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Department of Agriculture
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In many countries and subnational entities, the Department of Agriculture is the government agency responsible for regulating agriculture.
ral
State
ral
Provincial
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ge workforce is maintained by the Government of India and the Individual States for undertaking Agricultural Development.
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In many countries and subnational entities, the Department of Agriculture is the government agency responsible for regulating agriculture.
Australia
Federal
State
Canada
Federal
- Department of Agriculture and Agri-Food
Provincial
Ireland
Philippines
Mexico
Puerto Rico
United Kingdom
United States
Federal
India
A huge workforce is maintained by the Government of India and the Individual States for undertaking Agricultural Development. Each state has its own department of Agriculture. For Example in Kerala. The Department of Agriculture is headed by the Director of Agriculture whose office is located at the Vikas Bhavan, Thiruvananthapuram. The Directorate is a huge office with a number of inefficient officers who spend time in gossipping, local political activities and in other personal activities not related to Agriculture. The Director is assisted by 4 Additional Directors who hardly know anything about Agriculture Technology. Their fundamental duty include tabulation of data, and massaging the Secretary to the Minister for Agriculture. Below them is an array of Joint Directors, Deputy Directors, Assistant Directors and Technical Assistants who have no work apparently. So its fun time there and therefore to get employed there one must gather heavy political support or bribe heavily.The heart of the Directorate consists of a big herd of clerks, junior superintendents and Administrative Officers whose main duty is to smoke beedies, chew tobacco, shout slogans, attend marriages, funeral ceremonies,and think how one can stop something being done. At the District Level there is the Pricipal Agricultural Office headed by a Joint Director supported by Deputy Directors for Water Management, NWDP, Training, Credit and Youth Programme. There is also an Assistant Principal Agricultural officer, Assistant Director of Agriculture Marketing and Technical Assistant whose duty is to divide the physical target assigned and then to prepare tables. Agricultural Technology is an unfamiliar term. To a lower level that is at the Block Level is the Assistant Director of Agriculture whose duty is to sit on the Treasury Varanda with a bill book and to write replies to audit reports published 20 years before. The Assistant Director of Agriculture prepares some monthly reports which has no use. At prime root level is the Krishi Bhavan headed by the Agricultural Officer, supported by three or two Agricultural Assistants and a part time sweeper. This is the office where something is done. Developmental Funds from the State and the Government of India is spend for the sake of fabricating documents to satisfy audit check. Good of the farmer, even though had been the motto, is entirely forgotten. The officials of the Krishi Bhavan are controlled at the root level by the Local Self Government Bodies which adds to the confusion. The inputs supplied under various developmental schemes are of very poor quality or supplied at the wrong time. Seeds are supplied when fertilizers are to be added. Fertilizers and pesticides are supplied during harvest season. The PRIME CONCERN IS EXPENDITURE AND AUDIT.The major impediments for the proper functioning of the department are as follows. 1. Outdated technology available 2. Substandard technology feed from the Agricultural University 3. Activities aimed at Expenditure and satisfy AUDIT 4. Insincere Adminstrators 5. Ignorant Ministers in charge 6. Associations reserved for vested interests of a few 7. Poor field level review.
The department of Agriculture has several associated institutions. Some of which are 1. Soil Testing Labs, Fertilizer Testing Labs, Pesticide Testing Lab, State Seed Farm, Farm Information Bureau, Kisan ( Documentation & Informatics ) Progeny Orchards, Engineering Division, Soil Conservation Division etc.
Soil Testing Lab
Every District has a Soil Testing Lab which will analyse samples of Soil send to them by Krishi Bhavans ( Field level Offices ). Every Krishi Bhavan is assigned a target of 300 to 450 samples of soil. Each sample are to be collected from farmers field following the standard sampling procedure. The sampling procedure is described now. In a plot a representative area is chosen and then the site is cleared of pebbles and organic debris. Then a V shaped pit of 25 to 30 cm is taken using a spade. Then one inch of soil is scraped along one side of the V shaped pit and collected without stones and twigs. The soil may be collected from different parts of a plot pooled. Such lots of soil will be spread on clean poly sheets in a square shape and then quartered after drying in shade for a day. One pair of opposite quarters will be removed and the other opposite pair of quarters will be pooled and spread again in a square form to repeat the quartering and sample down sizing. Finally a 300 gram sample will suffice for sample analysis. The sample is packed into a small poly cover and a label is inserted inside with the details of the name of the farmer,code No, Survey No Village, Types of crops cultivated, date of sample collection etc, all labelled using a pencil.The sample is then despached to the Testing Lab for analysis. Following the procedure an officer can collect upto 10 samples a day.This is what is to be done. But what really happens is different. The officers of the Krishi Bhavans digs a big hole near their office and collects upto 150 samples from that single pit and packs into poly bags. So it becomes an easy and prompt responsibility from these field level functionaries. The counterparts at the Soil Testing Lab has sensed this well in advance. So they are even more faithful and resource savers. They dont spend time analysing the whole lot of samples send to them. Analysis of sample is labor intensive and consumes lot of chemicals and electricity. So one among the sample is analysed and result recorded. The results of the other samples are given a good guess by incorporating slight variations randomly.
State
- List of state Departments of Agriculture: http://www.statelocalgov.net/50states-agriculture.cfm
See also
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