; II: Producer → retailer (through commission agent) → consumer; III: Producer → consumer. The net price received by the producer was 67 per cent, 69 per cent and 94 per cent in supply chains I, II and III respectively in the Hoshiarpur market in January, 2009. The producer’s share in supply chain III was the maximum because of direct sale by the producer to the consumer. The supply chain III has been found most efficient because its marketing efficiency was 14.83 as compared to 2.70 in supply chain II and 2.38 in supply chain I. The low marketing efficiency in supply chain I was on account of a higher number of market intermediaries in this chain. The functional analysis of the factors affecting the marketing efficiency has revealed that with one per cent increase in marketing margins and costs, the marketing efficiency declined by 0.45 per cent and 0.44 per cent, respectively. The modern market infrastructure may be built up with the public-private partnership to bring efficiency in the marketing of green peas.Marketing efficiency, Green peas, Supply chains, Punjab, Price spread, Agricultural and Food Policy, Q13, Q12,

Accounting for Impact of Environmental Degradation in Agriculture of Indian Punjab

Having witnessed a fast growth, the agriculture in Punjab has reached a plateau. To sustain even the existing level, the costs are increasing and natural resources are being depleted due to overuse. This study has examined the use of certain resources and its impact on the cost of production. The data have been collected from different primary and secondary sources. The fast increase in area under rice and wheat appears to be unsustainable due to the fast decline in water table. Therefore, the cost of pumping out water with electricity has been going up, shortage of electric power has resulted in increase in the number of electric and diesel tubewells, further escalating the cost of production. The replenishment of soil health due to depleting macro and micronutrients and increased pesticide-use have also been observed to increase the cost. Thus, the cost on account of these factors together has gone up by Rs 63/t in wheat and Rs 189/t in rice. The varietal diversity of wheat has decreased and that of rice crop has increased during the past two and a half decades. The policy measures to minimize excessive use of natural resources requires suitable input pricing, particularly for water resource, improving input-use efficiency and revamping market forces to encourage diversification of state agriculture from rice to alternative crops.Agricultural and Food Policy,

Dynamics of institutional agricultural credit and growth in Punjab: contribution and demand-supply gap

The contribution of institutional credit to agricultural growth has been estimated in the state of Punjab. The demand-supply situation under different scenarios and change therein over a decade period have been examined. A simultaneous (four) equation model has been used to estimate the contribution of institutional credit towards use of production inputs, private investments and agricultural growth. The study has revealed that supply of production credit doubled and that of investment credit increased by about 80 per cent during the period 2001-02 to 2003-04. It took more than 15 years to double from 1984-85 to 2000-01. The relationship between use of variable inputs and production credit disbursement has been found highly significant. A similar relationship has prevailed between private capital formation and investment credit. The results have further exhibited significant and positive impact of capital investments on productivity with elasticity of 1.02. Higher use of inputs was ushered by favourable input-output pricing policy along with easy and cheap short-term credit availability in the state. Private capital formation has also helped in increasing the use of variable inputs in the crop sector. The contribution of institutional credit in promoting use of modern production inputs and private capital investments has been found to be significantly positive. The demand-supply situation in terms of short-term institutional credit has undergone a change over time, with the demand exceeding supply by 49 per cent in 1995-96, but later, the supply has been found exceeding demand by 122 per cent in the year 2005-06. It, therefore, becomes imperative that first the demand for agricultural credit in each state/region be assessed, depending on crop patterns and current inputs and capital requirements in relation to targeted output growth-rate and then, policy framework should be put in place to meet those requirements, instead of increasing the credit supply uniformly across the board in all the states/ regions of the country. Such a policy sometimes proves counterproductive and that appears to have happened in the Punjab agriculture.Agricultural Finance,

Optimal Crop Plans for Sustainable Water Use in Punjab

A linear programming model has been formulated to suggest the optimal cropping pattern for maximizing net returns and ensuring significant savings of groundwater with the aim of sustaining groundwater use in the Punjab agriculture. The primary data obtained from the project, “Comprehensive scheme to study the cost of cultivation of principal crops in Punjab†for the year 2002-03 pertain to 170 farmers selected through three-stage stratified random sampling technique. As the period of transplantation of paddy has a significant bearing on the amount of groundwater used and its sustainability, the paddy crop has been further classified into Paddy 1 (transplanted before 10th June); Paddy 2 (transplanted during 11th June to 20th June) and Paddy 3 (transplanted after 20th June). At the existing level of water availability, the optimal crop plan has not revealed any significant changes in the production pattern. Restricting the availability of groundwater has resulted into a major shift in the cropping pattern. Such changes could ensure groundwater savings of almost 25 per cent, without any adverse impact on the net returns from crop production. Introduction of new crops in the production plan, such as Bt cotton, has further enhanced the returns from crop production by about 4 per cent along with groundwater savings of 26.55 per cent. The study has suggested that alternate wetting and drying, adoption of system of rice intensification (SRI), use of tensiometers and direct plantation of paddy are some of the other techniques which can save water.Agricultural and Food Policy,

Supply Chain Analysis of Onion and Cauliflower in Punjab

The present study was conducted in Rajpura block of Patiala district in Punjab with a sample of 50 vegetables growers. The total cost of cultivation was estimated at Rs 49563/ha for onion and Rs 34840/ha for cauliflower. The net returns were found higher for onion (Rs 74597/ha) as compared to that from cauliflower (Rs 38072/ha). Majority of these vegetables were being disposed off through commission agent/wholesaler (more than 90 per cent) followed by retailer and directly to the consumer. The efficiency of the these market channels can be enhanced through competition by organized retail chains and modernizing the vegetable market system in the state. The wholesale markets of Pune, Ludhiana and Patiala for onion and that of Shimla, Ludhiana and Patiala for cauliflower have been found integrated with price of onion and cauliflower transmitting quickly from the independent to the dependent markets. The highest elasticity of price transmission in onion has been observed between Ludhiana and Patiala markets with almost 90 per cent of the price change in Ludhiana getting transmitted to the Patiala market. Such transmission has been 100 per cent for cauliflower between Shimla and Patiala markets. The price transmission has been observed faster in cauliflower than onion. Though a long-term equilibrium relationship exists between all the studied markets in terms of weekly price of the two vegetables crops, there also exists a short-run disequilibrium between some of the market pairs with almost 15 to 25 per cent of the fluctuations usually getting corrected within a week. Greater integration in these markets may help the farmers as well as consumers of the vegetables through better price signals.Agricultural and Food Policy,

Natural resources management in Punjab agriculture : challenges and way forward

Intensive agriculture in Punjab has led to decline in crop diversity, depletion of natural resources, rising energy use and subsidies in agriculture, and decline in profitability. It is urgent to diversify existing cropping patterns by moving to less water-intensive crops, improving water-use efficiency, and towards better soil health management based on the actual requirement of nutrients needs. The paper reviews farming methods and outcomes, providing recommendations for improved agricultural policies and cropping practices. For instance, changing water use management will require a change in mindset on the part of the policy makers, researchers, and extension agents as well as farmers

Interpretation of three-dimensional structure from two-dimensional endovascular images: implications for educators in vascular surgery

AbstractPurposeEndovascular therapy has had a major effect on vascular surgery; surgeons perform tasks in three dimensions (3D) while viewing two-dimensional (2D) displays. This fundamental change in how surgeons perform operations has educational implications related to learning curves and patient safety. We studied the effects of experience, training, and visual-spatial ability on 3D perception of 2D angiographic images of abdominal aortic aneurysms (AAA).MethodsA novel computer-based method was developed to produce 3D depth maps based on subjects' interpretations of 2D images. Seven experts (certified vascular surgeons) and 20 novices (medical or surgical trainees) were presented with a 2D AAA angiographic image. With software specifically designed for this study, a depth map representing each subject's 3D interpretation of the 2D angiogram was produced. The novices were then randomized into a control group and a treatment group, who received a 5-minute AAA anatomy educational session. All subjects repeated the exercise on a second AAA image. Finally, all novices were given tests of visual-spatial ability, including the Surface Development Test and the Mental Rotations Test. Comparisons between experts and novices were made with depth map comparison, a subject's perception of overall object contour.ResultsThe depth maps were significantly different (depth map comparison, P < .001) between the expert and both novice groups for the first image. After the educational intervention, the control group and the treatment group exhibited significantly different depth maps (depth map comparison, P < .001), with treatment group depth maps more similar to those of the expert group. There were no significant correlations between the visual-spatial tests and the novice depth map comparison with the expert group.ConclusionsThis is the first study to examine perception of endovascular images in an educational context. Perception of overall surface contour of 3D structures from 2D angiographic images is affected by experience and training. With application of methods of vision science to an important problem in surgery, this research represents a first step in understanding the nature of visual perceptual processes involved in execution of an increasingly common clinical task. These results have implications for understanding and studying the endovascular learning curve.Clinical relevanceThis research represents a unique collaboration in an effort to understand and solve one of the greatest problems facing surgical educators and surgeons. This research uses applied tools in vision science to understand the perceptual constraints involved in minimally invasive surgery. Specifically, we examined the mental three-dimensional maps experts use when viewing two-dimensional displays. Furthermore, we compared experts with novices in an effort to assist surgical trainees

Improved S factor of the 12C(p,γ)13N reaction at E=320–620 keV and the 422 keV resonance

The 12C(p,γ)13N reaction is the onset process of both the CNO and hot CNO cycles that drive massive star, red and asymptotic giant branch star, and novae nucleosynthesis. The 12C(p,γ)13N rate affects the final abundances of the stable 12,13C nuclides with ramifications for meteoritic carbon isotopic abundances and the s-process neutron source strength. Here, an underground measurement of the 12C(p,γ)13N cross section is reported. The present data, obtained at the Felsenkeller shallow-underground laboratory in Dresden (Germany), encompass the 320–620 keV center of mass energy range to include the wide and poorly constrained E=422 keV resonance that dominates the rate at high temperatures. This work's S-factor results, lower than literature by 25%, are included in a comprehensive R-matrix fit, and the energy of the 12+ first excited state of 13N is found to be 2369.6(4) keV with a radiative and proton width of 0.49(3) eV and 34.9(2) keV, respectively. A reaction rate, based on the present R-matrix fit and extrapolation, is suggested