Adoption of crop insurance among paddy farmers in Nintavur DS division of Ampara district

Crop insurance is an efficient risk management tool used in agriculture which secures the socio-economic situation of farmers. Crop insurance helps to stabilize farmers’ income, encourage farmers to adopt improved technologies and reduce the risk for credit agencies which can result in an increased flow of credit to farmers. This study was aimed to assess the adoption of crop insurance among paddy farmers in Nintavur DS division of Ampara district. Both primary and secondary data were used in the study. The primary data were gathered from randomly selected 100 paddy farmers from 05 Grama Niladhari divisions of Nintavur DS division by using self-administered questionnaires. Collected data were analyzed by using SPSS software. Chi-square and correlation analysis were done to find out the associations and relationships among different variables. There were two types of farmers identified in the sample; insured and non-insured farmers. Around 80% of the farmers had cultivated paddy on their own land and rest on leased land. Extent of paddy cultivation during the Maha season and the Yala seasons was almost equal in the study area. The average paddy yields in Maha and Yala were 81.54 bushels/ac and 77.81 54 bushels/ac respectively. Further, only 10% of the farmers in the study area had adopted paddy insurance scheme. All the farmers who obtained credit (10% of the sample) have insured their paddy land. There was a highly significant relationship observed between the extent of insured land and the amount of premium paid. Low farmer participation in crop insurance scheme was mainly due to the reasons that far distance of insurance office and higher premium rate. These factors need to be considered by the relevant authorities when operating the paddy insurance scheme

Status of child well-being among rural families in Manmunai South West DS division of Batticaloa District: impact of an agricultural livelihood project

Sustainable livelihood development projects are a vital modern method in fighting against poverty and reducing unemployment. An agricultural livelihood project had been implemented by the World Vision Lanka, a non-governmental organization in Manmunai South West Divisional Secretariat Division of Batticaloa District during the period 2010 – 2015. The project was channeled through four activities; family development, goat rearing, cattle rearing and poultry development in all Grama Niladhari divisions. The present study was implemented with the objective to identify the extent to which the implemented agricultural livelihood project changes the child well-being status among the people. Questionnaires were administered to 100 randomly selected project beneficiaries through personal interview in five GN Divisions. Collected data were analyzed by using SPSS. The results reveal that majority of the beneficiaries have succeeded in their income generating activities. Significant satisfaction reported for goat and cattle rearing. Child well-being indicators changed positively in comparison with the status before the implementation of the project. Further, beneficiaries are satisfied about the wellbeing of their children. The said income generating activities need to be intensified to sustain the present status. Therefore, relevant authorities should take needed actions to intensify the income generating activities of the rural populace in the area

Information utilization for weedicide usage among the paddy farmers in Eravur pattu DS Division of Batticaloa District

Information is an essential factor in the practice of farming and it is the foundation of extension service delivery. The modern agrochemical companies generally provide similar weedicide products with different brand names. Owing to this, farmers race difficulties while selecting relevant weedicides. They need appropriate information in order to select exact weedicides. In this regard, a study was conducted to find out the information utilization and weedicide usage among the paddy farmers in the Eravur Pattu Divisional Secretariat division of Batticaloa district Hundred number of paddy farmers were randomly selected for this study. Questionnaire survey was used as the primary data collection method. Secondary data were collected from published sources. The study reveals that, obtaining higher yield was the main reason for the usage of weedicides by the paddy farmers to control weeds in their farm land, followed by severe weed attack. Regarding the information related to weedicide application, paddy farmers in the Eravur Pattu area frequently got information on weedcide application rate from the Extension personnel. But, the selection of agrochemical traders to purchase weedicide was mainly determined by the farmers themselves. Significant associations were observed between fanning experience and purchasing decision based on Extension agents and also farming type and purchasing decision based on Extension agents. It was recommended mat Extension agents should intensify their efforts in educating and advising farmers how to utilize the relevant information to decide relevant weedicides

Effects of foliar applications of different growth promoting substances on growth and yield of bitter gourd (Momordica charantia L.)

An experiment was conducted to investigate the influence of different growth promoting substances on growth and yield of bitter gourd. Experiment was laid out in a randomized complete block design (RCBD) with four replications. Different foliar sprays viz. T1- Effective Microorganism (EM), T2- Cow urine, T3- Commercial growth promoting substance (Boom flower) and T4- Water (control) were tested. Highest values for average vine length (175.4 cm) and vine weight (40.9 g) were recorded in T3 and lowest male: female flower ratio (7:1) was obtained in T1. Maximum fruit length (29.9 cm) and fruit weight (158.1 g) were recorded in T1. The results revealed that application of EM is one of the ways to increase the yield of bitter gourd

Comparison of Growth and yield of dry seeded rice (Oryza sativa L.) in natural and conventional farming systems

The application of chemical fertilizers is costly and gradually lead to the environmental problems. Natural farming is becoming an increasingly important aspect of environmentally sound sustainable agriculture. In this regard, an experiment was conducted during Maha season in 2014 from November to February at Vaharai DS Division, Batticaloa, Sri Lanka. The experiment consisted of two farming systems; natural farming and conventional farming and was laid out in a Randomized Complete Block Design with twelve replications. All the crop management practices from land preparation to harvesting were done for each farming systems separately. Bg 352 rice variety was used for the experiment. Growth parameters and yield parameters were taken at fourteen weeks after sowing by destructive random sampling method. The results revealed that natural farming system significantly (p<0.05) increased the tested parameters such as plant height, total number of tillers, total number of productive tillers, total leaf area per plant, root length, dry weight of root, Panicle length, total number of spikelets per panicle, number of filled spikelets per panicle, hundred grain weight along with yield over conventional farming system. Further, economic analysis of the data presented in this study showed that natural farming method for rice cultivation is the most economical and attractive option for farming community. The high yield grain and less cost of production per hectare were noted in natural farms (B/C= 4.82) as compared with conventional farms (B/C=2.39). Therefore, it could be concluded that the adoption of natural farming technology improves rice farmer’s profit along with livelihood and this eventually reduces poverty through environmental friendly way. KEYWORDS: Conventional farming, economic analysis, natural Farming, rice, yiel