Knowledge and attitude on agricultural modernization in Darai community of Vyas municipality of Tanahun District

Abstract

This study was in essence related to the knowledge and attitude on agricultural modernization on indigenous community of mid-hill Darai who are socially and economically deprived and exploited. Being the agriculture based community, agriculture modernization or production of commercial goods for commercial purpose is becoming prerequisite for them to sustain in society. The objective of the research was to analyze the knowledge and attitude on agricultural modernization in Darai community of Ward no 3 and 5 of Vyas municipality, the cluster settlement of Darais. The study has adopted both exploratory as well as descriptive research design. The study was exploratory because it exposed the knowledge, attitude on agricultural modernization. The study was descriptive as it described different aspects of agricultural modernization. The research modus operandi was constructed via questionnaire, observation FGD etc where their knowledge, attitude, belief, educational, situations were depicted. On the basis of random sampling, 100 households were chosen as the respondents and they were from different age group, different economic and educational background. Majority of the households were living in nuclear family structures and agriculture was the main occupation of almost all of the respondents. Wage labor, service and business were both first priority and second priority occupation. The educational status was found very poor in the study area where 52 percent of the respondents were still illiterate and 36 and 12 were respectively literate and educated. The literacy rate of female was found far less than that of male respondents. Traditional culture and low educational status were the main causes for the large family size of Darais. In average, around 8 was the family size of them. None of the respondents were landless but there exist disparity among land owners. Most of them didn’t have more than 10 ropanis of land and among them only about ½ of the respondents have facility of partial irrigation. People are practicing double and triple cropping system, mainly, rice. Maize, wheat, millet, mass were the production of the study area where a few number of people produce cash crops like seasonal vegetables, milk and meat products for the commercial purpose. Although people were found working very hard, but their work in agriculture field would not support them for whole year. That means, the production and productivity of land is very low due to the practices of traditional way of farming system. Most of the people use plough for cultivation even though, there is facility of tractor in the region, only few percent of the population use tractors but still they were not totally dependent on tractor. Most of the households practiced cereal cropping pattern whereas only negligible household practiced cash crop production but not totally in professional way. Modern agriculture equipments like improved seeds, chemical fertilizers and pesticides were familiar equipments for the most of people in the study area and more than 80 percent of the respondents used such equipments to some extent but lacked the intensive knowledge of using such equipments. Metacide, urea is very familiar name for them. Neighbor, suggestions from shop and land owners as well as Agua krishak is also the major sources of information about modern agricultural equipments. Other sources like JT and JTA, radio/TV, development agents, and agricultural institutions play the role of information giver to the people but only around 10 percent of the respondents are aware through the trainings provided by different institutions. Although large number of people have knowledge but they do not use such equipments for producing goods for commercial purpose even though they are aware that they could earn more to sustain their life more easily if they applied commercial farming. Low productivity of land, lack of irrigation facility, small land holding size, lack of proper knowledge about modern way of agriculture are the major causes for them being unable to produce sufficient foods whereas low level of knowledge, lack of resources viz cash money and lack of investment, low level of education, lack of unity in society, lack of trainings and lack of leading persons in the society, lack of awareness program to brainwash the already occupied mind are the vital causes for not adopting agricultural modernization. This study deduced that none of the respondents are landless. Lack of proper knowledge, low level of education, traditional way of farming system, large size of the family, lack of investments, lack of resources like irrigation, land etc. are major way of barriers for them to adopt modern way of agriculture system. Although most of the respondents have knowledge that by producing the goods for commercial purpose they can earn more to sustain their life. But in practical they still do not want to change their tradition and culture which is almost in the condition of displacement. It is proper encouragement and different factors that could motivate them to encompass the modern means of agriculture system since most of them have positive view or have positive attitude on agriculture modernization. This study deduced that none of the respondents were found totally dependent upon commercial farming and they used to produce for only partial fulfillment of their necessary subsistence needs. Double and triple cropping system was practiced though double cropping pattern. Some of the respondents have access to partial irrigation facilities and some households were totally deprived from the irrigation facility. Since irrigation is one of the vital obsession for increasing the productivity and for commercial good production and maintaining quality of soil. Need of technical education, market availability, transport facility, irrigation facilities and access of micro finance activities seems vital for creating positive attitude and awareness about agriculture modernization in the Darai community in order to bring them into the mainstream of development and to make them self sustain from the present situation. Likewise, income generating activities ought to be launched to preserve the tradition, culture and their assets like land because without the source of incomes they are bound to sell their productive assets for the fulfillment of daily needs.