eChapters

India has a unique social and cultural setting with diverse people, culture and religions. It is one of the oldest and greatest civilizations of the world. Geographically India extends snow clad Himalayan mountains in the north to the tropical rain forests of the south. It is the 7th largest country in the world and well recognised in Asia by its mountains, seas, deserts, and vast stretch of fertile plain land, which give the country a distinct geographical identity.

India has a very rich, diverse religious and cultural heritage. The four main religions of India are - Hinduism, Islam, Christianity and Sikhism. Hinduism is the largest religion in India, with approximately 80% of the population is Hindu while Islam (Muslim) is the second-largest religion having 14% (approx.) share.

Religion in India is characterised by the diversity of religious beliefs and practices. In Indian history, religion has been an important part of the country's culture. Indian subcontinent is the birthplace of four of the world's major religions, namely, Buddhism, Hinduism, Jainism and Sikhism, which are collectively known as native Indian religions and represent 83% of the total population of India approximately.

Hinduism

Hinduism is the main Indian religion. It is considered as a religious and universal order, a way of life which followed by the people who believed in Hinduism. The word ‘Hindu’ refers group of particular people who believes and follow Hinduism, the oldest religion in the world. It has also been described as ‘Sanatana dharma’.

The Ramayana written by sage Valmiki is one of the great epics of the Sanskrit language. It is most religiously regarded and popular book in Hinduism. The book is believed to be complied between 300 B.C.E. – 200 AD. However, the original story could be as old 500 B.C.E. (Goldman, 1984). There are many other versions of the epic in various regional languages found in India and South Asia (Raghunathan, 1981; Arya,1998; Dutt, 2004; Mukherjee, 2015; Sharma and Arya, 2022).

As per literature references, the name ‘Ramanaya’ is composed of two words, ‘Rama’ and ‘Aya?a’. Rama, the name of the main character of the Epic, has two contextual meanings. In the Atharvaveda, it means 'dark’, dark-coloured, ‘black' and is related to the word ‘ratri’ (night) which means 'darkness of night'. The other meaning, which can be found in the Mahabharata, is 'pleasing’, pleasant, charming, lovely, beautiful. The word ‘Ayana’ means travel or journey. Thus, Ramaya?a means ‘Rama's Journey’ from his kingdom to various places, forests during his life time (Anonymous, 1960; Tulsidas, 1966; Murthy, 2003; Kishore, 2007; Rajagopalachari, 2013).

Ramayana contains over 24,000 couplet verses, in its full form, which are divided into following seven ‘Ka??as’ (booklets) - Balaka??a, Ayodhyaka??a, Ara?yaka??a, Ki?kindhaka??a, Sundaraka??a, Yuddhaka??a, Uttaraka??a and about 500 sargas (chapters). It is regarded as one of the longest epic poems written in history (Keshavadas, 1988; Debroy, 2017; Gupta, 2021).

morally right man in the world? Narada replied that such a man is Rama, son of King Dasharatha of Ayodhya. Valmiki wanted to know more about Rama and proceeded to take bath when he saw two birds in playful mood and was happy. Suddenly, a hunter hiding in the bush shot one of the two birds. Valmiki became painful and chanted some dialogues in curse which ultimately created a new form of sloka. This was the beginning of the main narrative (Goldman, 1984; Sachithanantham, 2004).

The exile of Rama and his journey to the forests (vanvasa) for 14 years was started from Ayodhya (Uttar Pradesh, India) and ended to Lanka (Sri Lanka), through different forests, territorial regions, lands, hills, lakes of old India. The whole journey to those places was candidly portrayed in Ramayana with vivid descriptions, from narrations of the night sky, the position of different stars to descriptions of the flora, fauna and landscape. In this chapter, a retrospection of the places, forests, Rama passed through during his entire journey has been documented. The present status of those forests and places has been considered to evaluate a comparison over the thousands of years and the changes taken place besides significance they hold till date (Anonymous, 2024; Iyer, 2014).

Journey to the Forest and Route Map

Ayodhya, the capital city, kingdom of Kosala, was situated on the banks of holy river Saryu and was the birthplace of Rama. To fulfill the wish of his father, king Dasharatha, Rama left Ayodhya for 14 years of exile to the forest, along with Sita and Lakshmana. Their journey started from Ayodhya and passed through different places / forests.

In this chapter, a comprehensive list of all plants and trees mentioned in epic Ramayana has been furnished with salient details in order to establish their botanical identity and references of Sholka where it had been mentioned. Some of the plants and trees had been mentioned in multiple sholokas but the plant has been taken into account as a single reference to avoid repetition and to get correct count of the trees and plants in whole of the Epic (Amirthalingam, 2013, Arun Kumar, 2019; Balapure et al., 1987; Bast, 2022; Ghimire et.al, 2021; Mao and Dash, 2010; Prasad and Mishra, 1976).

The plant species mentioned in Ramayana were of different types having various usages. Considering their morphological characteristics, usages and other importance, they have been categorized broadly into the following heads.

1. Economically important plants (Timber value, product yielding etc. having commercial importance).

2. Edible (major and minor fruits etc.).

3. Culturally important plants (Plants used for plantation for shade, greening etc.).

4. Non-Edible Plants (Ornamental importance and other usages)

5. Medicinal Plants (having therapeutic uses).

6. Sacred Plants (having religious importance).

7. Others (having multipurpose uses).

In previous Chapter, a list was furnished mentioning common names, botanical names, family and types of the all plants mentioned in the Ramayana. The purpose was to know the total number of plants and trees mentioned besides providing reference of the Shlokas as well. This information led to identification of the plants and trees but details about their morphological and floral characters were not mentioned. Therefore, in this Chapter details of the trees and other plants have been provided. This will help to know all about their botanical standing, conservation status, nativity, morphological and floral characters so that one can know the full details including present-day status, availability and importance (Cowen, 1950; Randhawa, 1983; Roy, 2015; 2024).

1. Botanical Name: Adenanthera pavonina L.

Synonym: Adenanthera gersenii Scheff.

Common Name: ‘Red Bead Tree’, ‘Curly Bean’, ‘Red Sandal Wood’

Family: Fabaceae

Nativity: India, Sri Lanka, Southeast Asia to Queensland

Conservation Status: Common (Not Threatened)

Type: Tree

Morphological and Floral Characters: Red Bead Tree is a timber tree found wild in India. Leaves compound, bipinnate, green when young, turning yellow on maturity. Flowers small, yellowish, grows in a dense, drooping almost cat tail like flower-heads. Fruits curved pods, hanging, green that turn brown, coil up and split open on ripening, showing small bright red seeds which are attractive, used as beads in jewellery.

Retrospection

India is a unique country in the world with many religions and cultural diversity. Indian culture has been continuing through the ages because of its adjustability with others and openness. Unity in diversity is one of the major characteristics of Indian culture. It is a diverse nation where people of many religions live together peacefully. Religion in India is characterized by the diversity of religious beliefs and practices. In Indian history, religion has played an important role in the cultural set up of the country.

Hinduism is the main Indian religion and considered as a universal order, a way of life which is followed by the people. The origin for Hinduism is very old having no exact date of its inception. This is a belief and practices followed by people through the ages and considered as a process of humanity. The earliest known sacred text of Hinduism is ‘Vedas’ which dates back to at least 3000 BCE. However, it is believed that these texts are of divine origin and timeless. Hinduism was more philosophically and theoretically described in Upanishads, written roughly between 800 and 400 BCE. The Mahabharata and Bhagavad-Gita are other best-known book and widely cited on Hinduism. The Ramayana is the other most important epic book on Hinduism which teaches about life, principles, duty, justice etc. through the life-story of Rama.

Dasharatha was a great Hindu king of the Kosala kingdom and Ayodhya was the capital from where He ruled. He was the son of King Aja of Kosala and Queen Indumati of Vidarbha. Dasharatha had three primary queens namely - Kausalya, Sumitra, and Kaikeyi. Unfortunately, the King had no sons to continue his dynasty after him. Despaired Dasharatha summoned Rishyashringa, a forest rishi for a ritual to fulfill his desire of have sons. By that way, the King had four sons. Queen Kaushalya gave birth Rama and similarly, Kaikeyi gave birth Bharata and Sumitra gave birth two sons, namely - Lakshmana and Shatrughna. Lakshmana was very much attached and devoted to Rama while Shatrughna was devoted to Bharata.

The domestication of oxen in Mesopotamia and the Indus Valley Civilization, perhaps as early as the 6th millennium B.C. provided mankind with the draft power necessary to develop the early plough into the larger, animal-drawn true ard (or scratch plough). Some of the earliest evidence of ploughing from around 2800 B.C.was found at the Indus Valley site of Kalibangan. Subsequent archaeological finds in Prague, Czech Republic, push the oldest known ploughed field even further back to 3500-3800 B.C. All food produce was planted and harvested by hand: seeds were scattered by hand and planted grains were brought from the field to be threshed on the dooryard. Milking a small herd of cows or goats was also done by hand. This continued for centuries. Then man discovered electricity.

In 1746, just a few years before Benjamin Franklin of Philadelphia sent a kite to catch lightning in a storm, a Doctor von Maimbray gave talk to the Royal Society of London where he described his experiment of electrifying the myrtle bush (Morella cerifera) which then put forth new branches in October, something which had never happened before. This news inspired others in Europe to carry out similar experiments. In 1749, Abbot Jean Antoine Nollet of the Royal Academy of Sciences in Paris France, inventor of the electroscope, published a pamphlet on “The Harmful Effects or Advantageous of Electrical Phenomena on Plants.”¹Isolated experiments continued until in 1783 Father Pierre Bertholon de Saint-Lazare of Montpellier published “About the Electricity of Plants”, a work in which he dealt with the effect of atmospheric electricity on plants, taking in their medicinal and nutritive-electrical virtues and but in particular the practical means of applying it usefully to agriculture.²He even built an electro-vegetometer, a device for collecting atmospheric electricity to distribute it in the soil and then to the plants, but he met with little success. Bertholon also conceived of subjecting plants to “electric rain” by connecting a large syringe to an electric source. A gardener, standing on a slab of insulating material in a wagon, carried a sprinkling can electrified by means of a wire leading to a static machine. “By means of this process, strange for the times, the good Abbé Bertholon, who was considered something of a sorcerer, obtained lettuces of an extraordinary size.”3

In 1920, although electric vehicles were not used on the American farms about 5,000 electric industrial trucks were produced by 12 American manufacturers, while estimates of the total fleet ranged from 6,000 to 15,000, most of them built during the war. Most used an exchange charging system. Among the manufacturers seen in and around cities and towns were the Commercial Truck Company, the Lansden Company, the Walker Vehicle Company (now owned by Commonwealth Edison), the Ward Motor Vehicle Company, the Steinmetz Electric Motor Corporation, Walter Motor Truck Company, and the Baker R L Corporation.One step away from agriculture, Charles A. Ward of New York City, was head of his family’s baking company, made up of the Mackey Company, the Ward Corby Company, the Ward Bread Companyand the Ohio Baking Company of Cleveland. In 1911, Ward had decided to replace his horse-drawn delivery vehicles with electric trucks, thus doing away with the unsanitary stable hitherto part of or adjacent to bakery.¹

Alongside this, the challenge of using stationary electric agricultural machines continued to be met. Two innovations which entered into dairy farming were the milk cream electric centrifugal separator and the surge milker. The Babson brothers (Henry, Fred and Gus) of Chicago were friends of and dealers for electrical battery inventor and entrepreneur Thomas Edison, and importers of Belgian-made Méllote separators. In 1916, the Babsonsproduced their own Pine Tree milking machine. While the overall design was similar to others, the electrically powered Pine Tree Pulsator outperformed any other pulsator made. These machines were powered by a 32-volt Delco system with 12 batteries near the barn. Pine Tree Pulsators were simple enough that the farmer could maintain them himself. The Pine Tree Pulsator was patented in 1921. The problem with this unit was that it was difficult to keep clean.

The 21^st century dawned with interest in the potential of electric agricultural machines. Beginning in 2000, a concept study, MELA Mobile Elektrische Leistungsund Antriebstechnik Mobile (electric power train technology)supported by universities and organizations in Germany as well as Fendt Agricutural Company (AGCO) showed a possible solution on tractor electrification with electric driven auxiliaries as well as electric CVTs and implement electrification. In 2003 the University of Hohenheim developed an electric combine harvester called Magda. With the introduction of a 42 VDC power supply system, the range of small rotational drives and servo motors could be covered. They showed that if more power had to be transmitted, threephase alternating current should be used since threephase machines had a large speed range and a large range of constant power.

During the first years of the century, longestablished transport manufacturers have been quick to see the environmental advantage of electric propulsion, be it with batteries, hybridelectric or fuel cell. With airliners, Boeing, Airbus and Tupolev quickly saw the advantage. With motorcycles, names such as HarleyDavidson, Curtiss, Ducati, Saroléa and Royal Enfield have positioned battery packs between two wheels. With trucks, Daimler, Toyota, Cummins, Peterbilt, DAF, Volvo, Leyland, Kenworth, and Isuzi, among others have taken the electric route. With buses, Alexander Dennis, Scania, Volvo, New Flyer, Van Hool, DAFVDL, Blue Bird, Heuliez, Rampinican carry their passengers more silently. It therefore seemed only logical that traditional agricultural machinery builders should make the same transition. The first to do this was John Deere, established in Moline, Illinois in 1837.

This chapter traces the history of the electric quadcopter commonly known as the drone, prior to its use in agriculture.

As long ago as 1493, the versatile Italian Leonardo de Vinci, painter, sculptor, machine designer often inspired by his observations of Nature, made a sketch in one of his little notebooks of a screw-like machine next to which he wrote in his mirror-handwriting:

If this instrument made with a screw be well made – that is to say, made of linen of which the pores are stopped up with starch and be turned swiftly, the said screw will make its spiral in the air and it will rise high.¹

Four centuries later, in 1863, the Viscount Gustave du Ponton d’Amécourt, President of The Society for the Encouragement of Aerial Locomotion by Means of Heavier than Air Machines, published a forty-page monograph in Paris, entitled “The Conquest of the air by propeller. Account of a new system of aviation.” In this he took the Greek words helico and pteron, meaning “spiral” and “wing”, and combined them into the word hélicoptère (helicopter). D’Amécourt and his friends were among those very few who were passionately convinced that the future of flying was with heavier-than-air machines. To prove their point, having built a fragile flying machine model driven by clockwork springs, they watched it ascend vertically for a few seconds to a height of less than 3 metres (10 feet), only to crash back to the ground.

EAAMs (Electric Agricultural Aerial Machines) have emerged from drones used for both aerial filming, as toys and even as racing units. A Price water house Coopers’ study revealed that the global market for drone-powered business solutions was valued at $127.3 billion in 2016. For agriculture, prospective drone applications in global projects were valued at $32.4 billion. Stelios Kotakis and colleagues at market research firm IHS Markit projected that there would be around 400,000 shipments of drones to firms in the agriculture and forestry sectors in 2017. The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations projects that by 2050 humanity’s ranks will likely have grown to nearly 10 billion people. Farmers will need to produce more with less, while preserving our environment for future generations. And society has a duty to help them achieve this. Although agriculture is perceived as a traditional economic sector, precision agriculture technologies have already boosted crop yields significantly in the last decades. The same study forecast that agricultural consumption would increase by 69% from 2010 to 2050.

In 1920, a 30-year-old Czech writer Karel Èapek, wrote a play called “R.U.R.” (Rossumovi Univerzální Roboti or Rossum’s Universal Robots). For this dystopian work about a bad day at a factory populated with sentient androids, Èapek called the androids “roboti”, as suggested byhis brother Josef, a painter and writer. It was premiered in Prague on 25^th January, 1921.

Èapek was admired for his opinions:

My dear Miss Glory, Robots are not people. They are mechanically more perfect than we are, they have an astounding intellectual capacity, but they have no soul.

But surprisingly he was keen on gardening!

Industrial waste can be solid, liquid, or gaseous in type and is generated by industrial activities throughout a manufacturing process. Depending on its nature, it can be hazardous or non-hazardous. It is important to note that hazardous wastes can be ignitable, toxic, reactive, corrosive, or radioactive and can pose a threat to the environment. Industrial waste includes, among other things, paints, concrete, paper goods, sandpaper, metals and chemical solvents. Most industries face a significant problem associated with the disposal of waste. Due to the significant expenses involved, it is not feasible to collect and treat all of the waste due to the sizeable volume of waste produced by numerous businesses. As a result, especially in developing nations, the majority of industrial wastes are illegally deposited on wastelands like deserted fields

The basic methods for wastewater sewerage (collection, treatment, and disposal) are as follows:

• Off-site sewerage
• Separate sewerage system
• Combined sewerage system
• On-site sewerage

Many nations have implemented separate sewage systems that transmit sewage and storm water through separate pipelines in order to separate the two. Storm water often does not contribute to a wastewater treatment facility (WWTP). Domestic sewage contains 99.9% or more water. The remaining portion is made up of bacteria

Wastewater is defined as water that has been altered by certain substances, resulting in changes in its physical, chemical, or biological properties. These changes render it unfit for certain uses, such as the purpose of drinking. Since almost all of man’s daily activities are dependent on water, therefore ‘waste’ is discharged into the surroundings as a result of these actions. There are a number of substances that can be harmful to the environment and make people sick, including chemicals, detergents, household cleaners, dirt, microorganisms (germs), and body wastes. The water supply generates a great deal of wastewater, so it is essential that it is treated in order to reduce the amount of waste that it generates. Essentially, wastewater treatment ensures that a healthy environment is created and public health is protected by removing the majority of pollutants found in wastewater through the treatment process. Consequently, wastewater management plays an important role in protecting the planet, and public and economic health, as well as social, economic, and political stability.

4.1 Biomass Energy Resource

Among the various methods for producing electricity, biomass is one of the most common. This method uses animal waste, wood pellets, etc. to produce electricity. The use of biomass energy has proven beneficial over time and has the potential to be both reliable and consistent as an alternative energy source.

Organic matter is simply referred to as biomass. Or, to put it another way, biomass is anything living or ever living, including animal waste, crop waste, garden trash, etc. As a result, biomass renewable energy is the energy produced during the use of biomass. Biomass derives and stores its energy from the sun, which is absorbed by plants through a process known as photosynthesis. Plants contain chemical energy that is passed to animals and then eaten by people. Various plant and animal products, including sugarcane, corn crops, wood chips, and even dung, can be utilised. These substances, also referred to as feedstocks, are converted into a biomass fuel.

5.1 Waste Treatment and Disposal

Source reduction and feeding the hungry are significant considerations for decreasing avoidable food waste. However, non-edible wastes like livestock manure, agricultural wastes, and unusable food wastes are also classified as organic wastes. The environment and general public’s health may be seriously endangered by improper treatment of these wastes. Wastes can contaminate surface and ground waterways by runoff or leaching if they contain pathogens, chemicals, antibiotics, and nutrients. The breakdown of organic waste also results in the production of methane. As is well known, methane is a powerful greenhouse gas that captures more heat into the atmosphere than carbon dioxide. It is possible to remove organic waste and turn it into biogas, a sustainable energy source that can be utilised to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and the likelihood of stream pollution. Further emission reductions are made possible by replacing fossil fuels with biogas, sometimes leading to carbon-negative systems.

Urbanization, industrialization, and economic growth in India have all led to an increase in the generation of municipal solid waste (MSW) by a number of urban local bodies (ULBs). In cities with high population densities, SWM is a significant difficulty. Being a diverse country with a wide range of religious communities, customs, and traditions like India makes it more challenging to accomplish sustainable development in a country that is rapidly industrialising and improving its standard of living. Although there have been substantial changes in the social, economic, and environmental spheres, India’s SWM systems have mostly remained the same. Currently, 90% of residual waste is thrown in the informal sector rather than properly disposed of. To make SWM more sustainable, new management practises and disposal sites are needed. The inefficiency of the current waste management systems has a detrimental effect on the economy, the environment, and public health. The Ministry of Environment and Forests of India introduced regulations for garbage treatment, although there is irregular and insufficient compliance.

This chapter introduces the essential components of laboratory work that form the foundation for veterinary parasitology and molecular biology research. A well-equipped laboratory along with proper safety protocols and correctly prepared reagents, is the key to reliable experimental outcomes and a secure working environment.
The following sections describe the standard operating procedures and laboratory biosafety, standard equipment used in research work, and the fundamental principles of solution preparation. These basic laboratory skills are essential prerequisites for the specialised techniques covered in subsequent chapters on veterinary parasitology, molecular biology and bioinformatics. Understanding and applying these foundational concepts allows researchers to maintain experimental consistency, ensure reproducible results, and conduct investigations safely and efficiently. The methods and principles outlined here will be regularly applied throughout the various techniques detailed in this manual, serving as essential knowledge for all laboratory personnel as well short-term visitors.
1.1 Laboratory Standard Operating Procedures and Safety
Laboratory safety is fundamental to protecting personnel, maintaining sample integrity, and ensuring reliable experimental outcomes. This section outlines essential laboratory conduct, safety protocols for personnel and equipment, waste management, and emergency protocols for standard laboratories carrying out diagnostics as well as research.

This chapter explores the essential techniques used in veterinary parasitology to collect, identify, and diagnose parasitic infections. These methods are crucial for understanding general animal health, the complex relationships between parasites and their hosts and for tracking disease outbreaks, that will ultimately allow the development of effective control strategies. Whether in a research lab or a clinical setting, the techniques discussed here are widely used to detect and study parasites that impact both domestic and wild animals.
2.1 Collection of Specimens for Parasitological Examinations
Different species of parasites affects almost all parts of the host. These organisms can inhabit virtually every organ system of the host animal, from the brain and lungs to the digestive tract and skin. Therefore, a thorough examination of both living animals and post-mortem cases is essential for collecting parasites and determining cause of death (when applicable). When collecting from live animals, samples should be collected after through exanimation of the animals and following the standard procedure. The collection of correct samples, use of appropriate transport media and proper handling of specimens are crucial factors that directly influence diagnostic accuracy.
The type of specimen collected depends on the methods of identification and diagnosis. For example, diagnosis of blood parasites requires specific types of samples: peripheral blood smears for microscopic examination of hemoprotozoans, serum or plasma for ELISA and other serological tests, and unclotted whole blood for molecular diagnostic methods such as PCR and qPCR.

This chapter outlines fundamental molecular biology protocols essential for genomic analysis and molecular characterisation. Modern molecular biology relies heavily on precise analytical techniques for studying genetic material. Hence, this section presents a typical workflow encompassing nucleic acid extraction, amplification, and subsequent analysis. These methodologies are fundamental to various applications in molecular biology, including phylogenetic analysis, gene expression studies, and molecular diagnostics.
The chapter covers four core molecular biology and bioinformatics techniques, each building upon the previous:
1. Genomic DNA Extraction: Protocols for efficient isolation of DNA from biological samples. This encompasses cell lysis, protein denaturation, and nucleic acid purification through standard separation techniques. The quality and purity of extracted DNA significantly influences downstream applications.
2. Primer Design with Primer3: In silico design of oligonucleotide primers for PCR amplification. This section covers primer design parameters including optimal melting temperature (Tm), GC content, primer length, and considerations for avoiding secondary structures and primer-dimer formation.

PESTS OF CEREALS

Rice (Oryza sativa)

Rice is the staple food of a vast majority of people throughout the world, especially in India. Rice crop is grown in about 75 million acres, which is about one-third of the total world area under rice. The warm and humid environment for the rice crop is best suited for invasion by several insect pests and as many as 85 species of insects are known to infest this crop. The damages caused by different pests extend from the seedling to harvest stages of the crop. Some of these pests are widely distributed and cause extensive damage. The more important pests are described below:

1. Rice stem borer or Rice yellow stem borer

Scirpophaga (Tryporyza) incertulas

Order - Lepidoptera

Family - Pyraustidae

Among the pests, which ravage rice crop, ‘rice stem borer’ is a major one and infests rice crop at all growth stages, from seedling to flowering. It is a specific pest of rice alone and is more serious during the months of October-January. The pest has a wide distribution in all Asian countries. The damages caused by this pest ranges from 5-20 per cent. Generally, late varieties of rice are more severely infested than the early maturing varieties, because of the possibility of the pest multiplying in larger numbers by the time the late varieties come to maturity. Cold weather with high humidity and low temperature prevalent during October-December is found to be conducive for the multiplication of the insect.

Mango (Mangifera indica)

1. Mango hoppers

(i) Amritodes atkinsoni (ii) Idioscopus niveosparsus and (iii) I. clypealis

Order - Hemiptera

Suborder - Homoptera

Family - Cicadellidae

Nature of damage. Three different species of hoppers are found to cause damage to mango trees. During some years, especially during the months of November-February, when the mango trees come to flowering, the pest appears in large numbers. During the other months, the pests are seen in much lesser numbers in an active form, while the other insects hibernate under the bark of the trees. Even in the peak period of pest occurrence, after a few heavy showers, the number of insects is considerably reduced.

During the cold season, when the trees put out the flower spikes, thousands of hoppers, young and adults appear in large numbers, pierce, suck and feed on the sap from the tender shoots, flower stalks, flowers and buds. This drain of the sap causes the buds and flowers to dry, wither and they are shed in large numbers, as a result fruit production may go down by 25-60 per cent. When a severely infested tree is approached, thousands of hoppers hop or fly about and make a rustling noise, as they dash against the foliage. The hoppers exude a sweet, sticky fluid excretion and this fluid thrown out by myriads of these insects after feeding on the tree sap, wets the soil underneath the trees and on the surface of the leaves of the trees. In case of severe infestation, the fluid may fall down in drops. The secretion attracts scores of flies, bees and other insects, which come to feed on the secretion. The infested tree presents a sickly appearance. The trees get devoid of buds and blossoms. The leaves appear shiny and are covered by ‘sooty mould’, a fungal disease. Thousands of caste skins of the nymphs are found on the shoots and leaves. The continuous damage caused to the trees year after year by the pest makes them loose their vigor gradually and eventually leads to severe reduction in their yielding capacity.

Life cycle of the pest. The female hopper inserts spherical, pale whitish eggs singly into the plant tissues through slits made in the young shoots, flower stalks and flower spikes. The eggs hatch in 4-6 days and the young nymph hatching out of the egg looks quite similar to the adult. The nymphs are very active and move about rapidly along the flower spikes and shoots, suck and feed on the plant sap. They are smaller in size, wingless and unable to fly or jump. The young ones moult their skin a few times during their growth and become adults in 10-15 days. The adult hoppers are small insects, about 3.0 mm. in length with a wedge-shaped body. The head is broader and the body gradually narrowing backwards. The legs are well developed, especially the hind legs. The general color is light greenish-brown. They are extremely active and can fly and hop around. They have a tubular, sucking mouthpart by which they puncture the tender plant parts and floral parts. The adults of Idioscopus clypealis are smaller, with two black spots on the prothorax and a few black spots on the front portion of the head, while those of Idioscopus niveoparsus are slightly bigger with three black spots on the prothorax and whitish, distinct cross bands on the light brownish forewings. The adults of Amritodes atkinsoni are bigger than the other two species, about 5.0 mm. in length, with two black spots on the prothorax. Two or more generations may appear during the flowering season of mango trees (Fig.71).

Insect and non-insect pests cause extensive damage to standing crops, stored grains and stored products resulting in huge economic loss. Besides these, several pests cause annoyance, as well as attack livestock such as, cattle, poultry and pet animals. Some others damage household articles such as, clothing, upholstery, carpets, paper, books, leather articles, wooden and bamboo furniture and all sorts of wooden structures. These obnoxious creatures besides consuming any kind of food materials, spoil them by contaminating and polluting them with their faecal matter and urine and impart a repulsive, bad odor and make them unfit for consumption by humans and livestock. The damages caused by them pave the way for easy access and infection by some of the saprophytic microorganisms, which hasten the deterioration process. A few of these microorganisms produce mycotoxins, which are poisonous and may even be fatal to the consumers.

Among the household pests, cockroaches, crickets, silver fish, ants, white ants, carpet and powder post beetles and clothes moths are quite important. These insects not only cause annoyance but different types of flies, mosquitoes, bugs, fleas and lice either suck and feed on the blood from humans, cattle, poultry etc. but are also responsible for disseminating several disease causing microorganisms.

1.1 Some Useful Formulas Related to Farm Machinery

2.1 Some Useful Formulas Related to Farm Power

1.1. Soil Resource Evaluation

Soil is the essence of life on the planet Earth. It has sustained humanity and human civilizations through five functions (Karlen et al. 1997) viz., i) sustaining biological activity, diversity and productivity; ii) regulating and partitioning water and solute flow; iii) filtering, buffering, degrading, immobilizing and detoxifying organic and inorganic materials, including industrial and municipal byproducts and atmospheric decomposition; iv) storing and cycling nutrients and other elements within the earth’s biosphere; and v) providing support to socioeconomic structures and protection for archaeological treasures associated with human habitation. Reeling under the pressure of increasing food, fodder, feed, fibre and fuel production, soil has been used as a medium of plant growth with considerable reliance on external supply of major nutrients, irrigation water, plant protection chemicals, etc. Although soil, a product of millions of years of weathering, has supported various forms of terrestrial life, its sustainable management holds the key for meeting the basic requirements of burgeoning population and development commitments. So intense has been the pressure of increasing food, fodder, feed, fibre and fuel production that the soil has been exploited often exceeding its carrying capacity. The soils are increasingly used for agricultural and non-agricultural uses, such as disposal of farm, urban and industrial wastes, ensuring environmental safety etc. This is possible by the judicious use of this resource.

A clear and intimate knowledge of the kinds of soils and their extent of distribution are essential prerequisites in developing rational land use plans for agriculture, forestry, irrigation, drainage, etc. soil resource inventory or mapping provides an insight about their potentials and limitations. It is therefore imperative to prepare an inventory of this resource for developing optimum land use plan and conservation plans.

Soil survey is essentially a study and mapping of soils in their natural environment. It is the systematic examination, description, classification and mapping of soils of an area.

2.1. History of Soil Survey in India

The original investigations on Indian soils were carried out by Voelcker dates back to 1893 and by Leather to 1898.They classified the soils of the country into four major groups, namely the Indo-Gangetic alluvium, the black cotton soil or regur, red soil and laterite soil. Schokalskaya (1932) has published a soil map of India based on the Russian concept which describes 16 soil groups such as climate,vegetation, soil-forming materials, salinity, alkalinity, swamps and peats (Bhattacharyya et al. 2013). In 1935,Wadia and his co-workers collected a soil map of India with significance on geological formations and classified the soils as red, black (regur), laterite and lateritic soils of Peninsular India and also Indo-Gangetic Plains (IGP) which includes delta, desert, bhabar, terai and alkali soils. Vishwanath and Ukil (1943) published a soil map of India by placing the soils in different climatic zones for the first time. This was prepared by Imperial Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhi, and published in the year 1943. There were 17 kinds of soils identified, viz., deep black soils, black clay soils, black loamy soils, black sandy soils, red sandy soils, brown sandy soils, red and yellow soils, dark reddish brown soils, mixed soils (white and yellow), alluvium (Indus, Gangetic, Brahmaputra), coarse alluvium, soils of swamp lands, calcareous soils, usar soils, kallar soils, coastal alluvium soils and soils of Great Himalayan Ranges.

Soil survey works were started in 1954, in most of the states as a part of their agricultural development programme, and Bihar (Soil Survey and Land use Planning Scheme, Sabour) was pioneer. In 1954, the soil survey work was started under the leadership of Dr. P. P. Jha following the conventional procedures in Bihar (including Jharkhand) to delineate the soil associations based on geology, relief, physical and chemical characteristics of soils for the first time in India by the then Soil Survey Scheme at Sabour (Mishra et al. 2001; Mishra 2015, 2016). Meanwhile, the National Atlas Organization, Kolkata, prepared a soil map of India in 1957 classifying Indian soils into six major groups and 11 broad types. Murthy and Pandey (1983) applied the working principles of the USDA 7^th Approximation in classifying the Indian soils with available data on soil classes and thus used the US system for the first time at great soil group level, which was transformed into a soil map of India on 1:6.3 million scale. Mishra et al. (1994) attempted to propose “Fluvisols” as the 13th Order in USDA Soil Taxonomy for active floodplain soils frequently occurring in different parts of India and elsewhere. Mishra (2015, 2016) proposed a framework of Indian system of soil classification mainly based on land use options.

Soil Classification

Soil classification deals with the systematic categorization of soils based on distinguishing characteristics as well as criteria that dictate choices in use.

Soil classification is grouping of objects in orderly and logical manner into classes based on the properties of soils (differentiating characters) for the purpose of studying and identifying them. The soil individuals are grouped into classes of the lower category (soil series) which are grouped into classes of higher categories (soil orders). The lower categories are defined by large number of differentiating characters and higher category by a few differentiating characteristics.

For soil resources, experience has shown that a natural system approach to classification, i.e. grouping soils by their intrinsic property (soil morphology), behaviour, or genesis, results in classes that can be interpreted for many diverse uses. Differing concepts of pedogenesis and differences in the significance of morphological features to various land uses can affect the classification approach. Despite these differences, in a well-constructed system, classification criteria group similar concepts so that interpretations do not vary widely. This is in contrast to a technical system approach to soil classification, where soils are grouped according to their fitness for a specific use and their edaphic characteristics.

In recent times, the interpretations cover a wide spectrum of soil uses, both for agricultural and non agricultural (sewage and human waste disposal, high way construction, water and gas supply, recreation, wild life, urban and industrial structures) and many specialized uses. Soil survey if correctly carried out according to scientific principles, can provide the data base for various interpretations. This is because the same soil properties determine the behaviour of a soil for a variety of different uses. For instance, the content of clay, silt and sand, the shrink and swell behaviour, the permeability of soil to water and air, content of calcium carbonate, salts, organic matter, gypsum, soil depth, depth of ground water, hard pan formation, co-efficient of linear extensibility, water holding capacity etc. are examples of such properties that are important to plant growth and these properties also strongly influence non farm uses. Some examples in support are

A hard or petrocalcic horizon or other slowly permeable layer (clay-pan) in a soil restricts the movement of air and water, thus adversely affecting the plant root growth. Such a layer limits the soils suitability for septic tanks and other onsite waste disposal. It also makes a poor sub grade for high way construction.

A soil high in soluble salts is a poor medium for plant growth; it is also corrosive to iron and steel structures, such as pipelines and fences, causing high maintenance and repair costs.

High organic matter content is generally favourable to plant growth, but it is a limitation for road construction.

The strongly gypsiferous soils (gypsum content >10%) are considered unsuitable for arable crop cultivation because of its dissolution under irrigated or even moderate rainfall and making the surfaces uneven through the developments of sink holes. Such soils are unsuitable for irrigation and drainage canal networks and also for construction of roads, bridges etc.

The shrink- swell soils of India (vertisols) because of summer monsoon rains are suitable for growing a “kharif” crop but are very dangerous for construction of roads, air strips, buildings, laying gas, water pipelines which get distorted, develop cracks and lead to sunken floors etc.

Land is merely an area of the earth’s surface comprising all physical, chemical and biological environments that influence the land use (FAO ,1976). Land refers not only to soil but also to climate, landforms, hydrology, geology, natural vegetation including fauna and flora. The land use simply means management of a land for specific uses to meet the human needs in all rural, urban and industrial context, whereas the land use plan refers to a coherent set of decisions about the ways to achieve the desired level preferably on economic background. Thus, the land use planning is the systematic evaluation and assessment of a land and associated attributes for the purpose of identifying the best land use options beneficial to landowners or users without degrading the land resources or environment. It includes not only the landowner or users, but also the policy or decision makers as well as economic experts for financial measures from planning stage or logistic planning to execution.

Land cover

Relates to the type of feature present on the surface of the earth e.g., Fields, trees, concrete high ways.

Land use

Relates to the human activity associated with a specific piece of land. The same land would have a land cover consisting of roofs, pavements, grass and trees. The land use in an area is really an intervention by the people over the existing natural eco-environment for satisfying their needs.

Land cover is distinct from land use despite the two terms often being used interchangeably. Land use is a description of how people utilize the land and socio-economic activity - urban and agricultural land uses are two of the most commonly recognised high-level classes of use. At any one point or place, there may be multiple and alternate land uses, the specification of which may have a political dimension.

During the last decade organic agriculture has emerged as a dynamic alternate farming system. This has been necessitated as a consequence of resource degradation because of to achieving high yields in various crops to meet the increasing demand of food by the burgeoning population. These have resulted in change in soil structure, imbalance in soil micro-organisms and organic matter, resistance among various weeds to weedicides, increased salinity, sodicity and have affected the water holding capacity of the soil and brought in health and environmental problems. Organic farming is a specified form of diversified agriculture that not only aims to produce nutritious food of high quality but also lead to the generation of more income and employment opportunities for rural population. In true sense, organic farming is a production system which avoids or largely excludes the use of synthetic fertilizers, growth regulators, livestock feed additives and pesticides. Moreover, it relies on agronomic management practices like crop rotation, crop residues, animal manures, legumes, green manures, off-farming organic wastes and aspect of biological pest control to maintain soil productivity.

The inability of Indian agriculture to meet the demand for food in the country during the two and half decades immediately after independence had been a matter of concern at those times. The system of our agriculture based on the traditional knowledge and practices handed down from generation to generation could not produce enough to feed the increasing population. The ignominy of our dependence for food on the western developed nations and the politics of food aid practiced by them added to our determination to be self-sufficient in food production by modernizing agriculture. The green revolution fulfilled our aspirations by changing India from a food importing to a food exporting nation. However, the achievement was at the expense of ecology and environment and to the detriment of the well-being of the people.

1.1    Cereals
    Wheat/Barley
    
    1. Wheat aphid, Macrosiphum miscanthi (Hemiptera; Aphididae)
    2. Armyworm, Mythimna separata (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae)
    3. Ghujhia weevil, Tanymecus indicus (Coleoptera: Curculionidae)
    4. Termites, Odontotermes obesus Ramb. (Isoptera: Termitidae)
    5. Shoot fly, Mayetiola destructor (Say) (Diptera: Cecidomyidae)
    6. Wheat Gall nematode, Anguina tritici (Tylenchida: Tylenchidae)
    7. Molya nematode, Heterodera avenae (Tylenchida: Heteroderidae)
        
    Pulses
    Chickpea
    
    1. Pod borer, Helicoverpa armigera (Hubner) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae)
    2. Semilooper, Autographa nigrisigna Walker (Lepidoptera; Noctuidae)
    3. Aphids, Aphis craccivora Koch (Homoptera: Aphididae)
    4. Hairy caterpillar, Amsacta moorei (Butler) (Lepidoptera: Arctiidae)
    5. Cut worm, Agrotis ipsilon (Hufnagel) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae)
    
    Fieldpea
    
    1. Pea leaf miner, Chromatomyia horticola (Goureau) (Diptera: Agromyzidae)
    2. Pea pod borer, Etiella zinckenella Treitschke (Lepidoptera: Phycitidae)
    3. Gram pod borer, Helicoverpa armigera (Hubner) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae)
    4. Pea stem fly, Melanogromyza phaseoli Tryon (Diptera: Agromyzidae)
    5. Pea blue butterfly Lampides boeticus Linnaeus (Lepidoptera Lycaenidae)
    6. Pea green aphid, Acyrthosiphon pisum (Harris) S. lat. (Hemiptera: Aphididae)
    7. Cut worm, Agrotis ipsilon (Hufnagel) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae)
        
    Lentil
    
    1. Lentil pod borer, Etiella zinckenella (Lepidoptera: Phycitidae)
    2. Black aphid, Aphis craccivora Koch (Homoptera: Aphididae)
    3. Cut worm,  Agrotis ipsilon (Hufnagel) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae)
        
    Lathyrus
        
    1. Pod borer, Helicoverpa armigera
    2. Aphid, Aphis craccivora Koch (Homoptera: Aphididae)
    3. Bean bugs, Clavigralla gibbosa Spinola (Hemiptera: Coreidae)
    
    Horsegram
    
    1. Pod borer, E. zinckenella (Lepidoptera:Phycitidae)
    2. Hairy caterpillar, Amsacta sp. (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae)
    3. Aphids, Aphis craccivora (Homoptera: Aphididae)
    4. Whitefly and Green Jassid
    5. Plume moth, Exelastis atomosa (Lepidoptera: Pterophoridae)
        
    Oilseeds
    Mustard/Toria / Gobhi Sarson
    
    1. Mustard Aphid, Lipaphis erysismi (Hemiptera : Aphididae)
    2. Mustard saw fly: Athalia lugens proxima (Hymenoptera: Tenthredinidae)
    3. Leaf webber: Crocidolomia binotalis (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae)
    4. Leaf miner: Chromatomyia horticola (Phytomyza atricornis)(Diptera: Agromyzidae)
    5. Cabbage head borer: Hellula undalis (Lepidoptera: Crambidae)
    6. Diamondback moth: Plutella xylostella (Lepidoptera: Plutellidae)
    7. Painted bug: Bargrada hilaris cruciferarum (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae)
    
    Polyphagous Pests
        
    1. Rodents

2.1    Cereals
    Wheat
    
    1. Yellow rust or stripe rust
    2. Brown rust
    3. Loose smut
    4. Flag smut
    5. Karnal bunt
    6. Powdery mildew
    7. Leaf blight
        
    Barley
    
    1. Leaf stripe
    2. Covered smut
    3. Loose smut
         
    Pulses
    Chickpea
    
    1. Ascochyta blight
    2. Grey mould
    3. Dry root rot
    4. Collar rot
    5. Wilt
    
    Lentil
    
    1. Ascochyta blight
    2. Anthracnose of lentil
    3. Wilt
    4. Sclerotinia stem rot
    
    Field pea
    
    1. Powdery mildew
    2. Rust of peas
    3. Downy mildew of peas
    
    Rapeseed and Mustard
    
    1. Alternaria blight
    2. Rust or white blister
    3. Downy mildew
    4. Powdery mildew
    
    Linseed
    
    1. Rust
    2. Wilt
    3. Blight of linseed

3.1    Cereals
    List of weeds in Rabi season crops
    Management of weeds in Cereals
    
    Wheat
    
    Management of weeds in Pulses
    
    Chickpea
    Fieldpea
    Lentil
    
    Management of weeds in Oilseeds
    
    1. Rapeseed / Mustard / Toria
    2. Pictures of major weeds of Rabi season crops
    
    Non-crop lands weeds and their management
    
    1. Parthenium hysterophorus
    2. Saccharum spontaneum
    3. Lantana camara

4.1    Functions of Plant Nutrient and Deficiency Symptoms Function of Plant Nutrient
    
    1. Nitrogen
    2. Phosphorus
    3. Potassium
    4. Calcium
    5. Magnesium
    6. Sulphur
    7. Manganese
    8. Molybdenum
    9. Copper
    10. Boron
    11. Zinc
    12. Iron
    13. Chlorine
    14. Nickel
    15. Sodium
    16. Cobalt
    17. Silicon

1.1    Cereals
    Maize
    
    1. Maize stem borer, Chilo partellus (Swinhoe) (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae)
    2. Asian maize borer, Ostrinia furnacalis (Guenee) (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae)
    3. Blister beetle, Mylabris pustulata Thunberg (Coleoptera: Meloidae)
         
    Sorghum
        
    1. Sorghum midge, Contarinia sorghicola (Diptera: Cecidomyiidae)
    2. Sorghum ear head bug, Calocoris angustatus (Hemiptera: Miridae)
    3. Sorghum shoot bug, Peregrinus maidis (Hemiptera: Delphacidae)
    4. Sorghum shoot fly / stem fly, Atherigona soccata (Diptera: Anthomyiidae)
    5. Maize Stem borer, Chilo partellus (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae)
    6. Other minor pests
    
    Ragi
    
    1. Pink borer, Sesamia inferens (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae)
    2. Aphids: Schizaphis graminum, Hysteroneura setariae, Rhopalosiphum maidis (Hemiptera: Aphididae)
    3. Root aphid, Tetraneura nigriabdominalis (Hemiptera: Aphididae)
    4. Other minor pests
    
    Pulses
    Black gram / green gram
    
    1.  Pod borer, Maruca testulalis (Lepidoptera: Crombidae)
    2. Hairy caterpillar, Amsacta moorei (Butler): (Lepidoptera: Arctiidae)
    3. Stem fly Ophiomyia phaseoli (Tryon) (Diptera: Agromyzidae)
    4. Whitefly, Bemisia tabaci (Genn.) (Diptera: Aleyrodidae)
    5. Thrips, Caliothrips indicus (Bagn.) (Thysanoptera: Thripidae)
    6. Green Jassid, Empoasca kerri (Hemiptera: Cicadellidae)
    7. Bean bugs, Clavigralla gibbosa Spinola (Hemiptera: Coreidae), Dusky cotton bug, Oxycarenus laetus Kirby (Hemiptera: lygaeidae)
    8. Bean mite, Polyphagotarsonemus latus (Banks) (Acarina: Tarsonemidae)
    9. Cut worm, Agrotis ipsilon (Hufnagel), Agrotis flammatra Schiff.(Lepidoptera: Noctuidae)
    
    French bean (Rajmash)
    
    1. Hairy caterpillar, Amsacta moorei (Butler) (Lepidoptera: Arctiidae)
    2. Blister beetle, Mylabris pustulata (Thunberg) (Coleoptera: Meloidae)
    3. Bean fly Ophiomyia phaseoli (Tryon) (Diptera: Agromyzidae)
    4. Bean thrips, Megalurothrips distalis (Karny) (Thysanoptera: Thripidae)
    5. Cut worm, Agrotis ipsilon (Hufnagel), Agrotis flammatra Schiff.(Lepidoptera: Noctuidae)
    6. Bean mite, Polyphagotarsonemus latus (Banks) (Acarina: Tarsonemidae)
    
    Oilseeds
    Til (Sesame)
    
    1. Hairy Caterpillar, Amsacta moorei (Butler) (Lepidoptera: Arctiidae)
    2. Leaf hopper: Orosius albicinctus Distant (Hemiptera: Cicadellidae)
    3. Aphids
    4. White flies, Bemisia tabaci (Hemiptera: Aleyrodidae)
    5. Leaf webber or roller and capsule borer, Antigastra catalaunalis Duponchel (Lepidoptera: Crambidae)
    6. Gall fly: Asphondylia sesame Felt (Diptera: Cecidomyiidae)
    7. Sphinx moth or Dead head moth: Acherontia styx (Lepidoptera: Sphingidae)
    
    Polyphagous Pests
    
    1. White grub Holotrichia consanguinea Blanchard (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae)
    2. Rodents

2.1    Cereals
           Maize
    1. Turcicum leaf spot                
    2. Common rust
    3. Leaf spot or Leaf blight
    4. Head smut
    5. Common smut or Maize smut    
    6. Bacterial stalk rot
    7. Banded leaf and sheath blight
    8. Fusarium stalk rot of maize
    9. Downy mildew
      
    Bajra
    
    1. Green ear or downy mildew
    2. Ergot
    3. Smut
          
    Sorghum
    
    1. Anthracnose (foliar, head, root and stalk rot)
    2. Charcoal rot
          
    Pulses
           Moong/Mash
    
    1. Cercospora leaf spot
    2. Bean blight
    3. Anthracnose
    4. Web blight
    5. Powdery mildew
    6. Yellow mosaic disease
    7. Root rot
        
    Rajmash and Cluster beans
    
    1. Bean rust
    2. Bacterial wilt
    3. Common blight
    4. Halo blight
    5. Alternaria leaf spot
    6. Angular leaf spot
    7. Anthracnose
    8. Powdery mildew
    9. Rust
    10. Fusarium root rot
    11. Pythium root rot
    
    Cowpea
    
    1. Leaf spot
    2. Root rot
    3. Ascochyta blight
    4. Bacterial blight
    5. Brown rust
    6. Cercospora leaf spot
    7. Fusarium wilt
    8. Yellow mosaic virus
    
    Oilseeds
    Sesame or Til
    
    1. Phytophthora blight or stem blight
    2. Alternaria leaf spot
    3. Bacterial blight and bacterial leaf spot
    4. Phyllody
    
    Groundnut
    
    1. Collar rot
    2. Botrytis blight
    3. Charcoal rot
    4. Cylindrocladium black rot
    5. Circular leaf spot

3.1 Cereals

1.    List of weeds in kharif season crops
    
2.    Weed management techniques in cereals
    
    Maize
    Pearl millet / Sorghum
    Ragi
    
3.    Weed management techniques in Pulses
        
    Greengram / Blackgram
    Pigeonpea
    Cowpea
    Cluster bean
    Rajmash
    
4.    Weed management techniques in Oilseeds
        
    Sesame Til
    Major weeds of kharif season crops
    
5.    Non-crop lands weeds and their management
    
    1. Parthenium hysterophorus
    2. Saccharum spontaneum
    3. Lantana camara

4.1    Essential Plant Nutrients
    Macronutrients
    1. Nitrogen
    2. Phosphorus
    3. Potassium
    4. Calcium
    5. Magnesium
    6. Sulphur
    
Micronutrients
    
    1. Iron
    2. Zinc
    3. Boron
    4. Manganese
    5. Molybdenum
    6. Chlorine
    7. Nickel
    8. Sodium
    9. Cobalt
    10. Silicon

This chapter presents a birds’ eye view of the soil to develop the interest among the readers to know more about the fundamental concepts of soil.

Soil is a major determinant of terrestrial ecosystems and helps in the distribution of land flora and fauna. Soils are sources, transformers and stores of plant nutrients. Soils are the recycling places of plant and animal residues and wastes. Soils are also the screen and filter of pollutants in many ways, forms and degrees. Soils are the main link and recharger of hydrological cycle. Soils influence radiant heat exchange, temperature change and land surface reflection characteristics. Soils are important sources and sinks of biogeochemical cycles of carbon dioxide, methane, nitrogen oxides and sulphur dioxide. Soil is used in buildings, roads, brick kiln, naturopathy etc. Soils are good record of past climatic conditions and human activities, as they have some stable features originated from the interactions of climate, organisms, relief, parent material and time. Soil provides nutrients, water, air, heat and mechanical support to arable plants to produce the food, fodder, fibre, fuel and other plant products for human and animals. Mainly the soil is studied as a natural body and as a medium for plant growth.

Genesis of Soil

World’s geography is very widely diversified in relief showing various features like mountains and hills covered with snow and trees, glaciers, higher altitudes to plain to lowest valleys, forests to barren lands, fertile fields to waste lands, plateaus, deltas, swamps, lowlands, deserts etc. Temperature varies from arctic cold to scorching hot of equator, Rainfall from aridity to per humidity. All these situations and conditions under different sets of combinations generate and develop numerous types of soil from a single type of parent material. Therefore, many types of soils may develop at a smaller area.

Physical, chemical and biological weathering processes disintegrate and decompose various rocks and minerals to make asymmetrical soil parent material. This parent material is converted in to the soil profile by soil forming processes in the presence of soil forming factors. Soil genesis is defined as mode of formation of the soil from the parent material due to the action of soil forming factors and processes. Parent material, Factors of soil formation and Processes of soil formation, are three main part of soil genesis. These are described here:

1. Parent Material,

2. Classification of parent material,

3. Factors of soil formation,

4. Processes of soil formation,

5. Types of soil forming processes.

Physical Properties of Soil

Physical properties of soil have many important roles in the crop production. The basic requirements for germination, seedling emergence and root development are adequate moisture and aeration, optimum temperature and absence of mechanical hindrance. After germination the further development of plant is also governed by physical conditions of soil. Soil texture, soil structure, soil density, soil consistence, soil water, soil air, soil temperature and soil colour are main physical properties of soils also affecting mechanical behaviour of soils. These are described here.

1. Soil Texture

The weathering divides larger particles of rocks and minerals in to the smaller ones. This process goes continuously. Thus, particles of different sizes ranging from large fragments of rocks to the very fine clay minerals are found in soil. However, for texture particles less than 2mm diameter is considered. The relative amount of these particles indicates the soil type also. Such as sandy soils contain more amounts of coarse particles i.e., sand and clayey soils are rich in fine particles. The rock and mineral particles having diameter less than 2.0 mm and come between specifies size are called as soil separates. International society of soil science (ISSS) and United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) systems are Generally, followed to classify the soil separates. This classification is given in table 3.1.

Vulnerability of Soils

Soil vulnerability, Soil degradation, soil vulnerability index

Water and wind erosion, depletion of soil organic matter, loss of plant nutrients, salinity, alkalinity, acidity, pollution and contamination, compaction, sealing, crusting, water-logging, aridity, lowering of water table, over grazing, deforestation, landslide, loss and change in soil biodiversity, Abandoned mines etc.

Soil vulnerability, Soil Degradation, Soil Vulnerability Index

The terms vulnerable and vulnerability are now bites of every one and used for everything. Vulnerable means to the possibility of attack or harm by any mean. Human beings are vulnerable to Covid-19, computers are vulnerable to virus, softwares are vulnerable to hackers and attackers to control system, environment is vulnerable to pollution. Vulnerabilities refer to the lack of ability to resist the effects of the aggressive environment. Soils are vulnerable to numerous threats like water and wind erosion, depletion of soil organic matter, loss of plant nutrients, salinity, alkalinity, acidity, pollution and contamination, compaction, sealing, crusting, water-logging, aridity, lowering of water table, over grazing, deforestation, landslide, loss and change in soil biodiversity etc. However, this book will describe some of the most pertinent vulnerabilities for soils.

In the earlier chapter the major soil vulnerability namely, water and wind erosion, depletion of soil organic matter, loss of plant nutrients, salinity, alkalinity, acidity, pollution and contamination, compaction, sealing, crusting, water-logging, aridity, landslide and abandoned mines were described. In this chapter two more parts, Importance of remote sensing (RS) and geographical information system (GIS) in soils and Watershed management are also included after seeing their importance in agriculture and soils. Restoration means that by various actions or processes to return something to its original owner, site, place, or condition. In this context our aim is to restore our mother soil from various vulnerabilities by different actions and processes to its natural and original condition up to the maximum possible extent. Management is defined as the scientific methods to attain targeted production through planning, organising, training and fixing targets for employees. Therefore, after the restoration, soils should be managed according to scientific method of action by scientifically selected and trained staff to perform the assigned responsibilities, effectively, efficiently and rapidly within stipulated period. On these guidelines restoration and management of vulnerabled soils is described here,

Environmental stress can disrupt cellular structures and impair key physiological functions. Drought, salinity, and low temperature stress impose an osmotic stress that can lead to turgor loss. Membranes may become disorganized, proteins may undergo loss of activity or be denatured, and often excess levels of reactive oxygen species are produced leading to oxidative damage. As a consequence, inhibition of photosynthesis, metabolic dysfunction, and damage of cellular structures contribute to growth perturbances, reduced fertility, and premature senescence. Responses to environmental stresses occur at all levels of organization. Cellular responses to stress include adjustments of the membrane system, modifications of the cell wall architecture, and changes in cell cycle and cell division. In addition, plants alter metabolism in various ways, including production of compatible solutes that are able to stabilize proteins and cellular structures and/or to maintain cell turgor by osmotic adjustment, and redox metabolism to remove excess levels of ROS and re-establish the cellular redox balance. At the molecular level, gene expression is modified upon stress and epigenetic regulation plays an important role in the regulation of gene expression in response to environmental stress.

Climate change drastically influence water availability, salinity and several adverse soil conditions which will have direct bearing on original yields. Abiotic stress factors influence growth and secondary metabolite production in higher plants. The influences are well marked. In fact, productivities depend on the changed ecosystem also. Secondary metabolites play a major role in the adaptation of plants to the changing environment and in overcoming stress constraints. This flows from the large complexity of chemical types and interactions underlying various functions: structure stabilizing, determined by polymerisation and condensation of phenols and quinones, or by electrostatic interactions of polyamines with negatively charged loci in cell components, photoprotective, related to absorbance of visible light and UV radiation due to the presence of conjugated double bonds, antioxidant and antiradical, governed by the availability of –OH, –NH2, and –SH groupings, as well as aromatic nuclei and unsaturated aliphatic chains, signal transducing. Several plant-abiotic stress stimuli systems evidenced the multiplicity of biochemical mechanisms involved in the protective role of secondary metabolites: