eChapters

Bees are fundamental to maintaining ecological stability and enhancing agricultural output, making it vital to understand their diversity—especially in the context of natural farming systems. Different bee species vary in behavior, environmental adaptability, honey yield, and efficiency in pollination. India is home to several native and introduced bee species, each contributing uniquely to honey production and ecosystem health. Choosing a species for natural beekeeping depends on factors like climate, local flora, and whether the beekeeper’s goal is honey production, crop pollination, or species conservation.

Among these species, Apis dorsata—the rock bee—is a large, wild bee known for building single, exposed combs on high structures such as trees and cliffs. While it can produce up to 40 kg of honey per colony annually, its aggressive nature makes it unsuitable for domestication. In contrast, Apis cerana indica, the native Indian hive bee, is better adapted to India’s diverse climates and is compatible with low-maintenance, eco-conscious farming. Producing around 6–10 kg of honey per colony annually, it suits small-scale, sustainable practices.

Bees are fundamental to maintaining ecological stability and enhancing agricultural output, making it vital to understand their diversity—especially in the context of natural farming systems. Different bee species vary in behavior, environmental adaptability, honey yield, and efficiency in pollination. India is home to several native and introduced bee species, each contributing uniquely to honey production and ecosystem health. Choosing a species for natural beekeeping depends on factors like climate, local flora, and whether the beekeeper’s goal is honey production, crop pollination, or species conservation. Among these species, Apis dorsata—the rock bee—is a large, wild bee known for building single, exposed combs on high structures such as trees and cliffs. While it can produce up to 40 kg of honey per colony annually, its aggressive nature makes it unsuitable for domestication. In contrast, Apis cerana indica, the native Indian hive bee, is better adapted to India’s diverse climates and is compatible with low-maintenance, eco-conscious farming. Producing around 6–10 kg of honey per colony annually, it suits small-scale, sustainable practices. Apis mellifera, or the European honeybee, was introduced for commercialscale beekeeping and yields 25–50 kg of honey per colony. However, its high management requirements and vulnerability to pests and environmental changes make it less viable for natural farming systems. Apis florea, the dwarf bee, yields less than 1 kg of honey annually but is highly effective at pollinating small flowering plants and maintaining biodiversity. Stingless bees, such as those in the Trigona and Melipona genera, are becoming popular in natural beekeeping due to their gentle behavior and medicinal honey. Though their honey output is minimal, they are excellent for home or communitybased beekeeping and provide crucial ecological services. Each bee species brings specific strengths and challenges. Indigenous and stingless bees stand out as the most appropriate for natural farming in India,

Introduction

The achievements in agriculture and its allied areas has made our country self sufficient economically. Our country has many landmarks in production of the grains, milk, meat, flower, vegetable etc which not only fulfill our own demands but even earning a lot of foreign exchange from export. Unemployment is a major problem effecting the growth of our country. The reasons for higher state of unemployment in rural areas can be attributed to poverty, law education and lack of job appointment. Alternatively, if the youths are self employed in the agrobased enterprises, then the problem of unemployment could be reduced to a certain limit, especially in the villages. There are so many vocations in which youth could be engaged such as dairy farming, poultry, piggery, beekeeping, mushroom cultivation, flower cultivation etc.

Abstract

Participation of rural women and youth in beekeeping activities provides a unique opportunity to improve rural livelihood and poverty reduction. Women have explored their own niche in beekeeping industry by actively engaging in post harvesting of bee products. Income generation is one of the major reasons for participating in beekeeping activities and beekeeping was ranked number one at the same level as agriculture as major source of income. Post harvesting beekeeping, however, needs liquid capital investment which, limit women and youth to fully participate in the business. Cultural practices are also one of the main hindrances for adult women and youth to participate in beekeeping activities. Nonetheless, presence of beekeeping groups and associations, community banks, forest reserves and beekeeping awareness campaigns in the areas provided opportunities for women and youth to participate in beekeeping. Beekeeping represents one opportunity for income generation which need not be time consuming and can fit in well with women’s priority activities. women be given the opportunity to start beekeeping, it is important that all beekeeping development programs ensure from the outset that extension messages reach rural women, and that they are able to take full advantage of training and credit facilities.

Rerd. L.L.Langstroth (Father of modern bee keeping) discovered movable frame hive in 1851.

In 1882, beekeeping was introduced in India.

In 1911, Rerd. Newton introduced beekeeping to South India.

Beta vulgaris 2n = 2x=18 is an important vegetable crop in Eastern and Central Europe and it belongs to family Chenopodiaceae. It is of lesser importance in Western Europe and USA where it is known as garden beet. The swollen roots are consumed as vegetable and salad. The other types which are non-horticultural forms are known as sugar beet, mangold and fodder beet.
Origin: Leaf beet is the earliest domesticated form. It is believed to be originated from Beta maritima known as sea beet which is indigenous to Southern Europe. 
Botany: Biennial producing enlarged hypocotyl (roots) and rossette of leaves in first year and flowers and seeds in second year.

Origin

Beet root originated from Beta vulgaris L. ssp. maritima by hybridization with B. patula. Crop has site of origin probably in Europe. Earlier types were with long roots like that of carrot. Beet root, sugar beet and palak belong to species B. vulgaris and are cross compatible.

Botany

Beet root is a biennial, producing a fleshy elongated hypocotyls and a rosette of leaves in first year and flowers in second year. Upper portion of fleshy root develops from hypocotyls and basal part from tap root. Concentric rings seen in cross section of root are as a result of alternate formation of vascular tissues and storage parenchyma tissues. Root skin colour varies from orange red to dark purple red. Colour of beet root is due to presence of red violet pigments of â cyanins and a yellow pigment, â xanthin. It has extensive tap root system and tap root grows as deep as 3m. Rosette leaves develop in a close sp

Begonia is a perennial flowering plant belongs to family Begoniaceae. Begonia has rich colour and beautiful form of flowers. It is free flowering and striking foliage with free growth. The name Begonia is given by Franciscan monk Charles Plumier a plant which he found during his journey from Haiti to island Martinique. He dedicated this plant to “Michel Begon” the man who had the direct manmade over the expeditions. Begonia is easy to propagate and grown from seeds and vegetative means particularly cuttings. It is a popular flowering potted plant grown in containers and hanging baskets including tuberous, semperflorens, Rex, Elatior, Loraine and gracilis. Modern commercially cultivated begonias are mostly hybrids between wild types from all over the world.

Begonia is a perennial flowering plant belongs to family Begoniaceae. Begonia has rich colour and beautiful form of flowers. It is free flowering and striking foliage with free growth. The name Begonia is given by Franciscan monk Charles Plumier a plant which he found during his journey from Haiti to island Martinique. He dedicated this plant to “Michel Begon” the man who had the direct manmade over the expeditions. Begonia is easy to propagate and grown from seeds and vegetative means particularly cuttings. It is a popular flowering potted plant grown in containers and hanging baskets including tuberous, semperflorens, Rex, Elatior, Loraine and gracilis. Modern commercially cultivated begonias are mostly hybrids between wild types from all over the world.

ORIGIN AND DISTRIBUTION

Begonias are native to South America and second centre of diversity is Asia from Himalayas to Southern China and Malaysia (a floristic region that encompasses Malaysia, Indonesia, Brunes, Philippines and Paera New Guinea).

The distribution of Begonia diversity is uneven throughout tropical regions, with the greatest diversity in America and Asia (>600 species each), whilst being relatively species poor in Africa (160 species) and absent in Australia (Goodall-Copestake et al., 2010). The genus is thought to have originated in Africa, while South American and South East Asian species are the results of parallel radiations over the last 20-50 million years (Plana et al., 2004, Goodall Copestake et al., 2010 and Thomas et al., 2011). Long distance dispersal is rare, for example Begonia species have failed to cross the Torres Strait from Papua New Guinea to Australia.

Introduction
In a host-parasite relationship, the interaction between the two organisms is highly specialized. Each partner impacts the other’s life by influencing their metabolism and behavior through various adaptive mechanisms, all aimed at ensuring their own survival. While the parasite exerts every effort to fully establish itself within the host—by consuming its resources, damaging its tissues, secreting toxins, and evading the host’s immune
system through molecular mimicry—the host, in turn, strives to eliminate the parasite by mobilizing its immune defenses.
Despite their ongoing conflict, neither the host nor the parasite is able to completely eradicate the other. The host seeks to fend off the harmful, invasive parasite, while the parasite aims to establish a lasting, close relationship with the host. However, this dynamic can lead to a point where either the host or the parasite, often the parasite, becomes dominant or independent, resulting in the death of one party. Thus, the host-parasite relationship appears to be a perpetual and interdependent one, each partner intricately tied to the other. When a parasite enters a host, the host must make adjustments, and the parasite must adapt
to the host’s environment. This interaction leads to the development of a relationship in which both the host and the parasite influence each other’s growth, metabolism, and overall well-being. Generally, the host-parasite relationship unfolds through a series of stages: it starts with the transmission of the parasite from one host to another, followed by the parasite’s distribution and localization within or on the new host. This is followed by the
parasite’s growth or multiplication. Throughout this process, both the host and the parasite engage in resistance efforts against each other. The process involves several stages: the parasite’s method of attack, the changes the parasite induces in the host, and the alterations the parasite undergoes due to its presence in the host. It also includes the adjustments made by both host and parasite during the infection, the escape of the parasite’s infective stages from the host, and ultimately, the host’s recovery or death

Introduction
An animal will engage in a series of display activities known as courtships to try to entice a mate and show that it wants to copulate. These actions frequently take the form of vocalisations, mechanical sound production, ritualised movement (referred to as “dances”), or exhibitions of physical prowess, agonistic aptitude, or beauty. A social activity known as courtship occurs when male and female members of the same species engage in order
to facilitate mating and reproduction. Because so many sperm are created and must find and fertilise a small number of eggs, sperm rivalry led to the evolution of courtship. Males must compete with one another for the female’s sperm in order to fertilise her eggs, which are a finite supply. Male-to-male competition and female choice are the results of sexual selection between men and females, which is a translation of gametic selection. An offshoot
of this male-male competition is the courtship display, where men have developed a variety of tools and strategies to entice females to procreate.

The Tuppa area, which is located 10-12 km away from Nanded city, and covers an area of about 66 km² was blessed with good , quality of water before industrialisation in this area. With the advent of industries more and more people from this region started complaining about the bad taste & quality of drinking water from dug and bore wells. From 1997 to1999 there was continuous increase in the lateral extent of pollution, with deeper bore wells more contaminated than the dug wells (Kaplay, et al. 2004).

ABSTRACT

In social Hymenoptera, the females carry out nest building, brood care and foraging, while males generally do not take part in any of these social behaviours and act solely as reproductives. The interesting phenomena of cooperation and altruism

ABSTRACT

Studies on the behaviour of animals are of utmost importance in the conservation of species. Ecology of the communities and individual species has to be examined in terms of different activities to understand the requirements of the species. Foraging and breeding are the major activities while resting and flight maintenance are also essential, although the time spent might vary in different species or situations.

Bird community studies conducted along with my students in different habitats in the Western Ghats since 1995 showed how the species are associated with each other and the impact of habitat changes on them. Endemic and threatened birds of the Western Ghats were specific about selection of habitat and food in different seasons. Identification of such critical habitats is crucial for conservation and management.

The studies on the bird community and drongos at Thekkady, Periyar Tiger Reserve conducted by me during 1979 to 1982, examined the association of drongos with other species in the area, especially while foraging. They fed mostly in mixed foraging flocks which is beneficial to all the participants. The strategy adopted by them for ecological isolation to reduce competition was by selecting different strata and substrate of the vegetation, varying sizes of insects, and methods of feeding.

In the case of wetland birds also habitat selection is a major behaviour limiting their numbers. For the threatened birds such as the Siberian Crane and the Andaman Teal, habitat quality and food availability were critical. Habitat degradation with over abundance of grass and reduction in sedges resulted in spending long duration for feeding and less returns.

Breeding behaviour of birds is interesting because of their strategies such as when to nest and where to nest. Studies on the seasonality have shown the importance of climatic factors. Many of our land birds nest during summer. Nest-site is also crucial as selection of the site with suitable macro and micro-habitats determine the success of the brood. The habitat patches for the individual pairs or groups of breeding birds which are defended against intruders are termed as territories which play a vital role in the distribution and density of birds. Thus the strategies adopted by species are dependent on the environment and species specific constraints affecting the survival of the species.

Scientific name: Atropa belladonna L.
Family: Solanaceae
Belladonna, also known as deadly nightshade, is a legendary Central European nightshade with a rich history. The plant contains hallucinogenic alkaloids, primarily atropine, which is named after the plant.
Origin and distribution
Atropa belladonna is native to temperate southern, Central, and Eastern Europe, as well as North Africa, Turkey, Iran, and the Caucasus. It has been naturalized in some areas of North America and is considered a weed species in regions with disturbed soils.
Botany
Belladonna, is a plant species characterized by its distinctive features. It grows to a height of approximately 1.5 meters, with a purplish-colored stem. The root system is thick, fleshy, whitish, and branched. The plant's leaves are simple, dark greenish in color, ovate, and alternate in nature. The flowers are solitary and bell-shaped, blooming from June to September. The plant produces berries that are highly toxic, and the seeds contain toxic alkaloids.

The word Belladonna is derived from two Latin words Bella means fine or beautiful and Donna means lady. Its generic name ' ATROPA' comes from the Greek fate ATROPOS, 'THE INFLEXIBLE ONE'.

Think of Belladonna if you see a red surface because this medicine is associated with red, blood shot eyes, red, puffed face, red, swollen throat, red skin, which radiates heat. This redness indicates inflammation. Thus a large number of acute inflammatory diseases respond well to Belladonna.

Belladonna problems come on suddenly, with violence, run a regular course and then disappear as suddenly as they come.

When an inflammation is localized, Belladonna is the remedy in the first stage. Such inflammation comes suddenly, is red, painful and throbbing. This can be in the head, throat, breast or anywhere else in the body. This can be in the form of a carbuncle or a boil, on a hand or on a foot. Belladonna controls and aborts the problem in its first stage.

Abstract

Abundant organic wastes come from agriculture sector. Earthworms offer an opportunity for beneficial disposal of this unwanted material by converting into vermi compost, a national wealth. It is rich in nutrients, enzymes, hormones and beneficial microbes but free from harmful chemicals and pathogenic microorganisms, hence improves crop productivity. Disposal through burning creates environment pollution and loss of valuable plant nutrients. Dumping creates unhygienic situation. Vermicomposting is quicker than other conventional composting techniques. In northeast India, Eisenia foetida and Perionyx excavatus were found equally efficient in vermi composting of agricultural wastes. Among different bio mass, vegetable wastes and soft weeds were converted to compost very quickly by using Perionyx excavatus within 1 to 2 months. Composting was found moderate (3 to 4.5 months) in crop residues and hardy weeds while slow (5 to 10 months) in case of dry tree leaves. When different wastes are mixed together it takes 3.5 to 4.5 months for complete composting. Composting can be accelerated by mixing the wastes with cellulolytic fungi such as Triichoderma viride, Trichurus spiralis, Paecilomyces fusiporus and Aspergillus awamori. Vermicompost prepared from wastes is a marketable product. It can bring prosperity in the villages by means of employment generation and good income. Awareness among people can be created through training.

No plant in the earth is completely worthless. Weeds have also some beneficial effects although they do much harm in different ways. The beneficial effects of weeds are as follows:

    1.    Most of weeds absorbs nutrient from the deeper layer of soil. When such weeds are incorporated in the soil, they add organic matter content of the soils. As a result, the fertility of plough layer from where plants absorb most of their nutrients is enriched.

    2.    Weeds help in controlling erosion by the soil binding effects of their roots and by forming a living mulch, which resist beating action of rain drops and sweeping action of wind.

Endophytic Microorganisms

Endophytes (‘endo’, inside; ‘phyte’, plant) include microorganisms that thrive inside the plant tissues without any obvious adverse effects on the host, and they include mainly bacteria and fungi (Hallmann et al., 1997; Bacon et al., 2002; Hardoim, 2015). Endophytic microorganisms share an intimate association with the host adding essential and functional capabilities. Therefore, plant may be considered as a superorganism composed of an amalgam of both selected symbiont microbiota and host cells (Hardoim, 2015) with the new concept of holobiome, i.e., plant together with the associated microorganisms collectively governing the plant activities (Hardoim et al., 2015; Vandenkoornhuys et al., 2015).

Though many of the insect species are injurious to man, his crops and his livestock in different ways, not all the insects are injurious. Some insect species are beneficial to man in many ways.  A  few  are  productive insects and yield materials directly useful to man. Of these, the most important ones are the honeybees, which give honey and bee wax, the silkworms, which give silk and the lac insects, which give lac. Some other insects are useful to man indirectly in many ways.

productive insects

1. Honeybees (Apis species)
Order - Hymenoptera
Family - Apidae

Kinds of honeybees

There are five kinds of honeybees in India. They are :
Apis dorsata - the rock bee
Apis florea - the little bee
Apis indica - the Indian bee
Apis mellifera - the European bee
Melipona iridipennis - the dammer or stingless bee

Nematodes offer several ecosystem services that affect the nitrogen cycle, decomposition capacity, and control of pests within soil systems. Firstly, the effects on the nitrogen cycle have generated a growing interest in the beneficial effects of nematodes to improve soil nitrogen content. Specifically, soil disruption, during activities such as tillage, increases nitrogen availability as well as the abundance of bacteria that compete for nitrogen (Ducker James, 2021). In response to more bacteria, bacterial feeding nematodes also increase in abundance, and this stabilizes nitrogen availability and increases nitrogen mineralization in soil once again, which is key for crop growth and soil fertility. Secondly, nematodes are involved in the decomposition of organic matter in the soil. Free-living nematodes are particularly essential as they recycle nutrients in the soil, which is matched by the indirect effect of bacteria and fungi-feeding nematodes that feed on the bacteria and fungi which decompose organic matter. Together, the feeding activity of these nematodes accelerates the decomposition process and makes minerals and nutrients accessible to growing plant roots.
Thirdly, nematodes are valuable biological agents of pest control. Predatory nematodes regulate populations of other organisms in soil as they feed on organisms such as protozoa, insects, and other nematode species. As a result, nematodes moderate the population of other nematodes, and studies have shown that nematodes such as the Steinernematidae and Heterorhabditidae can kill soil-based insect pests within 48 hours. Finally, nematodes have become key biological indicators of soil health. The diversity and richness of nematodes communities are particularly insightful as they act as proxies to reveal information on the levels of nutrients, fungal availability, and bacteria, in soil. Altogether, nematode communities provide abundant information on soil health and generate a number of benefits for food production systems.

1.1 Nematodes in Agriculture
Nematodes offer several ecosystem services that affect the nitrogen cycle, decomposition capacity, and control of pests within soil systems. Firstly, the effects on the nitrogen cycle have generated a growing interest in the beneficial effects of nematodes to improve soil nitrogen content. Specifically, soil disruption, during activities such as tillage, increases nitrogen availability as well as the abundance of bacteria that compete for nitrogen (Ducker James, 2021). In response to more bacteria, bacterial feeding nematodes also increase in abundance, and this stabilizes nitrogen availability and increases nitrogen mineralization in soil once again, which is key for crop growth and soil fertility. Secondly, nematodes are involved in the decomposition of organic matter in the soil. Free-living nematodes are particularly essential as they recycle nutrients in the soil, which is matched by the indirect effect of bacteria and fungi-feeding nematodes that feed on the bacteria and fungi which decompose organic matter. Together, the feeding activity of these nematodes accelerates the decomposition process and makes minerals and nutrients accessible to growing plant roots.
Thirdly, nematodes are valuable biological agents of pest control. Predatory nematodes regulate populations of other organisms in soil as they feed on organisms such as protozoa, insects, and other nematode species. As a result, nematodes moderate the population of other nematodes, and studies have shown that nematodes such as the Steinernematidae and Heterorhabditidae can kill soil-based insect pests within 48 hours. Finally, nematodes have become key biological indicators of soil health. The diversity and richness of nematodes communities are particularly insightful as they act as proxies to reveal information on the levels of nutrients, fungal availability, and bacteria,

Introduction

Millet is a small grain cereal grass bearing coarse seeds, and since ancient times has been considered a valuable and nutritious grain. It includes jowar, bajra, ragi and small millets. Small millets include Barnyard millet, proso millet, kodo millet, little millet and foxtail millet. It is rich in fiber, protein, iron, calcium, magnesium, zinc, vitamin B, has a low glycemic index and has antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and anti-allergic properties (Ranjan et al., 2023). These have been added to the modern lifestyle as healthy foods because they are beneficial for human health due to the presence of nutritional ingredients. The nutritional quality of food is the most important parameter for maintaining human health and comprehensive physical health. Good nutrition is the driving force for growth and maximisation of human genetic potential (Radhila et al, 2011). Food quality in the diet must be considered to maintain optimal human health and fitness to address the deep-seated problem of malnutrition. Diversification of food production at both the national and household levels should be encouraged, in addition to increasing domestic productivity and technology (Singh and Raghuvanshi, 2016). Some agricultural foods are not used by humans as staple foods due to human ignorance. Millet is one of them. Millet is used as food for animals and birds. Millet has many nutritional and medical functions (Yang et al, 2012).

The issues that our country faces in ensuring nutritional security for its rapidly growing population necessitate an integrated strategy to domestic animal rearing. Of the various livestock species, pigs are the most likely source of meat production and the most capable feed converters after broiler chickens. It not only provides meat but also bristles and dung. Pig farming provides rural residents with job options and additional revenue to help them better their living conditions. It is critical to assist capital formation in the animal husbandry sector in order to boost farmer incomes. The following are the benefits of pig farming:

• The feed conversion efficiency of the pig is best possible. Except for broilers, pigs produce more live weight gain per kg of feed than any other class of meat-producing animals.
• The pig can transform a wide variety of feed stuffs, such as grains, forages, and broken feeds into valuable nutritious meat. Furthermore, the majority of these meals are not edible or pleasing to humans.

Abstract

The medicinal plant, Nithyakalyani, Catharanthusroseus is valued for its alkaloid and the content varied, among root (0.14 to 1.43%), stem (0.48%), fruit (0.4%), seed (0.18%) and pericaup (1.14%). The biofertilizer consortium development includes Catharanthusroseus. Azosppirillumlipoferum CAZS-4, Azotobaterchroococcum CAZB-1, Bacillusmegaterium CPB-18 and Pseudomonasflourescens CPF-14. The relative chemotactic response (RCR) of the strains to anionic fraction is more than that of cationic and neutral fractions. The consortium treated plants possessed 1.120 mg g^-1 of ajmalicine on 180 DAS, and the antioxidant superoxide dismutase (SOD) (13.240 U mg of protein hr-1), peroxide (POX) (11.240 U mg of protein hr-1) and catalase (CAT) (9.000 U mg of protein hr^-1) values were higher on 150 DAS. The consortium increased the biomass production by 50-75 per cent with proportionate increase in the mineral nutrient content. Biofertilizer consortium is the most effective organic input for biomass production.

1. Basic Information

Benin is situated in West Africa at inter-tropical zone between the parallels 6°30 and 12°30 North and the meridian lines 1° and 3°40 East. The Republic of Benin is limited in the north by the Republic of Niger and to the North-West by Burkina Faso, in the south by the Atlantic Ocean, in the west by Togo and in the east by the Federal Republic of Nigeria. The Republic of Benin extends over 700 km length from the Atlantic Ocean to river Niger. Its width varies from 125 km, along the coast, to 325 km, in the northern part. It covers an area of 112.622 km².

With the third General Census of the Population and Habitat in February 2002, Benin counted 6,769,914 inhabitants thereby giving an average density of 60.11 inhabitants per km². Currently the population is estimated to nearly 8 million inhabitants with a natural rate of increase of 2.8 per cent. The average densities estimated from the last census of the population vary between 16 inhabitants per km² in the department of Borgou and 322 inhabitants per km² in the department of Atlantic.

Ber (Ziziphus mauritiana Lamk. ) is one of the ancient and common fruits of the country. It is a drought hardy fruit tree and can grow successfully even under harsh climatic conditions. Ber is well known for its ability to thrive under adverse conditions of salinity, drought and poor marginal soils. However, for good tree’s growth and yield, deep sandy loam soils with neutral or slightly alkaline reaction and good drainage are most suitable. It is grown throughout the country especially in arid and semi- arid parts. However, it is mainly grown in western parts of Rajasthan where rainfall is less and erratic (Pareek et al, 2002). In addition to Rajasthan state, it is cultivated in other states like U.P., Karnataka, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, A.P., Gujarat, M.P., Chhatisgarh, Haryana, Punjab and Bihar.

Ber (Zizyphus) is egg-shaped fruit of orange or brown colour, with edible acid pulp and hard central stone. The Ber, Indian jujube, Z. mauritiana Lam. (syn. Z. jujuba L.) is adapted to warm climates. It belongs to the family Rhamnaceae. It is often called merely jujube, or Chinese date, which leads to confusion with the hardier species. Other English names are Indian Plum, Indian cherry and Malay jujube. In India, there are 90 or more cultivars differing in the habit of the tree, leaf shape, fruit form, size, color, flavor, keeping quality, and fruiting season (Morton, 1987). Ber (Zizyphus pss.) is one of the hardiest fruit trees cultivated in India. It is an ideal fruit crop for arid and semi-arid regions and even for waste lands. Ber has been recognized as a useful edible fruit since mythology of Ram and Shabari in India and depicted in Ramayana. Researchers mention both Z. mauritiana and Z. jujuba and even the wild Z. nummularia.

Cultivars: Umran, Banarasi Karka, Seo, Gola.

Uses

The Jujube is classed with the raisin, date, and fig as a pectoral fruit, being nutritive and demulcent. It is eaten both fresh and dried. Bark is used for tanning. Leaves are laxative and used in throat trouble. Leaves are also used as a good fooder particularly in arid zones. The tree serves as a host for lac insects. Wood is used for making agricultural implements and tool handles. The preserved products made of ber fruit are murabba., candy, diced ber, dehydrated ber, ber pulp, ber jam etc.

Ber (Ziziphus maruritiana Lam.) is cultivated all over the desert part of the Indian subcontinent for its fresh fruits, which are rich in vitamin C, vitamin A and vitamin B-complex and minerals. It can be successfully cultivated even in the most marginal ecosystems of the subtropics and tropics. Ber or Indian jujube belongs to the genus Zizphus of the family Rhamnaceae and order Rhamnales. Ber is adopted to ecologically poor, drought prone areas, which encounter recurrent crop failures and thereby economic crises. It yields nutritious fruit, rich in vitamins and minerals than apple even in drought years and its cultivation is highly cost effective owing to very low input requirement. Ber cultivation also provides employment for people in different farm operations for production and sale of the produce. In India, Haryana, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu are major ber producing states. The area under cultivation with this fruit is 8.7 lakh ha with an annual production of 8.9 lakh tones in India (Baloda et al., 2012). About 125 varieties of ber are available in India. A few of these varieties are known for taste, size, amount of pulp and higher yields. The cultivars Umran, Kathapal and Gola are the most promising varieties of ber in North India (Azam-Ali et al., 2001).

Nutritive Value

Many people are unaware that the ber is one of the most nutritive fruit, since ber is a common fruit. It is one of the richest sources of vitamin C, next only to aonla and Guava but better than citrus fruit and apple. The fruit pulp contains 13-20% total soluble solids and 0.20-0.80% acidity at fully ripened fruit. Ripe fruit of Umran contains 117 mg ascorbic acid/100 g of pulp. Ber fruit contains β-carotene (vitamin-A) at 81 µg/100 g of fruit, 5.6% sucrose, 1.54% glucose, 2.08% fructose, 1.00% starch and 1.13% total carbohydrates. Due this, so ber is often called the “poor man’s fruit”. Table 1 represent the nutritional composition of different ber varieties.

Abstract

Ber is an important fruit of India and South Asia. Its cultivation is gaining popular in recent years. The drupaceous fruits of ber are characterized by climacteric respiration phenomena and produce high amount of ethylene at ripening. It is very high in ascorbic acid content. Maturity and ripening is still judged by colour changes, as reliable maturity indices for particular cultivars are not fully established. Short shelf life is major problem in this fruit. Protocols for postharvest handling is not standardized, however, scattered information are available for postharvest behaviour and handling. Low temperature storage is beneficial and reduces respiration rates but simultaneously chilling injury is again hindrance in commercialization. Postharvest rot is major problem in storage. Therefore, focused research is needed to standardize the storage temperature and alleviation of chilling injury.

Ber is most commonly found in the tropical and sub-tropical regions of the world. Originally native to India, it is now widely naturalized in tropical region from Africa to Afghanistan, China, Malaysia, Australia and in some Pacific regions. The major production regions for Indian jujube are the arid and semi arid regions of India. It is also known as ‘King of Arid Fruits’ and ‘Poor Man’s Fruit’. In Philippines it is called manzana or manzanita (“apple” or “little apple”). Fully ripe fruits are less crisp and somewhat mealy; overripe fruits are wrinkled, the flesh buff-coloured, soft, spongy and musky. 

Ber fruit fly:  Carpomyia vesuviana :Tephritidae

Adult is a small fly with black spots on the thorax and dark spots on the wings. They have only one pair of wings typical of diptera. The attack by the insect causes rotting of fruits and fruit drop. The adult female lays eggs singly in cavities made on the fruit by the ovipositor.  One female can lay up to 22 eggs. Egg period lasts for 2-3 days and the emerging maggots feed inside the fruit for about 7-10 days. The fully grown maggot falls to the ground to pupate in soil.  Pupal period is around 5-30 days. There can be 2-3 generations /year.

Ber (Chinese date, Chinese fig or bore) (Ziziphus xylopyrus) is an important minor fruit of India. It is a hardy fruit tree cultivated all over India and also known as poor man’s fruit. It is widely cultivated in Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar, Gujarat and Maharashtra. Ber does well even under marginal growing conditions and provides quality yields at low cost (Shukla, 1996). Fruits are eaten fresh but the other forms like dried, candied and squash can also be prepared from ber. Stem bark, root and leaves have medicinal values. Leaves of ber are used as fodder in dry regions. Ber tree is a host plant for rearing the Tachardia laccad, a lac insect (Sharma and Kore, 1990).

Genus : Zizyphus /Rhamus
Species : mauritiana Lam. jujube Lam.
Family : Rhamnaceae
Chromosome No. : 2n = 24, 48, 96

According to famous writer David Fairchild it is the jujube, the large fruited Chinese type which is at its best compared to the inferior type which are in abundance in Arabia, northern India and southern Europe. The resultant inferior fruits are either from a different species compared to those of China or from varieties which have not been much influenced and improved by selection and cultivation.

Origin and history : Ber is an ancient fruit crop of India and is relished for its sweet and sour fruits. It is an ideal fruit tree for arid and semi arid regions in tropical and subtropical climate. It is highly suitable for marginal land and hot arid region. It is distributed in tropical and sub tropical country in the world, including China, Pakistan, Australia and France. In India the major growing states are Madhya Pradesh, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh etc. In Uttar Pradesh, Varanasi, Aligarh, Ayodhya, and Agra are the major growing region. Beside mauritiana other important species like Zizyphus rotundifolia, Zizyphus numuleria, Zizyphus rugosa, Zizyphus xylopyrus, Zizyphus micropyla is also commercially grown for rootstock purpose.

Ber (Zizyphus mauritiana Lamk), is an ancient fruit crop of India. It is relished for its sweet and sour fruits. The fruits are nutritious containing high amount of vitamins like C, A and B complex. The genus Zizyphus belongs to the family Rhamnaceae, consisting of 40 species of tropical and subtropical regions of northern hemisphere (Yadav et al., 2005). The one Zizyphus jujube (Chinese jujube) and the other Zizyphus mauritiana (Indian ber) are the two important species grown widely in temperate, tropical and subtropical regions of the world. The ruggosa and nummalaria are other important species.

PRESENT STATUS

Ber, a popular fruit, is being grown as almost commercially important fruit crop. It has better adaptability in marginal soils in arid region of subtropics. It is mainly grown in India as well as different countries in central Asia, China and Taiwan. It has been truly called as poor man‘s fruit/poor man‘s apple. Ber can suitably be grown almost in all the parts of north Indian plains in Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Punjab and Rajasthan. Seedling ber trees are found extensively growing widely in arid and semi arid areas.

The ber is an important indigenous fruit and growing in semi arid conditions in the country. Ber is grown in China for the last 4000 years and under sub tropical to tropical as well as Mediterranean regions of the world. It is cultivated widely for its resistance to grow in drought and other diversified climatic and soil conditions, so it is also known as ‘King of fruit’ of arid.

Origin and Distribution

The origin of ber is said to be India to South-western Asia. The ber is being cultivated in Northern India, central India and peninsular India. Hisar, Rohtak, Panipat, Gurgaon, Jind, Mahindergarh in Haryana. In Rajasthan it is cultivated in district of Bharatpur Alwer, Barmer, Jodhpur, Palib and Gnaganagar Jaipur in area 82, 73, 59, 53, 53, 53,41 hectare with production 365, 395,133, 294, 340, 597, 826 metric tones, respectively. However total cultivated area in Rajasthan is 738 hectare with production 5248 metic tones under ber during 2017–18 (Anonymous, 2018).

The area Sangrur and Patiala in Punjab; Banaskantha and Sabarmati in Gujarat; Bijapur and Bellary in Karnataka; Tirunalveli, Ramanathapuram and Salem in Tamil Nadu are major ber growing areas in the country. Besides India, ber is grown in Afghanistan, Iran, Syria, Burma, Australia, USA, Russia, Italy, France, Spain and Northern Africa.

• In India, ber is cultivated on an estimated area of 61.284/ha.
• Fruit tree is suited for arid and semi-arid regions while crops in a tropical and subtropical climate.
• 125 cultivars grown in India: Nazuk, Kaithli, Umran, Chhuhana Ilaichi, Jogia, Banarasi Karaka, Najma, Sadhura Nannaul, Seo, Thornless, ZG3, Gola.
• The fruit starts ripening as early as the middle of December in the western part of India and North plain in mid-February.
• Propagation of Ring / T-budding.
• Ziziphus nummularia – Dwarfing due to formation Rootstock of an inverted bottleneck at the graft union.
• Ziziphus rotundifolia – Deep-rooted suited for arid zones.
• The seed germination of 3-4 weeks.
• In Punjab, the best time of planting ber is during February - March and in monsoon during July or September.
• Ber planting distance of 8 m × 8m.
• Best pruning time is during May.

Ber, Ziziphus mauritiana is indigenous to India and was called as poor man’s fruit earlier. But now it has become a good source of income to the orchardists, in the arid and semi-arid regions of the country, mainly with the development of new varieties. A number of insect pests (around 150) infest the ber tree but only few are the major ones, the description of which is provided below:

Fruit fly, Carpomya vesuviana Costa (Tephritidae: Diptera)

It is a major pest of ber in all the ber growing regions and proves as a bottleneck in its production and productivity. It is monophagous and develops only in fruits of Ziziphus spp. Most of the cultivated varieties are susceptible to this direct pest. The eggs are small, elongate, spindle shaped and creamy white. Maggots are creamy white (Plate 9a) and slightly smaller than maggots of other fruit flies. Pupae are barrel shaped and brown. Adults are smaller than housefly, brownish yellow with brown longitudinal stripes on the thorax. This fruit fly can be distinguished easily from other species due to distinctive pattern of black marks on the scutum and scutellum (Plate 9a). Wings are hyaline with four yellow cross bands.

It is the most significant international convention in the field of protecting copyright. The Berne Convention deals with the protection of works and the rights of their authors. It is based on three basic principles and contains a series of provisions determining the minimum protection to be granted, as well as special provisions available to developing countries that want to make use of them. The Berne Convention, signed on 9 September, 1886, was revised at Paris in 1896 and at Berlin in 1908, completed at Berne (Switzerland) in 1914, revised at Rome in 1928, at Brussels in 1948, at Stockholm in 1967 and at Paris in 1971, and was amended in 1979.

They are short duration crops. Fodder is available for use in short period, e.g., cowpea and soybean can be harvested within 50-60 days of sowing. Being short duration crops, they can fit well in the gaps between two crops or seasons as catch crop.

Introduction
 Banana is a common man's fruit grown in about seven lakh ha area in India. Apart from fruit, banana crop generate huge quantity of waste biomass in the form of pseudostem, leaves, suckers, etc. This biomass is absolute waste in most of the states of India as of now. Further farmers are spending about Rs. 15000 to 20000/ha for disposing off this waste from their fields. The present mode of disposing off pseudostem waste in nallas, borrow pits, road side, burning etc., which are causing environmental problems. In order to utilize this waste particularly pseudostem for developing different products, a project titled; “A Value Chain on Utilization of Banana Pseudostem for Fibre and Other Value Added Products” was sanctioned under NAIP in consortium mode by ICAR, New Delhi during 2008. The project entitled, “Establishment of Secondary Agriculture unit for skill development in students and farmers” was sanctioned by PIU, under the aegis of NAHEP-CAAST sub project in 2018. Under this project “Value addition and waste management of horticultural produces” was examined in special reference to banana pseudostem as supplemental raw material for NOVEL pesticide and fungicide. In view of this, Soil and Water Management Research Unit, N.A.U., Navsari have worked in consortium comprises of Central Institute for Research on Cotton Technology (CIRCOT), ICAR, Mumbai, Manmade Textile Research Association (MANTRA), Surat and J. K. Mills Ltd., Songadh as the partners. The basic aim of this project was to develop different value added products using presently waste banana pseudostem as raw material. As envisaged in project proposal, the value added products viz; Fibre and nonwoven fabrics, handmade papers and boards, vermi-compost, enriched sap (NAUROJI Novel organic liquid nutrient) and candy have been developed which are techno economically viable. The viability is substantiated by the fact that more than ten private parties have already signed MoU with NAU, Navsari for commercial production and marketing of organic liquid nutrient prepared using banana pseudostem sap and central core candy. Simultaneously, processes for the products like microcrystalline cellulose from Fibre, sap as a mordant in textile dying, pseudostem scutcher based vermicompost as fish feed, etc. have also been standardized during the current project period. This has become possible due to highly dedicated efforts put in by the team of scientists from all the four partners and full moral boosting supports by their authorities in implementing the project smoothly.

Revolutionizing skin cancer detection
The diagnostic process for skin cancer is evolving. Physicians have in the past relied upon physical exams to be followed by scanning and biopsies taking anywhere between 15 days to return results. Although most abnormalities turn out to be non-cancerous, this is distressing to patients and contributes to healthcare costs. Additionally, certain growths that turn out to be cancerous remain undiagnosed since they have not been visible.
Breakthrough startup Damae Medical is set to reverse this process. The startup has developed an advanced probe that is able to take 3D images of the skin to unveil the full extent of abnormalities in real time. This enables doctors to diagnose in an instant, enabling improved personalized treatment. When an operation is required only diseased tissue is removed to prevent unnecessary treatments and improved outcomes in patients.
The Origins in the Institut d’Optique
The beginnings of Damae Medical can be traced to Palaiseau-based Institut d’Optique where in 2013 two photonics students envisaged potential in an emerging imaging tech. Together with the inventor himself in 2014, they cofounded Damae Medical by taking an exclusive license to the core family of patents held by three partner institutions. While this contract was beneficial in launching the company to an early growth spurt, in the long run created difficulty in exercising control. This was resolved by taking an equity-forcontrol purchase in 2019 by Damae to acquire the foundational patent

1. Introduction

The Online Dictionary of Library and Information Science (ODLIS) defines best practice as, “in the application of theory to real-life situations, procedures that, when properly, applied consistently yield superior results and are therefore use as reference points in evaluation of the effectiveness of alternative methods of accomplishing the same task. Best practices are identified by examining empirical evidence of success”. Commonly, best practices are those services, which satisfy the respective users’ community on their desired level. Earlier, best practice term was used in the manufacturing industries for implementation of benchmarking methods so that ultimate quality results may be achieved. But later on the term “best practice” has also been used in academia and other fields as well. The mandate of any library is to work according to the informational needs of the user’s and other facilities, which are desired by the users. The service delivery pattern has totally been changed gradually due to the technological impacts and ever changing needs of the users. Now library users’ wants quality information services, which satisfy their needs so it becomes necessary for any library to provide the satisfactory services in the best and desired way. Best practices can play a major role in the comprehensive development of any academic institute and the agricultural university libraries are not exception to it.