Sustainability of Onion Cultivation in Northern Dry Zone of Karnataka

Abstract

Onion is one of the important vegetables as well as cash crops grown in India as well newlineas in Karnataka. Sustainability is the way that natural systems work, remain diversified and newlinegenerate all the resources required for the ecology to be in balance. Keeping this point in newlineview, the present study entitled Sustainability of onion cultivation in northern dry zone of newlineKarnataka was conducted during 2020-21with ex-post facto research design. The study was newlineconducted in Vijayapura, Bagalkote and Gadag districts of Karnataka with 90 randomly newlineselected onion growers from each district. Thus, the sample size for the study was 270. The newlinedata were collected from the respondents through personal interview method with structured newlineand pre-tested interview schedule. An index was developed to measure sustainability of onion newlinecultivation. Under three dimensions namely production, economic and social dimension newlinethirteen indicators were selected to measure sustainability of onion cultivation. Among the newlineselected indicators for sustainability, selection of suitable varieties had shown highest (84.14) newlineoverall sustainable index with I rank and methods of sowing / planting indicator had got II newlinerank with overall sustainable index of 80.25. The relationship of indicators with land newlineproductivity had shown that method of sowing/ planting, integrated nutrient management, newlinewater management, input productivity and resources possessed were positive and highly newlinesignificant at one per cent level. There was significant difference between the three newlinedimensions of sustainability with mean scores of 28.91, 17.87 and 37.89 for production, newlineeconomic and social dimension, respectively. Significant difference was found among the newlinedistricts with respect to overall sustainability of onion cultivation with mean scores 91.31 for newlineVijayapura, 86.60 for Bagalkote and 76.13 for Gadag districts. Higher per cent of the onion newlinegrowers found in medium group of extension contact (45.18 %), extension participation newline(43.33 %), mass media exposure (50.00 %), innovative proneness (56.6