Economic analysis of integrated farming systems in the Kuttanad region of Kerala state, India: A case study

Agriculture, with its allied sectors, is unquestionably the largest livelihood provider in India. According to Committee on Doubling of Farmers’ Income Report, the average annual earning of a small and marginal farmer household was Rs 79,779 in 2015-16 and indicates that 86% of farmer households earn only 9% of total income and rest of the farmers earn 91% of total income. Integrated farming system practised mostly by small and marginal farmers, is a viable option for increasing farm income. The present study was undertaken to identify the farming systems practised by small and marginal holdings in Kuttanad region of Kerala state, India and also attempts to assess the profitability of these farms and suggest optimal farm plans using linear programming technique. The study revealed that rice + fish and Coconut + Banana+ Dairy cow + Poultry+ Goat were the most profitable farming systems with a benefit cost ratio of 2.63 and 2.86, respectively. The resource allocation in the existing plan was sub-optimal. The optimisation of resource use led to maximization of net returns, indicating the potential for realising greater income. The net returns of rice + fish increased from Rs. 181724 to Rs. 220010 in the optimal plan. The study also suggests the extent to which net returns can be increased with additional units of constraint resources viz., land/labour. The net returns in FS IV can be increased by Rs.286177.9 per additional acreage of land allotted.  Thus, the farmers in Kuttanad can increase their income by optimal resource allocation and by deploying additional units of land or labour

India’s trade potential and export opportunities for spices

Economic growth and development of a country rely on trade as it serves as a driving force with efficient utilization of factor of endowments. Several commodities are traded world-wide, among them spices which has a long history of being one of the highly traded commodity. Developing countries including India are the leading producer and exporter of spices in the world. The demand for Indian spices has gone up in the United States of America, Vietnam, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, etc. The study assess the comparative advantage of major spices exporting countries for pepper, cardamom and turmeric-based on data available in International Trade Centre. To analyse the effect of trade liberalisation, a simulation model (SMART) developed by UNCTAD was used to estimate trade creation, diversion and revenue effect on importing and exporting countries. The result shows that India has a comparative advantage in the export of Turmeric, Guatemala in Cardamom and Vietnam in Pepper. The impact of tariff relief on India has greater advantage, which has trade creation in the export of cardamom and turmeric. Whereas in pepper, comparatively, trade diversion is higher than trade creation, indicating that less efficient countries are given a chance to export to the top importing countries due to a reduction in tariff. Indian spice exporters should focus on promoting or exporting spices to countries like Netherlands, United States, United Kingdom, and Germany

Physiological Studies of Chlorobiaceae Suggest that Bacillithiol Derivatives Are the Most Widespread Thiols in Bacteria

Low-molecular-weight (LMW) thiols mediate redox homeostasis and the detoxification of chemical stressors. Despite their essential functions, the distribution of LMW thiols across cellular life has not yet been defined. LMW thiols are also thought to play a central role in sulfur oxidation pathways in phototrophic bacteria, including the Chlorobiaceae. Here we show that Chlorobaculum tepidum synthesizes a novel LMW thiol with a mass of 412 ± 1 Da corresponding to a molecular formula of C14H24N2O10S, which suggests that the new LMW thiol is closely related to bacillithiol (BSH), the major LMW thiol of low-G+C Gram-positive bacteria. The Cba. tepidum LMW thiol structure was N-methyl-bacillithiol (N-Me-BSH), methylated on the cysteine nitrogen, the fourth instance of this modification in metabolism. Orthologs of bacillithiol biosynthetic genes in the Cba. tepidum genome and the CT1040 gene product, N-Me-BSH synthase, were required for N-Me-BSH synthesis. N-Me-BSH was found in all Chlorobiaceae examined as well as Polaribacter sp. strain MED152, a member of the Bacteroidetes. A comparative genomic analysis indicated that BSH/N-Me-BSH is synthesized not only by members of the Chlorobiaceae, Bacteroidetes, Deinococcus-Thermus, and Firmicutes but also by Acidobacteria, Chlamydiae, Gemmatimonadetes, and Proteobacteria. Thus, BSH and derivatives appear to be the most broadly distributed LMW thiols in biology

Performance characteristics of an instrument-free point-of-care CD4 test (VISITECTVR CD4) for use in resource-limited settings

Objective: CD4þ T lymphocyte count remains the most common biomarker of immune status and disease progression in human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-positive individuals. VISITECTVR CD4 is an instrument-free, low-cost point-of-care CD4 test with a cut-off of 350 CD4 cells/lL. This study aimed to evaluate VISITECTVR CD4 test’s diagnostic accuracy. Methods: Two hundred HIV-positive patients attending a tertiary HIV centre in South India were recruited. Patients provided venous blood for reference and VISITECTVR CD4 tests. An additional finger-prick blood sample was obtained for VISITECTVR CD4. VISITECTVR CD4’s diagnostic performance in identifying individuals with CD4 counts 350 cells/lL was assessed by calculating sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value (PPV) and negative predictive value (NPV) taking flow cytometry as the reference. Results: The overall agreement between VISITECTVR CD4 and flow cytometry was 89.5% using venous blood and 81.5% using finger-prick blood. VISITECTVR CD4 showed better performance using venous blood [sensitivity: 96.6% (95% confidence interval: 92.1%–98.9%), specificity: 70.9% (57.1%–82.4%), PPV: 89.7% (83.9%–94.0%) and NPV: 88.6% (75.4%–96.2%)] than using fingerprick blood [sensitivity: 84.8% (77.9%–90.2%), specificity: 72.7% (59.0%–83.9%), PPV: 89.1% (82.7%–93.8%) and NPV: 64.5% (51.3%–76.3%)]. Conclusion: VISITECTVR CD4 performed well using venous blood, demonstrating its potential utility in decentralization of CD4 testing services in resource-constrained settings

Perception and buying behaviour of consumers towards FPOs food products in Tamil Nadu

The present study was carried out to map the perception of consumers and to identify the factors influencing the consumer buying behaviour towards the food products of FPOs in Tamil Nadu. The results concluded that majority of the respondents purchased jaggery and sugar, cold pressed oil, snacks and millets category from the retail shops of FPOs. The quality and nutrient content were major product traits influencing consumers for purchasing the FPO food products. Most of the consumers felt that the quality and price of the food products were high in FPOs retail stores compared with other retail stores. So, FPOs should target high income people with high purchasing power who appreciate quality. Local people were purchasing the FPOs food products anytime. FPOs can devise effective marketing strategies to attract new customers from local and non-local customers. Most of the people have no awareness about FPOs retail outlets. Therefore, FPOs should pay attention in promoting their products and increasing the retail outlets for attracting the consumers and increasing the sales

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Not AvailableGillnet is the most widely followed selective and passive fishing gear system in all water bodies, especially in the traditional fishing sector. Many past studies on gillnet fishing in the Vembanad Lake, Kerala, South India focussed on species availability and gear-wise catch of major fishes and showed that there was a significant reduction in the fish catch.The present study used market-based valuation method to estimate economic value generated through gillnet fishing operation in selected village panchayats spreading across three districts viz., Ernakulum, Alappuzha and Kottayam, bordering the Vembanad Lake, during the period in 2019-20. The species-wise quantity and value of finfishes and shellfishes caught in the gillnets from Vembanad Lake, in the three districts were analysed during the survey period. The total number of gillnet fishers living around the Vembanad Lake is about 6157 and the catch was estimated at 4645.97 t of both finfish and shellfish species, out of which shrimps formed around 72%. The maximum quantity of catch was observed for catfishes (Arius spp.) at 278.6 t per annum, which fetched a value ₹4.46 crores, followed by Etroplus maculatus at 149 t (₹3.58 crores in value terms). The economic value generated through gillnet fishing is estimated at ₹57.94 crores.Not Availabl

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Not AvailableThe Vembanadlake is the longest lake in India and also the largest wetland ecosystem in Kerala recognized as a Ramsarwetland site. The lake meanders through three districts of the state, Alappuzha, Ernakulum and Kottayam. It has been a source of livelihood to the population living alongside the wetland ecosystem. The economic activity carried in and around the backwater includes fishing, shrimp farming, clam picking, rice cultivation, duck rearing and livelihoods related to recreation like etc. Backwater tourism is a major revenue generation activity for the community by means of house boats, motor boats, shikara boat, speed boat etc. Around 1480 boats were operational in the Vembanadlake which are registered under the Department of Ports, Government of Kerala. The increase in boats is due to increase in the arrival of both foreign and domestic tourists, the increase of which over the past decade has risen by 11.69% and 7.07% respectively. In the year 2018, foreign and domestic tourists who visited the Vembanad in the three districts (Alappuzha, Ernakulum and Kottayam) was approximately 0.63 and 4.48 million respectively. This paper aimed at measuring the recreation benefits obtained by tourists visiting the Vembanadlake (and the wetland ecosystem) using travel cost approach. The model considers number of visit made by the individual per annum as the dependent variable is and several independent variables such as cost of travel, family income, age, family size, time spent and quality of the backwater. The analysis was carried out using trip generating function. The results reveal that, the total recreational value of Vembanad backwater was 363 billion INR. The potential value of the ecosystem necessitates sustainable management and conservation of the lake and the backwater ecosystem, which is being affected by increasing pollution as a result of, ironically, increasing tourist activities.Not Availabl

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Not AvailableThe traditional Chinese dip net is symbolic of Kerala and is a major tourist attraction. These nets are operated along the banks of the lakes in the state, especially the Vembanad lake. It is categorized into three type i.e. big, medium and small. The economic value generated by the Chinese dip nets operated in the Vembanad lake was estimated using market price approach. The willingness-to-pay (WTP) is taken to be equal to market price of fish and shrimp catch and this was used as an indicator of the true value of a resource. The estimation of economic value generated from the Chinese dip net operations in Vembanad lake was about Rs.32.98 crores per annum, which gives livelihood to approximately around 4500 family beneficiaries.Not Availabl