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Implementation of Integrated Pest Management Tactics for Controlling of Rice Stem Borers Impact of Climate Change on Rice Production Rice Trade Forecast 2013 and 2014 Importance of Rice Blast and Their Management Strategies Global Rice Trade Rice: Role in Global Warming Understanding Rural Farmers Information Behaviour Call for Paper Fighting Hunger Worldwide India: Forecast to Remain Worlds Largest Rice Exporter in 2014 Marketing Problems of Rice in Pakistan
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Contents
Implementation of Integrated Pest Management Tactics in Rice (Oryza sativa L.) for Controlling of Rice Stem Borers (Insecta: Lepidoptera) Dr. Muhammad Sarwar Impact of Climate Change on Rice Production Muhammad Mohsin Raza, Muhammad Aslam Khan, Zeeshan Sattar and Asim Ali Rice Trade Forecast 2013 and 2014 Importance of Rice Blast and Their Management Strategies Zeeshan Sattar, Dr. Muhammad Aslam Khan, Iqra Ashfaq and M. Mohsin Raza Global Rice Trade International Rice Research Rice: Role in Global Warming Dr. Muhammad Tahir and Neelam Yasin Understanding Rural Farmers Information Behaviour Muhammad Asif Naveed Call for Paper
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ISSN:2311-3804 March, 2014 Volume 6-Issue 1 Implementation of Integrated Pest Management Tactics in Rice (Oryza sativa L.) for Controlling of Rice Stem Borers (Insecta: Lepidoptera)
Dr. Muhammad Sarwar* akistan produces sufficient amount of superior quality rice (Oryza sativa L.) to fulfill both domestic and foreign demands to adequately feed peoples globally. Generally, there are different types of rice including short-grain rice (very starchy and cooks up soft and sticky), longgrain rice (less starch so the cooked grains are drier and more separate), basmati (long-grain varieties cultivated to bring out distinctive flavor profiles) and brown rice (available in long and short grains, is a lot chewier and heartier than white rice). Mainly, two categories of rice dominate in the national market, for example, Basmati, which is mostly grown in Punjab, and IRRI that is generally produced in Punjab and Sindh provinces. The various types of rice provide different textures, tastes and nutritional value. The gross composition of rice and its various milling fractions show that rice is rich in energy and a good source of protein. The rice contains a reasonable amount of thiamine, riboflavin, niacin, vitamin E and other nutrients. It is one of the principal sources of energy, protein, iron, calcium, thiamine, riboflavin and niacin in human diets. Insect Pests of Rice Specially Rice Stem Borers: The greater rice paddy production occurs in the irrigated areas, where certain varieties can express their high yield potential. Mean farm yields of irrigated rice in many localities are still lower due to presence of pests and diseases. Insect pests are major problems in the rice production; particularly where rice monoculture is practiced, and because plant hosts are continuously present in the environment. The major insect pests are the rice stem borers, which may start attacking the plants in the nursery especially after transplanting in the fields.
The yellow stem borer Scirpophaga incertulas (Walker), striped stem borer Chilo suppressalis (Walker) The pink stem borer Sesamia inferens (Walker) are the most injurious insect pests of rice.
Their caterpillars enter the stem and feed on the internal tissue, the tillers may get affected at different stages, and associated yield losses and costs of control have reached the highest recorded levels. In the vegetative stage, dead hearts (central shoot dries up) can be seen in the affected tillers, and in the reproductive stage; whiteear (earheads become chaffy) may be seen. The final instar larvae make an exit hole and pupate within the larval tunnel at the base of the plant in a silken cocoon. Integrated Management of Rice Stem Borers: The approach, known as integrated pest management (IPM), in the rice is referred to as a broad ecological attack combining several tactics including biological, chemical, cultural control methods and insect resistant rice varieties, for the economic control and management of pest populations. Components of the current integrated management approach include;
Ploughing and irrigating the fallow rice paddy in early spring to kill overwintering larvae and pupae Postponing and synchronizing seeding and transplanting dates of rice to reduce the opportunity of oviPosition by over-
wintered moths Use of stem borer mid-resistant varieties of rice Use of pheromone and highly effective light traps to trap and kill moths Provide better communication and information to farmers for using pest control techniques properly
More than one hundred species of parasitoids, predators and insect pathogens attack rice stem borers. Borers are most vulnerable to natural enemies at the egg, neonate larval and adult stages. Parasitism and predation of stem borer eggs are usually very high and are important population regulating factors. Three groups of egg parasitoids, Telenomus (Hymenoptera: Scelionidae), Tetrastichus (Hymenoptera: Eulophidae) and Trichogramma (Hymenoptera: Trichogrammatidae) are the most dominating and important.
* The author is Principal Scientist in Plant Protection Division, Nuclear Institute for Agriculture and Biology (NIAB), Faisalabad, Pakistan.
The two most important egg predators are, meadow grasshopper Conocephalus longipennis (Orthoptera: Tettigoniidae) and cricket Metioche vittataicollis (Orthoptera: Gryllidae).
There are white fungi Beauveria, Cordyceps and Nomuraea which infect stem borers and in high moisture fungal spores germinate and invade the soft tissue and body fluids of borers.
Chemical Control Measures in nursery by soil application of granules or foliar application after 3 weeks of sowing can be taken based on one moth or egg mass per square meter economic threshold level. Within field application of the insecticides to control stem borers can be taken based on consistently increasing trend of moths in light trap or 1 egg mass or 5 percent dead hearts economic threshold level. However, it is imperative that researchers and farmers should explore and implement alternative approaches to least relying on insecticides. The New and Modern Rice Varieties have been developed and these germplasms have erect leaves, heavy tillering and low photoperiod sensitivity. Their plant architectures allow them to absorb nutrients without lodging and allow sunlight to penetrate the leaf canopy. Growth duration is shorter in the modern varieties and is about close to hundred days from seedling to maturity, which at low input levels of insecticides and fertilizers outperform better comparably to traditional varieties. The yield potentials of the new and modern varieties are better, but they also show improved resistance to insect pests and diseases and increased tolerance to environmental stresses. Nevertheless, their increased resistances are single-gene characteristics which can be overcome by the pests after a few years. Insect resurgence has been documented in which insecticide spraying increased the insect population instead of reducing it. Alternative approaches of horizontal or multilane resistance are considered necessary, as there is a rapid breakdown of resistance to the borers because of the appearance of new insect biotypes. Certain sources of resistance have been identified in cultivated wild species of rice and these are being introduced through wide crosses to O. sativa. Use of Biotechnology: Few recent advances in biotechnology are providing the possibility of solving some of the constraints that have limited the practical use of genetic resistance to insects in pest management programs. Biotechnology provides new possibilities of manipulating germplasm wide hybridization, which is a plant breeding tool for the incorporation of alien genetic variation from wild species of Oryza into commercially useful cultivars. Wild rice species are rich source of R genes and are used in breeding programs for insect resistance. Wide genetic transformation, scientists are incorporating novel genes for resistance into rice through transformation. Genes, such as the Bt (Bacillus thuringiensis) gene coding for toxic proteins, inhibitors of digestive enzymes such as protease inhibitors, and ribosome inactivating genes are being transferred to rice. The availability of rice varieties with multiple resistance to IPM is a part of Integrated Crop Management (ICM), insects and diseases can stabilize yields, increase farmer income, a system which encompasses all aspects of crop minimize the need for pesticides and it can promote the adoption of management. ICM supports the appropriate integraIPM practices. The IPM approaches are very promising and if imtion of IPM to farming practices. plemented on an area-wide basis will lead to much improved control http://www.ecpa.eu of the stem borers by keeping their density below economic injury thresholds, through protecting the rural environment and the health of farmers.
ice is an essential component of the diet and the most important staple food crop of about 3.23 billion people of the worlds population especially in Asia. More than 90% of the worlds rice is grown and consumed in Asia, where 60% of the worlds population lives. It has important implications for food security because, among other things, it makes up approximately one third of the caloric intake of third world populations. Rice trade (which is dominated by Asian countries) is modest only 17 percent of the global trade of other cereals because these countries aim to be self-sufficient in future. Over 150 million hectares of rice is planted annually, covering around 10% of the worlds arable land. With the world population estimated to increase from 6.2 billion in the year 2000 to about 8.2 billion in the year 2030, the global rice demand will rise to about 765 million tons, or 533 million tons of milled rice. Yet, the challenge for rice production is twofold: coping with population growth while also facing climate change. Climate is an important factor for agricultural productivity. It plays a key role in the production of crops. From the last few years a new term named Climate Change is emerging which is hanging all over the world. It is an enormous challenge for societies worldwide. It is caused by the release of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. These gases accumulate in the atmosphere, which result in global warming. Many plant species are temperature sensitive; predicted increases in global temperatures will have adverse effects on our environment and put increasing stress on agriculture. Large number of people in the world still without access to adequate food, ensuring global food security continues to be a big challenge. Unforeseen changes associated with global Chinese rice production increase sub- warming temperature, carbon dioxide and rainfall stantially under climate change due are expected to influence rice production. The immediate impacts of climate change to technology progress as changes of on rice production systems and food security will rice area from south to North regions be felt in the form of adverse effects of extreme plays significant roles in past yield weather changes on rice production. Studies have shown that increase temperature, due to climate promotion. change, adversely affects rice crop physiology ultimately decreasing crop yields and grain quality. A comprehensive simulation research revealed that past climate change since 1960s decreased rice yield by 12.4%, but with largest contribution coming from lowering radiation. Statistical analysis between climate variables and observed yield also demonstrated Pakistan worst affected by climate change positive and negative yield response in different regions. C ha ng es in mean temperatures, increasing weather variability, and sea level rising predicted less but possibly even more significant effect on rice production. As carbon dioxide is an essential component in photosynthesis, increased atmospheric concentration of carbon dioxide is http://www.dailytimes.com.pk, January 26,2014 expected to increases plant growth and consequently rice yields. Uncertainty associated particularly in projected precipitation spatial and temporal
* Authors belong to the Department of Plant Pathology, University of Agriculture Faisalabad, Pakistan.
Note: The 2014 outlook rice market has been analyzed based on the latest projections contained USDA's World Agricultural Supply Estimates report. For detailed statistics, Please visit; http:// www.ers.usda.gov/publications/rcs-rice-outlook/rcs-14a.aspx#.UxXOylfxrlc 9
ice is one of the leading food crops of the world, an important staple food and cash crop of Pakistan. About 438m ton rice is produced in the world whereas Pakistan produces 6.16 million ton rice annually. A spokesman for the agriculture department told that Pakistan was exporting 3.75m ton rice every year. He pointed out that more than 4,198,456 acre land was brought under rice cultivation in Punjab last year which produced 3,460,123 ton Importance of the Disease rice. It contributes 15 percent to the foreign exchange earnings. The rice crop is subjected to more than forty diseases, which are one of the factors for low yields of rice in the world (including Pakistan). Rice Blast Disease (RBD) is The diseases may appear at any stage of the growth and development spreading all over the world includof plant, attacking the seed sown, root system, foliage, stalk, leaf ing Pakistan where the rice plant is sheath, inflorescence and even the developing grain according to the cultivated, in both paddy and upenvironmental conditions. These all diseases are injurious to rice pro- land conditions. While the destrucductivity but Rice Blast) is serious threat to rice crop which can re- tion is very much predisposed by environmental factors, this disease duce the growth at any stage. is one of the most serious diseases Causal Organism of the rice plant in Pakistan. Rice blast is caused by the Ascomycete fungus, Pyricularia Oryzae (Pyriculariagrisea). The fungus is able to infect and produce lesions on all organs of the rice plant except the roots. Sometimes this disease refers as Pyrricularia blight or rotten neck, generally spread where ever rice is grown.
Symptoms
Leaf Blast: When the fungus attacks a young leaf, purple spots can be observed after an incubation period, changing into a spindle shape which has a gray center with a purple-to-brown boarder and then surrounded by a yellow zone as time passes. Brown spots appear only
sion elongation to both sides of the neck node. These symptoms are very serious for grain development of rice plant. When young neck nodes are invaded, the panicles become white in colour the so-called white head that is sometimes misinterpreted as insect damage. Later infection causes incomplete grain filling, and poor grain quality. Panicle branches and glumes may also be infected. Spikelet attacked by the fungus change to white in color from the top and produce many conidia, which become the inoculum source after heading. Collar Rot: Infection at the junction of the leaf blade and the leaf sheath, i.e. the collar, readily occurs and causes browning of the tissues and withering of the leaves. Node Blast: During heading, the stem nodes which appeared from the leaf sheaths are attacked and sometimes cause lodging. Diseased nodes are brown or black in color.
Control Measures
Burning or Composting of Diseased Tissues: Diseased straw and stubble must be burned or composted; other * Authors are Research Fellows of (M.sc Hons) in Department of Plant Pathology, University of Agriculture, Faisalabad, Pakistan ** Authors are Professor in Department of Plant Pathology, University of Agriculture, Faisalabad, Pakistan.
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Global Rice Trade to Recover 4% in 2014 to 38.6 Million Tons, IGC Says
IGC says global rice trade will receive a boost in 2014 due to higher shipments to Far East Asia (mainly China, Indonesia, the Philippines, South Korea, Bangladesh, Japan, and Malaysia). Rice exports to After a 3% decline in Far East Asia are forecast to increase around 2013, global rice trade 15% y/y to about 11.5 million tons in 2014, is expected to reup from around 11 million tons in the previ- bound to around 38.6 ous year. IGC says, China is expected to buy million tons in 2014, around 2.6 million tons in 2014 (up from 2.5 up about 1.3 million million in 2013) and double the prior five- tons or 4% from the year average of 1.3 million tons. Indonesias previous years 37.3 rice imports are forecast to increase by million tons, according to the London-based 500,000 tons or about 71% to around 1.2 milInternational Grains lion tons in 2014 mainly due to government Council (IGC). efforts to build rice reserves. In the Philippines, rice imports are projected to reach around 1.6 million tons in 2014, up about 128% from around 700,000 tons of rice imports last year. Among exporters, India is likely to be the top rice exporter again in 2014, but shipments are expected to decline to around 9.3 million tons, down about 10% from an estimated 10.4 million tons in 2013 mainly due to the introduction of the National Food Security Act. Vietnams rice exports in 2014 are expected to recover to around 7.3 million tons in 2014, up about 9% from around 6.7 million tons in 2013. Thailands rice exports are expected to recover by more than 20% y/y in 2014 to around 8.2 million tons, compared to around 6.7 million tons in 2013. Pakistans rice exports are unlikely to change from 2013 levels of around 3.2 million tons, while U.S. rice exports are expected to increase by around 200,000 tons y/y to around 3.4 million tons, IGC says. Global rice production is expected to reach around 470 million tons in 2014, slightly more than the previous years 469.4 million tons, while global rice consumption in 2014 is forecast at 471.4 million tons, up about 1% from an estimated 467 million tons in 2013. Ending stocks in 2014 are expected to reach around 107.9 million tons, down about 1.5% from beginning stocks of around 109.5 million tons.
Source with Thanks: http://oryza.com/tags/international-grains-council-igc
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t is evident that rice is the most vital waterlogged staple crop all over the world, and demand to grow more rice is increasing to feed the growing population. During the past 40 years the worlds rice harvested area increased from 41% to 304%. Rice contributes to feed a huge population. Pakistan is the worlds fourth largest rice producer. On the other hand it contributes in global warming , wetland rice fields have been considered as major source of atmospheric methane emissions. Methane is most imperative green house gas and accounting for 15 percent of the total enhanced global warming. Methane is colorless and odorless natural gas. Rice crop knows as manmade methane source. Higher the temperature, more carbon dioxide concentration and waterlogged rice paddies give ideal condition for methogenesis. Methogenesis is the biological formation of methane that occurs in all anaerobic environments in which organic matters under goes any decay. Van kessel and his colleagues are evident that waterlogged rice become less climate friendly. Rice plant grows more rapidly as more carbon dioxide enters the environment. This growth accelerates the metabolism of methane producer microscope organisms that live near the root zone of rice paddies. Van kessel revealed that increased carbon dioxide in the environment boosted rice yields by 24.5% and methane emissions by 42.2%.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2294560/The-great-green-1-The-hard-proof-finally-showsglobal-warming-forecasts-costing-billions-WRONG-along.html
* Author is Assistant Professor in Department of Agronomy, University of Agriculture, Faisalabad, Pakistan. ** Co-author is Research Fellow in Department of Agronomy, University of Agriculture, Faisalabad, Pakistan.
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ISSN:2311-3804 March, 2014 Volume 6-Issue 1 UNDERSTANDING RURAL FARMERS INFORMATION BEHAVIOUR
Muhammad Asif Naveed*
ndeed, farmers have an inevitable need for information to perform their daily farming activities efficiently and effectively. The information concerning improved agro-technologies created by agricultural scientists should be disseminated in a way that is compatible with, and results in the farmers satisfaction. Agricultural production in Pakistan is quite lower than its potential in spite of the hectic struggle by the agriculture departments and other allied agencies. It may have various reasons. Farmers lack of awareness of the current agricultural information and technologies is one of the major reasons for low agricultural productivity. For consistent growth in agric-production, it is indispensable to equip farmers with need-based, focused, accu- Our farmer needs user-oriented rate, reliable, and timely information. The dream of adinformation delivery system that vancement in agric-production cannot come true until can provide more relevant, accutimely access to the information that farmers need is asrate, and timely information. sured. The consideration of farmers information needs and information seeking behaviour is an important ele- Our farmer looks for need-based, ment while designing need-based, focused, and userfocused, and farmers-oriented agrioriented information delivery system that can provide cultural information policy and inmore relevant, accurate, and timely information to its usfo rmation infrastructure . ers. Effective information communication is known to be the key to optimal agricultural productivity. Conducting - Printed and digital media have research on farmers information behaviour would be an very weak contact between the ruimportant first step in the design of need-based, focused, ral farmers and Agricultural deand farmers-oriented agricultural information policy and partments. information infrastructure. The research examining Pakistani farmers information behavior is meager and narrow in focus. Naveed and Anwar (2012) provided a critical review of published research examining farmers information seeking behavior. They identified that majority of Pakistani farmers relied mainly on interpersonal relationships with friends, neighbors, relatives, co-farmers or progressive farmers, followed by mass media (radio and television only in obtaining information they need (p. 6). The main modes of information transfer were personal contacts and observation. The findings of Naveed,(2011, 2013) and Naveed and Anwar (2013) also support that farmers residing in Saleempur village depend mainly on their personal experience, informal information networks (e.g. co-farmers, progressive farmers, sales agent, and pesticide dealers) and mass media. The role of printed materials especially newspapers, agricultural extension agents, formal information sources were almost non-existent for obtaining agricultural advice. There seems a very weak contact between the rural farmers and Agricultural departments. These results did not confirm whether farmers dependability on informal communication for meeting information needs indicated a real preference or a compromise due to the lack of quality formal information infrastructure. If the preference for interpersonal relationships was real, then the question of information reliability arose because farmers might be misguided by those who are not trained in information selection and dissemination. The role of individuals providing information in the rural setting was also questionable because these individuals were not professionals. Furthermore, obtaining information through interpersonal relationships and informal social networks raises questions about accuracy, relevancy, and currency of information. Also, these information sources could not always provide timely, accurate, relevant, and current information. Farmers information sources were mainly social in nature and related to the facility available at home or somewhere near indicating that farming community was locality-oriented in Pakistan. It implies that farmers intention to seek information about new innovations outside community was very low which means that Pakistani farmers were still using conventional methods that yielded lower production per acre. Moreover, the role of mass media is not very effective, especially the newspapers and agricultural extension agents as source of information.
* Author is a PhD fellow in University of the Punjab and serves in Learning Resource Center, University of Management and Technology, Lahore, Pakistan.
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References: 1. Naveed, M. A., Anwar, M. A., & Bano, S. (2012). Information seeking by Pakistani farmers: A review of published research. Pakistan Journal of Library & Information Science, 13. p. 8 2. Naveed, M. A. (2013). Information needs of rural Pakistani farmers: An exploratory study in Saleempur village. Germany: Lambert Academic Publishing. p. 105. 3. Naveed, M. A. (2011). Information needs of Pakistani farmers: an exploratory study of adult male farmers in a village of Punjab. M. Phil thesis, DLIS, University of the Punjab, Lahore, Pakistan. 4. Naveed, M. A. and Anwar, M. A. (2013). Agricultural information needs of Pakistani farmers. Malaysian Journal of Library & Information Science, 2013. 18(3), 13 23, 11p.
tion of the existing agricultural information infrastructure and services in order to prepare a detailed plan to improve them. This exercise will only be meaningful if extensive information behavior research is carried out, especially focusing on agricultural scientists and researchers, information providing agencies and specific groups of farmers. The efforts should be made to develop and provide integrated information services at the community level which cover socio-economic development, agriculture, health, and education. Such a service will lead to improved farmers life and make them better informed and more productive.
Conference Secretariat:
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ost of the worlds hungry live in developing countries. According to the latest Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) statistics from 2013, there are 842 million hungry people in the world and 98 percent of them are in developing countries. The huger ratio is shown in figure.
Do you know!!!
842 million people in the world do not have enough to eat. This number has fallen by 17 percent since 1990.
The vast majority of hungry people (827 million) live in developing countries, where 14.3 percent of the population is undernourished.
Asia has the largest number of hungry people (over 500 million) but Sub-Saharan Africa has the highest prevalence (24.8 percent of population). If women farmers had the same access to resources as men, the number of hungry in the world could be reduced by up to 150 million.
Poor nutrition causes nearly half (45%) of deaths in children under five - 3.1 million children each year.
One out of six children -- roughly 100 million -- in developing countries is underweight.
One in four of the world's children are stunted. In developing countries the proportion can rise to one in three. 80 percent of the world's stunted children live in just 20 countries. 66 million primary school-age children attend classes hungry across the developing world, with 23 million in Africa alone. WFP calculates that US$3.2 billion is needed per year to reach all 66 million hungry school-age children.
ger worldwide. WFP is part of the United Nations system and is voluntarily funded. On average, WFP reaches more than 90 million people with food assistance in 80 countries each year. About 13,500 people work for the organization, most of them in remote areas, directly serving the hungry people.
http://www.wfp.org/
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There are 842 million undernourished people in the world today. It means that one in eight people do not get enough food to be healthy and lead an active life. Hunger and malnutrition are in fact the number one risk to health worldwide greater than AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis combined. The good news, however is that hunger is entirely solvable. There is enough food in the world to feed everyone and no scientific breakthroughs are needed. Todays knowledge, tools and policies, combined with political will, can solve the problem. Solving hunger is a best buy in todays tough economy. When nations work together to solve hunger and invest in good nutrition, they increase productivity and create economic opportunities. Conversely, studies have shown that countries lose millions of dollars in economic output as a result of child under nutrition. Solving hunger is also a contribution to peace and stability. When governments can no longer guarantee adequate food supplies, states are prone to fall. Volatility on food markets can quickly translate into volatility on the streets. Finally, solving hunger lays the foundation for progress in many other areas of development, including health and education. Well-nourished women have healthier, heavier babies whose immune systems are stronger for life. A healthy, well-fed child is also more likely to attend school. Good progress was made in reducing chronic hunger in the 1980s and the 1990s, but progress began to level off between 2000 and 2010. All of us citizens, employers, corporate leaders and governments must work together to end hunger.
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Rice is a valuable cash crop of Pakistan regarding its export. Rice production consists of 40 % fine (basmati) types and 60 % coarse types. It occupies second position among the staple food grain crop in Pakistan. Rice contributes 2.7 percent of the value added in agriculture and 0.6 percent of GDP. In past, area and production related issues regarding rice remain under consideration in Pakistan, while marketing related issues were neglected. It is the need of the hour to give emphasis on marketing problems of rice being faced by the rice growers in Pakistan as;
Monopoly of Middle Man: This is the prime issue regarding the rice marketing problems. Since the markets are situated in urban areas, thus to avoid the transportation and other costs, farmers mostly try to sell their produce near their farm gate. As a result, they ultimately depend on commission agents, who get benefit of this. Sometime they paid low price of the produce at the spot to the farmer or make promise to pay remaining money within a short period of time. They pay less money to the farmers as compared to market price of the produce by deducting more charges of the carriage, handling and transportation facilities provided by them.
Poor Transportation Facilities: Some of the rice growers who agreed to sell their produce at market have to face a lot of problems related to poor transportation. They also bear high cost of fuels and rented vehicles in moving their produce from their farm to the market in urban areas.
Lack of Storage Facilities: This is also a big issue related to rice growers in the country. The Government has not provided storage facilities for rice at the farmers level. Thus the farmers have no way to protect their produce from post harvest losses but to sell their produce as early as possible.
Lack of Awareness about Market Price: As the farmer belongs to rural areas, due to lack of awareness they dont have up to date information about the market price of their produce. In such cases monopoly of middle men causes variation in prices.
Marketing problems of rice growers, Survey 2013 Journal of Biology, Agriculture and Health Care Vol.3, No.16, 2013 , page 7
* Author is Assistant Professor in Department of Agronomy, University of Agriculture, Faisalabad, Pakistan. ** Co-author is Research Fellow in Department of Agronomy, University of Agriculture, Faisalabad, Pakistan.
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3rd
he 3 Invention to Innovation Summit 2014 was jointly organized by University of the Punjab, Pakistan Science Foundation and Institute of Research Promotion on March 1920, 2014. Innovation is a joint effort of academia and industry which exemplified in the innovation summit annually. There were 12 technical sessions where industry and academia shared that how to develop technologies of commercial importance. There were 60 stalls of various technologies displayed by 30 industries and 30 universities. There were 30 general technology awards for students and scientists and 15 innovation awards for commercially proven technologies. Around 500+ projects to solve industry problems of Pakistan were displayed also. The Summit was graced by the presence of industry speakers, academicians, and government officials. Federal Minister and Deputy Chairman Planning Commission Prof. Ahsan Iqbal emphasized upon the Research and Development (R & D) institutes to take lessons from the contemporary world and accordingly plan their strategies of R&D work to compete with them. The Federal Minister appreciated the efforts for organizing this event and pledged to extend every help for the support of applied aspects of Science & Technology. He emphasized that today is the time of knowledge revolution and the whole scenario of competition is linked with scientific knowledge. He advised universities to go ahead with inter-disciplinary approach where a doctor and engineer could know about each others' knowledge as they can no longer be successful working in isolation. Rector UMT Dr. Hasan Sohaib Murad was keynote speaker of the summit. He shared how nations are developed through application of new knowledge and research. He proposed technology parks to be set up by government where industry and academia can work together for application of research. He also proposed that focus and budget allocation for innovation to be increased. Chairman PSF Prof. Dr. Khalil Ahmed Ibupoto also highlighted the collaborations PSF has made in past through its different programmes bridging gaps between industry & academia. He emphasized that the strong collaboration between Industry and R&D organizations is pre-requisite to pass on the research results to end users. He explained about Glimpse of Innovation Summit 2014 other initiatives like "Inquiry Based Education" to create originality and individuality in the students, so that, their potential could be harnessed by the industry people. Vice Chancellor, University of the Punjab Dr Mujahid Kamran speaking on the occasion emphasized on providing more financial funds and support to education from different organs of the state. CEO, Institute for Research Promotion (IRP) Abid Sherwani introduced about the whole event and provided a brief of the activities jointly taken up by PSF and IRP. The innovation summit was supported by universities like NUST, Quad-i-Azam University, University of Management and Technology, College of Pharmacy, Punjab University, Public Sector like PASTIC, and Industry like Shafi Reso Chemicals and other. More than 300 technologies engrossed with local R&D were invited to put up to show their ideas through physical prototypes, posters presentations and documentaries etc. The industries and academia personals also presented their innovative products and research experiences. A total of 60 stalls were in place from public and private sector organizations from across the country. Workshop sessions of industry and academia experts have been arranged in this summit from different technology sectors like Processing Technologies for Industrial Chemicals, Horticulture Sector, Technology Workshop, Biotechnology, Corporate Sessions at Networking Dinner, Patenting Intellectual Property Rights, Solar Energy & Renewables, Technologies for Mineral Processing, Accelerating Industry Driven Technologies and the Technologies for Medical Textiles.
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