AGRO-CHEMICALS' USE BEHAVIOUR OF BRINJAL GROWERS IN CONTROLLING INSECT-PESTS AND DISEASES IN MURSHIDABADDISTRICT OF WEST BENGAL

摘要

Sustainability in agricultural production, and to maintain environmental balance are the two major concerns in recent time. Keeping it in consideration, the present study was undertaken with the following objective- to portray the agro-chemicals use behaviour of brinjal growers in controlling insect-pests and diseases. The study was conducted in Murshidabad district of West Bengal. For the selection of area and respondents of the present study, multi-stage random sampling technique and universe method were adopted. The study reveals that (1) more than half of respondents (51 %) in the study area were illiterate (2) at the most 36 percent of respondents had upto 1 bigha of own cultivable land (3) at the most 47 percent respondents had upto 10 kathasof vegetable cultivable land (4) at the most 36 percent of respondents had 11-20 years of experience in vegetable cultivation(5) at the most 34 percent of respondents had 11-20 years of experience in agro-chemicals application on vegetable crops (6) mainsource of personal information on agro-chemicals use was agricultural input retailers (100%) (7) main source of impersonal information was radio (34%) (8) their interval of spraying of chemicals was mainly 4-7 days (55%) (9) spraying was most popular method of application of agro-chemicals (100%)(10) At the most 12 percent of respondents used phorate 10G to treat soil. (11) At the most 17 percent of respondents used Mancozeb 75% WPto treat seeds. (12) infestation of insect-pests and diseases was mainlyseen on mature stage of the crop (13) the brinjal growers used 20-30 litres of water per bigha at seedling stage and 100-180 litres of water per bigha of land at mature stage of the crop for spraying the agro-chemicals (14) the most harmful insect-pestof brinjal crop was shoot and fruit borer (100%) (15) Phomopsis blight disease was the most damaging disease (86%) (16) brinjal growers were using various brands of various technical grades of agro-chemicals for controlling insect-pests and diseases withseveral doses (17) Majority of respondents had lack of knowledge about blue sign (63%) and yellow sign (65%) of pesticide products. Therefore, on the basis of the present investigation, the various extension agencies those are working in the study areashould reorient their extension strategies accordingly to enhance the knowledge level as well as adoption level.