Golden Fibre Making Inroads into Road Construction

Golden Fibre Making Inroads into Road Construction 

The first thing when we hear about coir comes to our mind is traditional items like mats, baskets and ropes, but it is not the case anymore. 

With the changing times and growing charm for eco-friendly products, the golden fibre is finding new applications and is also being preferred in road construction. 

With increasing deforestation affecting the environment, the biodegradable geotextiles is being used in the construction of roads. 

The major reasons for increased use of the natural fibre are sustainability and cost effectiveness. 

Coir (coconut fiber) geotextiles are a popular solution for erosion control, slope stabilisation and bioengineering, due to the fabric’s substantial mechanical strength. 

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Social Media - The Fourth Pillar

Social Media: Reconstructing

the Fourth Pillar

 

Social media permits multiple identities - tribal, feudal, regional, linguistic, national, religious, ... It allows the material impulses/instincts to be satisfied by proxy, in the virtual world. The very nature of the network allows hierarchical and horizontal connections with others

 

Recent technological innovations put the tools of production of media content in the hands of common man. It allows anybody with access to the Net to reach across to millions. It gives voice to erstwhile voiceless. Access to these tools empowers the powerless.  

For the traditional large corporate media houses, however, it has been very disempowering. Grandmothers start chitchatting with their grandchildren on the other part of the world, disregarding their favourite serial - because that is the best time to interact with people on the other part of the world. Young householders living in rented flats are attending to their virtual farms and decorating their virtual houses, fulfilling their instincts and dreams. Young children making up animation stories using applications in iPad... Attracting eyeballs to any mass entertainment has never been more difficult.  

From the traditional mass media point of view, the new media is seen as merely another platform for delivery. But the new media is much more than that. It is a platform for interactions, conversations, searching, creating and sharing. Sharing is a two way process but media delivery is a one way street. The traditional business models for media are not yet really ready for this transformation. 

Challenges to traditional media 

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Financing Agriculture : Some Issues (India)

Financing Agriculture : Some Issues (India)
 

Small and marginal farmers should be helped to liberate themselves from the stranglehold of moneylender and should be given priority for accessing low cost credit.

Post 1990 India has emerged as one of the world’s fastest growing economies. Its GDP growth rate of about 9% in the last few years is historically unparalleled except by our neighbour China. With rapid economic and social growth, however, new challenges emerge as also new growth strategies. For sustainable economic development, the crucial agricultural sector has to grow at a consistent 4% growth rate to GDP. Given the fact that 60% of our farming is monsoon dependent, ensuring consistent growth in food production is a major challenge, especially in wake of global warming and consequent climatic changes.

Credit has a very important role to play in supporting agricultural production and investment activities. The total credit flow to agriculture during the 10th Five Year Plan was expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 26.38%, as against the CAGR of 18.63% achieved during the 9th Five Year Plan. However, although the total agricultural credit has increased during the last six years, there are serious quantitative as well as qualitative concerns. The poor outreach of the formal institutional credit structure is a serious issue that needs to be corrected expeditiously. The findings of the National Sample Survey Organisation (NSSO) 59th Round (2003), reveal that only 27% of the total number of cultivator households received credit from formal sources while 22% received credit from informal sources. The remaining households, comprising mainly small and marginal farmers, had no credit outstanding. Comprehensive measures aimed at financial inclusion in terms of innovative products and services to increase access to financial services and institutional credit, are required. Other issues such as ensuring credit flow to tenant farmers, oral lessees and women cultivators, complex documentation processes, high transaction costs, lack of availability of quality inputs across all regions, inadequate and ineffective risk mitigation arrangements, poor extension services, weak marketing links and sectoral and regional issues in credit are also required to be addressed expeditiously. The lack of rural credit bureaus also delays the process of sanction of agricultural loans as there is need to reduce loan risk and documentation procedures.

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Epicotyl Mango Grafting

Epicotyl Grafting :


Epicotyl grafting : It is same as the grafting in terms of methodology, only that in this case the of 15 to 20 days old seedlings are used as root stock for grafting.

Technique of mango epicotyl grafting:

1. Mango stones of any variety preferable bigger size are dibbled in the raised bed of 1.5 mt x 10 mt at a spacing of 3 inch x 3 inch.

2. Stones are dibbled vertically rather than traditional horizontally for convenience during uprooting and transplanting the mango grafts to the polythene.

3. When the mango seedlings are attained 15 to 20 days old, (still in reddish,Bronzy, coppery or greenish red colour and having stone kernel left with some food and nutrient supplement for getting quick joint in the grafts) these are uprooted carefully with stone and root undamaged. The roots and stones are dipped in 0.1 percent bavistin solution for five minutes after washing the soil.

4. These are cut at a ht of 5-6 inch and splited longitudinally to accommodate the mother scion(the twigs of desired verity)

5. Mother scions of about 8 inch as collected from the desired mother plant are then given two slanting cut opposite to each other at the base to give a wedge shape. The mother scion used for this purpose should be defoliated 7-10 days prior to the grafting (scion twigs still attached to mother plant) so as to get a plumpy/swelled terminal bud.

6. These cut scions are then inserted in the splitted root stock carefully and tied by the grafting polythene tape keeping about 6 inch of scion part above the joint.

7. To maintain the smoothness at the joints (mismatch due to the difference in the diameter of stock and scion) and greater success of grafts, one side of the joints is smoothened by matching the stock and scion surface before tying the tape.

8. These stock-scion grafts are then transplanted into the black polybags of size 7 x 9 sq inch and filled by the soil mixture (prepared earlier as in case of normal nursery) firmly.

9. These are then nurtured in controlled condition without exposing to direct sunlight and rain for about one month till the joints are successful. Then these are exposed to open area for vigour growth.

10. Most suitable time for grafting : June 15- July 15 (Under Indian Condition) giving more than 90% success.

11. Plantation in main field is done on the onset of next rainy season when the grafts have attained 3 feet ht and of 10-12 months old.