E-Readiness of Development Functionaries for Agricultural Development

Basavaprabhu Jirli, Ashok Rai, Deoraj, Pushpendra Saroj¹, Manveer Singh, Ashok Kumar, Arun kumar and Pushpendra Kumar

Department of Extension Education, Institute of Agricultural Sciences,

Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi – 221005

¹ Subject Matter Specialist (Agril. Ext.) KVK, Lower subansiri, Arunachal Pradesh,

E-mail: bjirli@gmail.com

Introduction

Direct, experiential acquisition of knowledge is the most proper form of information acquisition. There is a universal assumption that man was born innocent or ignorant and should actively seek knowledge. Information seeking is thus a natural and necessary mechanism of human existence. The present era is the era of information and knowledge revolution. Many electronic resources are available. The increase in information availability on the web has affected information seeking behavior. Innumerable types of information, in a large variety of containers and in many different locations, are all available in one place. In the modern society, the types of information and the media which present them have become manifold and multifarious, offering men and women a vast selection.

 Information and communication technologies (ICTs) are devices to transmit information from source to receiver without noise. The word ICT was verbalized by Stevenson in the year 1997 in his report entitled “Information and communication technology in UK School; An independent enquiry” to the government and promoted the new national curriculum document. It is to denote a wide range of services, application and technologies, using various types of equipments and softwares, often running over telecommunication network (De and Jirli 2010). It is not only the technology but also the function in access to knowledge, information and communication.

 Access to information and communication technologies (ICTs) implies access to channels and modes of communication that are not bound by the barriers. New forms of social organizations and productive activities have been emerged, which if nurtured, can become transformational factors as important as the technology itself.

 The ICTs are creating new opportunities to bridge the gap between information haves and information have-nots in the developing countries. The task force on ‘India as knowledge superpower’ emphasized the need to harness ICTs for societal transformation. More than 70% population lives in rural India. The agriculturally rich developing countries like India need to harness ICT potential in bringing about the agricultural and rural development. The importance of information and communication technologies in agriculture is not new, and many traditional methods of managing and communicating information will continue to be critical for agricultural development.

 The initiatives in dissemination of technology in agriculture and allied enterprises are summarized as Milk Collection Centres (Gujarat), Gyandoot (Madhya Pradesh), Bhoomi Project (Karnataka), Warna  Wired village Project (Maharashtra), Info village (Pondicherry), Community Information Centres (NEH Regian), Tarahhat.com(U.P.), e-choupal(ICT), Tamil Nilam Touch Screen Project (Tamilnadu), Samaikya Agritech Pvt. Ltd. (A.P.), Friends (Kerla), Mahiti Shakti (Gujrat), Computer-aided Administration of Registration Department (A.P.), Janmitra (Rajasthan), Self-Employed Women’s Association (Gujrat), N-long Tele centers Project (Tamilnadu), Drishtee Tele centers (Rajasthan), e-Shringhla Inormation kiosk Scheme (Kerala), Action Aid- Bolangir (Oriisa), Gyan Ganga Project (Gujrat), Akshaya (Kerala), SATCOM (M.P.), Teja TV (A.P.), E-TV (A.P.), KVK (ICAR) and EDUSAT(Karnataka). The events in this line makes it clear that development institutions have excelled in bringing the modern technological packages at the farmers door step with the help of varies instruments units which help KVKs to improve their services further based on the needs of the farmer communities. There have been some initiatives in India where ICTs are used for agricultural developments which organisations in which most projects are used the concentrates only on technology and not on capacity building.

 The new paradigm of agricultural development in India necessitates incorporation of Information Technology for driving over all societal transformations. The majority of ICTs applications in agriculture are still in pilot stage and the success rate of these applications are very limited. Access of Information and improved communication is a crucial requirement for agricultural development which is directly related to social and economic development. However, it is observed that rural population still have difficulty in accessing crucial information to make timely decision. There is a gap between information rich and information poor and it is getting wider. New technologies are generating possibilities to solve problems of rural poverty, inequality and getting opportunity to bridge the gap between information rich and information poor so as to support sustainable development in rural and agricultural communities.

 ICT revives the social organizations and productive activity of agriculture, which if nurtured effectively, could become the factor for transformation. Agricultural extension, in the current scenario of rapidly changing world, is recognized as an essential mechanism for delivering information and knowledge packages as input to modern farming, harnessing ICTs in agricultural development is inevitable. Most of the isolated initiatives in India in this regard, are location specific, isolated and confined to small area. However, it is increasingly felt that the policy makers and agricultural departments need to develop a full-fledged strategy to harness ICTs in agricultural development at national, regional and state level. But the question remains, are our development functionaries e-ready to take-up the desired task?, how can we draw the lines between extension educators and extension service providers? An effort is being made to address these issues in the following paragraphs.

 In-tension of Ex-tension:

By attaching the meaning to the term extension, "extending" relevant and useful information to the adult population at large, extensionist’s have assumed their responsibility on their own. Also they have tried their level best to differentiate education of extension science with formal education and they tried to find their own place in the ocean of education. Also it is pivotal to note that good number of extension studies throughout have proved that friends and neighbours are the most trusted sources of information, hence, In-tension of Ex-tension emphasizes on development and strengthening of “Neighbourhood Extension” System.

 In all these efforts it is emphasized enough on the term ‘Ex-tension’, the term ‘In-Tension’ remained unexplored. What I mean to say is now it is opportune time to look into the term ‘in-tension’ holistically. The term ‘in-tension of ex-tension’ is conceptualized as “the degree to which the philosophy, content, ideas, notions, objectives, principles, theory and models of ‘ex-tension’ have been internalized by the extensionists” (Jirli and De 2010). The term Extension Education as defined by J. P. Leagans (1961) Extension education is an applied science consisting of content derived from research, accumulated field experiences and relevant principles derived from behavioural sciences synthesized with useful technology into a body of philosophy, principles, content and methods focused on the problems of out of school education for adults and youth. The definition is emphasizing on research output, service and education. These things can better be realized by internalizing the philosophy, content, ideas, notions, objectives, principles, theory and models of ‘ex-tension’ hence it is opportune time to ‘In-Tensionise’ the process of ‘Ex-Tension’ . In-Tensionised Extension at its root can provide potential answers to burning questions that are before development professionals. An understanding of the history of extension helps in understanding the concept of In-Tensionsionsed Extension. This In-Tensionised extension system will have a new dimension when it is integrated with e-readiness. This is a holistic integration in the sense the extension educationist and extension service providers both are becoming equipped with ICTs. Conceptually it looks like an utopian idea. But in the long run with concerted and committed efforts by all the actors of development its becoming a reality.

 There is need to analyze the hairline differences between the Extension Educationist and Extension Service Provider. Many times we consider both terms as synonymous. There is lot of difference between the same.

Extension Educationist: is a person with the background of agriculture and specialization of extension science and provides the knowledge and skills of extension and communication tools and techniques to the Extension Service Providers at regular intervals to bring the desirable changes in the behavior of Extension Service Providers.

 Extension Service Provider: is a person with the background of agriculture and specialization in the disciplines of agricultural and/or allied sciences who is serving a public or private institution and meant for dissemination of the technological advances to the intended communities and institutions based on needs after acquiring the extension and communication tools and techniques from Extension Educationist.

 A lot is being discussed regarding information communication technologies. Be it the developed, developing or under developed worlds, everybody is for ICT application in all the sectors. But to put these information communication technologies into effectual function an individual, society, state and the country must be “e-ready”. The CSPP’s guide to E-Readiness defines an ‘e-ready’ community is one which has high-speed access in a competitive market; with constant access and application of ICTs in schools, government offices, businesses, healthcare facilities and homes; use privacy and online security; and government policies which are "favorable to promoting connectedness and use of the Network. e-readiness is the measure of the quality of country's information community technology (ICT) infrastructure and ability of its consumers, businesses and Government to use ICT for their benefit. The Asian Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) group defines a country as e-ready that is 'ready' for e-commerce, has free trade, industry self-regulation, ease of exports, and compliance with international standards and trade agreements. World Economic Forum Consultation Report on E-Readiness defines E-Readiness as the ability of the ICT networks to effectively adapt to the social and economic advancement.

 Since the concept of “e-readiness” is relatively innovative, it can be visualized at different levels. Because the dynamic nature of Information Communication Technologies force the end-users to always be updated with the latest developments. Hence e-readiness can be conceptualized as “e-readiness is the degree to which an individual is able to afford information and communication technology tools and techniques, possess Skill of application of ICT tools and techniques for his/her development and he/she can access the communication tools and has the necessary infrastructure and policy support to exploit the potentials of ICT”. The primary level of readiness includes the individual e-readiness, then the Institutional, the state or the nation will automatically become in the “ready”. Hence an attempt has been made to define the concept of “e-readiness” at three levels (Individual, Institutional and National).

 Individual e-readiness:Individual e-readiness is the degree to which an individual is able to afford information and communication technology tools and techniques, possess Skill of application of ICT tools and techniques for his/her development and he/she can access the communication tools and has the necessary infrastructure and policy support to exploit the potentials of ICT”

 Institutional e-readiness: is the degree to which an institution possesses infrastructure, network accessibility, policy support and can afford to acquire and effectively utilize ICTs. Also it should possess sufficient skilled manpower to efficiently and effectively utilize the available ICT infrastructure.

 National e-readiness: is the degree to which a nation possesses necessary infrastructure, internetwork accessibility, affordability, policy support and the human resource with necessary skills to acquire, access, utilize ICTs.

 People in Indian villages might be unaware of the word computer, but with increasing usage of PCs in urban areas in the last few years, India has reached 58th position in the world on e-readiness ranking for the year 2009, reports PTI. e-readiness is the measure of the quality of country's information community technology (ICT) infrastructure and ability of its consumers, businesses and Government to use ICT for their benefit. Indian Government launched National Knowledge Network at an outlay of 5,990 crore, to interconnect all universities, libraries, laboratories, hospitals and agricultural institutions to enable them to share data and resources over high speed information network. Also, the Government is planning to connect all village panchayats through broadband internet connection in three years.

 The government is making every effort to make the country e-ready, but at the same time there should be reciprocation from the target group also. There should be participation from the community and community should make efforts to be media literate. In the similar way we need to develop e-ready extension educationsit and e-ready extension service provider.

 An e-ready Extension Educationist is a person with the background of agriculture and specialization of extension science and is able to access, afford and exercise the ICT tools and techniques and has the necessary skills to get himself/herself updated with the communication technological developments along with necessary agricultural technologies. 

 An e-ready Extension Service Provider is a person with the background of agriculture and specialization in the disciplines of agricultural and/or allied sciences who is serving a public or private institution and meant for dissemination of the technological advances to the intended communities and institutions based on needs and is able to access afford and exercise the ICT tools and techniques and has the necessary skills to get himself/herself updated with the communication technological developments (Jirli and De 2011).

 Against the backdrop of the above said discussion, an attempt was made to study the gain in knowledge of improved wheat cultivation practices due to mobile learning interventions.

Methodology

The study was conducted in Shivrajpur block in Kanpur district. The Villages selected were Ratanpur, Joravarpur and Dadupur. The total number of farmers selected as the respondents of this study was 75. Experimental research design, before and after experiment was adopted for the study. For the purpose of study two dependent variables namely knowledge level of the farmers before mobile learning and knowledge level of the farmers after mobile learning, and six independent variables were selected. The selected independent variables were age, education, land holdings, family income and occupation. In order to measure the impact of mobile learning, the interview schedule was prepared. The data were collected on same set of questionnaire before and after the application of mobile learning and direct questioning to the selected farmers.

 Experiments on perceptions of extension professionals and m-learning of farmers

A study was conducted to analyze the difference between the perception of Extension educationists and Extension Service Providers of state Agricultural Universities and ICAR organizations spread throughout the country was studied. The results of the study states that the majority of extension researcher (78%) are come under medium level of perception, 9% are come under high level of perception and 13% are come under low level of perception regarding ICT in extension service. In case of extension service providers majority (73%) are come under medium level of perception , 14% are come under high level of perception and 13% are come under low level of perception regarding ICT in extension service.The results of ‘z’ test indicated that the Z-value was non-significantly related with the difference in perception level between extension educationists and extension service provider regarding ICT, in extension service. Hence, the study confirms the null hypothesis that there is no difference in perception level between the extension researcher and extension provider regarding ICTs in extension service.

Table – 1 Knowledge gain by m-Learning in Shivarajpur Block of Kanpur District
Sl No	Activities	Before m-Learning	After m-Learning	Difference	‘Z’ Calculated
1	Land Preparation	60.22	66.12	5.9	1.84NS
2	Irrigation Management	63.56	68.89	5.33	1.88NS
3	Seeds and Sowing	55.00	64.17	9.17	3.46*
4	Fertilizer Management	55.56	61.11	5.55	1.95NS
5	Plant Protection Measures	38.67	68.89	30.22	11.89*
6	Harvesting and Marketing	51.11	63.56	12.4	8.96*

 

Keeping the perceptions of extension educators and extension service providers another study was conducted to assess the ‘m-learning’ of farmers in Shivarajpur block of Kanpur district revealed that there was significant difference in gain in knowledge in seeds and sowing, plant protection measures and harvesting and marketing aspects. Extension professionals were ready to provide services and at the same time farmers were ready to accept services which are of their need. All these aspects where the difference was significant in the areas which are directly related to market. The study indicates that farmers are becoming e-ready, the beginning is through mobile services. In due course of time they will be prepare themselves for e-mediated extension services.

 The potential value of mobile learning to facilitate information access is that it could allow the delivery of tailored information, as and when needed by the farmer. For this to be realised, the farmer must know, ‘trust’ and be able to connect with a range of information sources that can meet his information needs. Several farmers in our study group noted that they felt mobile learning had the potential to be a more reliable source to obtain information as compared to other available sources – mainly because they felt that mobile communication was more personalised.

 Conclusion

It is evident from the experiments on computer literacy for low or illiterate communities (the average time for gaining familiarity with basics (Win 95) - 2 weeks, time taken to transact data on wireless - 3 sittings, time taken to gain preliminary knowledge of HTML - 1 week, word 97 - 2 days, power Point 97 - 1 week and use of Win 95 keyboard for Tamil Fonts - 10 days) the extensionists can become e-ready in the shortest possible time but the perquisites are affordability, network accessibility, policy support and necessary skills to acquire the same. The efforts of knowledge economy can develop e-ready extension professionals in the shortest possible time. There was significant difference in gain in knowledge through m-learning by farmers for the elements which have economic implications. e-ready extension professional can deliver better services with accountability to the target communities. It can wipe out the differences between the reached and unreached. At last, e-readiness is a state of mind if you wish; you will be e-ready.