Identification of Constraints in Herbicide Application Technology of Punjab Farmers

Abstract

Herbicides are the chemicals that are used to kill unwanted, undesirable, troublesome, noxious plants, called weeds.
Ecological and environmental risks associated with their application in agriculture have been attracting the attention from
the public as well as the scientific community. In order to reduce it, efforts have been made to identify the constraints
prevalent in current herbicide application technology. The study on herbicide use and application technology was
conducted in Amritsar and Jalandhar districts of Punjab and revealed that farmers generally depend upon local dealers for
technical guidance. These dealers misguide the farmers for their own monetary benefits. Only 8 % of the farmers were
generally aware of the meaning of chemical names of herbicides, rest depend more on popular names. About 5.3 % could
differentiate between the classes of chemicals. The gaps in knowledge were identified and it was found that lack of
awareness was with regard to spraying techniques, types of herbicides, time and method of application and dumping of
empty containers. Poor communication was reported between farmers and extension persons. The study emphasized that
with increasing brands in agriculture inputs and decreasing profitability, it becomes important that farmers should be
trained specifically on spraying techniques and more knowledge regarding class and judicious use of herbicides be
provided to them in farmer participatory mode.